Jim has spent his entire career working in the field of aviation. He has been a private pilot since 1988 and earned his B.S. in Aviation from Florida Institute of Technology. He started his career with a startup aircraft operator, eventually growing to the position of Chief Financial Officer. The company, STI Aviation, operated three divisions; airline background investigations, an FAA Part 145 repair facility, and aviation-centered government contracting. Eventually the third division became the bulk of the company’s focus given the growing movement to outsource niche government services. As a result, his experience included supporting Department of Defense and United Nations projects in Canada, Africa, the Caribbean and South America, along with DoD projects domestically. STI Aviation evolved through multiple iterations, eventually being absorbed into AAR Corp.
Jim joined AirFleet in 1999, and in 2019 he was appointed President of AirFleet, responsible for strategic planning and overseeing all functions of the company. Jim is a proud lifetime member of AOPA, EAA, and the Seaplane Pilots’ Association. He served for 9 years on the Board of Directors of the National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA), with four terms as President. He also serves as Chair of the NAFA Education Committee and a Director for the NAFA Foundation, and is a Director and Officer for Alpha Eta Rho’s national office (a 97-year old aviation association with over 65,000 alumni). Aviation is a family pastime – his wife, Cathy is also a pilot, holding instrument and seaplane ratings.
