After finding a passion for teaching as a CFI, Dan built a solid instrument scan and gray hair flying a Beech 1900 for Great Lakes without an autopilot across the Midwest. The regional airline flying would routinely include 8 instrument approaches a day (uphill both ways in icing conditions to minimums). His business aviation flying experience spans 4 years in a small Part 91 flight department (1 aircraft / 2 pilots) and 13 years in a large Part 135 operation starting as a SIC and working his way up to managing their training and standards program.
With a philosophy of being a lifetime learner and a stubbornness to re-write a 300+ page dissertation for a 3rd time to free the reader from having to endure the “non-academic” word “it,” Dan holds a Ph.D. in Aerospace Science. He gained membership to the Delta Mu Delta Academic Honor Society for finding 193 academic ways to rephrase “it.”
Inspiration for his Ph.D. dissertation came from Tony Kern and his vision for the Global War on Error. Dan’s FAA sponsored dissertation “Exploring Pilot Reliability Certification and Changing Attitudes on the Reduction of Errors” was published in the Journal of the Transportation Research Record with the data to prove the effectiveness of Convergent Performance’s Pilot Reliability Certification Program. Dan later joined the Convergent Performance team as a part-time lead human factors instructor while continuing to be a full-time pilot.
Dan has served on the NBAA Safety Committee since 2014. First as a member of the Training Advisory Committee and today as the Vice Chairman. Dan also serves on the International Business Aviation Council’s IS-BAO Standards Board as the training subject matter expert and is a reviewer for the Embry Riddle Journal of Aviation/Aerospace Education & Research. Dan’s day job is leading an incredible training team as CEO and a founding partner of Advanced Aircrew Academy.