Fred George

Chief Aircraft Evaluation Editor

Redmond, Oregon

Summary

Fred formerly served as senior editor and chief pilot with Business & Commercial Aviation and as Aviation Week & Space Technology's chief aircraft evaluation pilot. He has flown left seat in virtually every turbine-powered business jet produced in the past three decades. He now is managing member of Fred George Aero LLC of Redmond, Oregon.

He has flown more than 195 makes, models and variants, ranging from the Piper J-3 Cub through the latest Boeing and Airbus large twins, logging more than 7,000 hours of flight time. He has earned an Airline Transport Pilot certificate and six jet aircraft type ratings, and he remains an active pilot. Fred also specializes in avionics, aircraft systems and pilot technique reports.

Fred was the first aviation journalist to fly the Boeing 787, Airbus A350 and Gulfstream G650, among other new turbofan aircraft. He’s also flown the Airbus A400M, Howard 500, Airship 600, Dassault Rafale, Grumman HU-16 Albatross and Lockheed Constellation.

Prior to joining Aviation Week, he was an FAA designated pilot examiner [CE-500], instrument flight instructor and jet charter pilot and former U.S. Naval Aviator who made three cruises to the western Pacific while flying the McDonnell-Douglas F-4J Phantom II.

Fred has won numerous aviation journalism awards, including NBAA’s David W. Ewald Platinum Wing Lifetime Achievement Award.

Read more

Articles

By Fred George
We asked operators if they favored keeping their aircraft in original condition or whether they thought upgrading was a cost-effective alternative to prolong their useful service lives. We also took an in-depth look at the airplane and its systems to put those views into perspective.
Business Aviation

By Fred George
Facing increased competition, Bombardier has updated its popular super-midsize business jet with improved avionics, more powerful engines, new winglets and cabin enhancements. For a modest price increase, the resulting Challenger 350 provides a significant increase in value.
Business Aviation

By Fred George
At the time, I’d do anything to get 1,000 hr. of turbine PIC to qualify for the airlines,” said a young first officer who now flies jetliners for a commuter air carrier. “Everyone who flies for them is hungry for turbine flight time.” So, when offered a job as a twin-turboprop captain flying freight on an inter-island carrier, he jumped at the opportunity. It was a big step up from his previous assignment as a copilot in an Embraer Brasilia.
Business Aviation