Bill was Editor-in-Chief of Business & Commercial Aviation from 2000 to 2020. During his stewardship, the monthly magazine received scores of awards for editorial excellence.
He is the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement in Journalism Award from the National Business Aviation Association; the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Aerospace Media Awards; the Aviation Journalism Award from the National Air Transportation Association; and an Aerospace Journalist of the Year Award for Business Aviation.
Previously, Bill served as Managing Editor of Aviation Week Television. He was the top editor for both Flying and Professional Pilot magazines, as well as a member of the senior editorial staff at Reader's Digest. He also managed communications for FlightSafety International.
Bill has authored or co-authored three aviation books, was an essayist for National Public Radio, wrote aviation documentaries for The Discovery Channel and has written for numerous publications including The New York Times, Smithsonian Air & Space, Popular Mechanics and The Associated Press, among others.
An active aviator, Bill holds a Commercial Pilot license, along with multiengine, instrument, seaplane and glider ratings.
Leo Windecker, whose Eagle I was the first all-composite aircraft awarded type and production certificates by the FAA, died Feb. 13 in Cedar Park, Tex. He was 88. Windecker and his wife, Fairfax, both dentists, worked with Dow Chemical Co. to develop lightweight fiberglass-reinforced plastic structures for aviation use. Windecker’s four-place, single-engine, retractable-gear aircraft earned certification in December 1969. Only nine aircraft, including prototypes, were built before the Windecker company failed. The U.S.
Milestones: Dassault Falcon Jet is scheduled to deliver three Falcon 7X business jets to private operators in China in March, doubling the number of Falcons in that country . . . . . Pilatus Aircraft delivered 100 PC-12NG single-engine turboprops in 2009, a record for the Swiss planemaker . . . . . The 100th Bombardier Challenger 605 entered service in February; more than 800 aircraft in the 600 series of business jets have been delivered by the Montreal manufacturer . . . . .
The Transportation Security Administration plans to take another crack at its controversial Large Aircraft Security Plan (LASP) when it meets with general aviation representatives Mar. 9-10. The restriction in the original LASP proposal, which covered all private aircraft weighing more than 12,500 lb., drew such a storm of protest from operators across the U.S. that the agency agreed to rework the plan. Ultimately, changes expected include raising the minimum weight of aircraft covered and lifting bans on carrying tools and sports equipment onboard aircraft.
