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.
In July, the Lincoln, Nebraska-headquartered business aviation maintenance and modification company reported joining the Robotic Skies network to service “the emerging commercial unmanned aircraft fleet.” “Duncan Aviation has always been in the forefront of new industry trends,” said Don Fiedler, the company’s Business Development for Avionics and Instruments, adding, “We see a promising and growing future for unmanned aircraft systems.” With service centers located throughout North America, South America, Australia, New Zealand and
Elliott Aviation, based in Moline, Illinois, has gained FAA supplemental type certificate for the activation and use of all Gogo Business Aviation Wi-Fi products in Embraer’s Phenom 300. The STC also allows for operation of Gogo’s UCS 5000, an all-in-one smart router and media server. The service includes the Gogo Vision cabin entertainment system. Gogo Vision is an on-demand, inflight entertainment system for business aviation to provide movies, TV episodes, news, weather, flight progress and other information. Elliott is an authorized Phenom 100 and 300 service center.
If you happen to operate a Meyers/Aero Commander 200 — unlikely, since fewer than 130 were built during its production run from 1959 to 1967 — there’s been an encouraging development. GlobalParts.aero, an Augusta, Kansas, parts manufacturer, has acquired the type certificate for the four-place single piston aircraft from its owner in Texas and plans to support the fleet with spare parts. “This opportunity came out of nowhere,” GlobalParts Vice President Malissa Nesmith said.