Forum Leader Biographies

Interview / Career Assistance - Resume Writer
Kathy Sweeney, CPRW, CCM, started The Write Resume in 1987. Ms. Sweeney spent six years in personnel administration and hiring with two major corporations prior to owning her business. Her expertise in airline resume preparation and interview coaching is garnered from 16 years of experience in the airline industry in various management, hiring and front-line positions.

Ms. Sweeney has been a Certified Professional Resume Writer since the early 1990's; one of the first to obtain this prestigious credential. Further, she is 1 of only 45 Career Service Professionals world-wide to hold the esteemed Credentialed Career Master designation.

Her expertise has been featured in newspapers across the nation, including the Chicago Tribune, the Miami Sun, the Philadelphia Enquirer, the Seattle Times and the San Jose Mercury News. She serves as the Career Expert for Jobing.com, 4Hoteliers.com and ERPResumes.com, in addition to participation on several aviation-related websites.

She holds a Bachelor of Science Degree from Northern Arizona University in Technical Writing and Journalism.

Interview / Career Assistance - TIS
Another of our Interview / Career Assistance Forum Leaders has amassed more than 12,000 hours as a pilot across a wide spectrum of aviation industry positions in his 28 years of flying. Having been a pleasure flyer, a flight instructor, a chief pilot, a commuter airline pilot, and a corporate pilot, he has flown light piston-powered singles and twins, as well as small and large turboprops as both a First Officer and as a Captain. He moved into corporate aviation in 1995 and presently flies as a Captain on Gulfstream IIB, III, and IV aircraft line, as well as on Hawker HS-125-700 and 800 series aircraft.

In February of 1990, he was hired as a First Officer for a United Express carrier. Shortly thereafter and beginning with friends and then others by referral, he assisted pilots with understanding and progressing through airline interviews. More than 95% of those he helped gained employment on the first interview after receiving preparation from him. He continues to assist aspiring pilots with the their written and verbal presentations to prospective employers on an informal basis.

He lives and works in the San Francisco Bay Area. He and his wife, who is also a corporate pilot on Falcon 50s and Gulfstream IVs, are raising two daughters, remodeling a house, and maintaining their challenging work schedules.

Major Airlines - UAL78
Our Major Airlines Forum Leader literally started from the ground up, he started as a gas boy at a small airport outside Washington, D.C.  Working on weekends and after school for flying time, he gained ratings and experience to eventually become a flight instructor. Instruction, charter, corporate and lots of "Commuter Airline" experience, as well as becoming a systems instructor for American Airlines, prepared him for his job at a major U.S. carrier (I wonder which one??).  He now is a Captain, flying Boeing 777s both domestically and internationally. He's very happy you're here!

Major Airlines- Eagleflip
Another of our Major Airlines Forum Leaders was born and raised in the great state of Nawth Carolina and earned his undergraduate degree in Business/Econ from NC State, home of the mighty Wolfpack. He was later awarded an MS from the University of Southern California. Entering the Air Force via ROTC in the early 1980's, he flew the F-15C Eagle on three operational tours, participating in multiple combat air patrols over Iraq and Bosnia-Herzegovina, and was an instructor pilot in both the F-15C and the AT-38. Now retired from the AF, he currently flies the Airbus A320 for a major airline and is based in New York. He also works as a part-time consultant for a Washington, DC defense contractor. While he is noticeably homely in appearance, his children are incredibly smart and his wife extremely patient.

LCC / National's - Chperplt
Our LCC / National's & Regionals Forum Leader started flying as a teenager in Southern California. He earned his private flying out of VNY in the late 80s. After high school, he joined the U.S. Army and spent 6 years serving his country. Once his service was compete, he headed back to college where he earned a BS degree as well as a MS degree from Embry Riddle.

After graduation, he obtained his first airline job flying Beech 1900s throughout the North Eastern United States for Colgan Air. After a few years, he left Colgan to pursue an air conditioned cabin flying the CRJ for Comair. He is now a Captain, flying the MD80 for Allegiant Air.

Regional Airlines - T-Gates
Another of our Cargo / Freight Forum Leaders started flying at Peachtree-Dekalb airport in Atlanta at 16, after a few odd jobs, he flew Beech 1900's and CRJ's at regional's before moving to the dark side to Captain Shorts 330's and 360's at an on-demand freight carrier. Later he checked out in the Falcon 20 and soon after was hired into the right seat of a 727 for a 121 supplemental freight carrier.

International Airlines - TyphoonPilot
Our International Airlines Forum Leader started his career in aviation as a lineman at an airport in Southern California. He flight instructed his way through college and was hired by WestAir ( United Express ) in the late 80s shortly after graduating. Being on the tail end of the 80s hiring wave has led him into an itinerant professional career. He made it to a major in 1989 only to be furloughed in 1991. That furlough lasted 8 years and is why he has gone overseas in search of work. The first stint was for three years in Taiwan as an MD-80 Captain and Line Instructor, then with Boeing as an MD-90 Line Check Airman in Saudi Arabia, and now in the UAE as a 777 Captain with Emirates. He now lives in the UAE with his wonderful wife of 10 years and their young son.

Fractionals - Diesel
Our Fractional Forum Leader started flying long before he could see over the instrument panel, his father was his mentor and teacher. At 17 years old he obtained his pilots certificate before he got his drivers license. He started working for a FAR 135 operator at 17 washing and waxing planes. At 18, he was flying fire patrols in northern Maine, then flying float planes and then on to 206’s and 210’s around New England. He soon moved on to the Navajo and King Air 200 while also flying a King Air 90 for various private owners. Being able to fly the King Air in the morning and the float plane in the afternoon was a dream come true. After the death of his boss and at the age of 23 he moved on to NetJets where he became a Citation Ultra Captain followed by being promoted to an IOE instructor. Recently he has moved up to the Citation X and is based out of New England where he enjoys a variety of winter and summer sports.

Corporate Aviation - Falcon Capt
Our Corporate Aviation Forum Leader started flying in the late 1980's and has flown nearly 10,000 hours since his first flight.  After graduating from Embry-Riddle he went on to become a full-time flight instructor at a busy flight school.  After 2 1/2 years of Flight Instructing in single and multi-engine aircraft he was hired at a large FAR 135 Charter operation to fly King Airs, Lears and Falcons.  After 3 1/2 years of Charter he landed a job at one of America's largest Fortune 500 Corporations flying for their flight department. He has been with his current employer for over 11 years and is currently a Senior Captain on the Gulfstream G550/G450 and Falcon 50EX.  During the course of his career to date, he has held the titles of Chief Pilot, Assistant Chief Pilot, Training Manager and Chief Flight Instructor.

Cargo / Freight - TonyC
One of our Cargo / Freight Forum Leader got his first taste of flying in Civil Air Patrol as a cadet. He traded his soul for an education and a promise of pilot training, and was rewarded with worldwide travel courtesy of Air Force Strategic Reconnaissance programs. After a tour of "Enid by the Sea" teaching pedestrians to fly jets (T-37s) and another round of Recce, spending far more than his fair share of months in the desert, he went in search of "greener pastures." Tony now flies for the world's premier express freight giant. If he's logged on to ProPilotWorld in the middle of the night, don't be alarmed - - your package will still be there on time - - absolutely, positively.

Military / Helicopter & Rotorwing / International Ops - Check 6
Our Military Forum Leader received his private pilot's certificate in 1967 in Central California where he grew up. After college the draft board asked him to join the USN and he enjoyed a tour on the USS Midway and later VP-91 a reserve P-3 squadron based at Moffett Field.

In 1992 he completed a 21 year career in law enforcement aviation flying both fixed wing and helicopters as a Special Agent-Pilot Supervisor supporting special operations on the left coast and some other interesting locations south of San Diego and around the U.S.

When he retired from his law enforcement career, he continued in civilian aviation, including EMS, military contract helicopter flying in the Caribbean, and corporate assignments.

In 1999 he moved to Italy and flew highly modified LearJets supporting the USN and other NATO member nations for 6-1/2 years, returning to the U.S. in January 2006.

Training & Flight Instructors - Chicken Taco
Our Flight Instructors and Training Forum Leader is a lifelong Ohio resident and huge Buckeyes fan. He started flying 13 years ago at age 17 at Toledo Suburban Airport, the holder of the unfortunate designation KDUH. He holds an Aviation Studies and Meteorology degree from Bowling Green State University, where he also completed his flight training. His aviation experience includes a stint as an Airport Operations and Community Relations agent for Detroit Metro Airport and a busy season as a jump pilot for Skydive Tecumseh. He joined the regional world with Chautauqua Airlines in 1999. He started as a SAAB 340 FO, and upgraded on that plane just after his 23rd birthday. He has since enjoyed the left seat of the EMB-145 and the EMB-170.

Recently he got tired of crew schedulers running his life and joined FlightSafety International as a simulator instructor.  He now gets to see his family more than once a week and reads this board from home rather than from Holiday Inns.

Aviation Safety - LJDRVR
One of our Aviation Safety Forum Leads started his flying career at the age of sixteen, soloing a Piper Tomahawk in Central Ohio. After graduating from High School, he enlisted in the USAF, completing a nine year stint on active duty serving in a variety of positions to include Presidential Support.

After separating from the military, he was fortunate to find several rubes foolish enough to hire his sorry behind as an Aviator. He worked several years primarily as a tailwheel CFI, followed by a year as a freight-dog. For almost six years, he was a Learjet Captain and company Director of Safety for a large international part 135 operator. Tiring of life on the pager and back-side-of-the-clock flying, he left that position to become a new-hire Embraer 145 First Officer at a large regional airline upgrading to Captain two years later. Shortly thereafter, Continental hired LDRVR, where he currently works as a 737 First Officer.

He is actively involved in human factors and safety systems consulting, aviation safety education and has had several aviation safety and aviation articles published. He currently resides with his wife and children in Houston, TX.

ATC Corner - DBrown
Don Brown worked his way through high school and college as a lineman at the Spartanburg (S.C.) Downtown Airport (SPA), graduating from the University of South Carolina (Spartanburg) in 1980.

Hired by the FAA in November 1981, he graduated from the FAA Academy in Oklahoma City the following February 1982, and was certified as a Full Performance Level Controller in August 1984, at the Atlanta Air Route Traffic Control Center (ZTL).

Don has spent his entire career at ZTL, earning numerous Letters of Appreciation and four Letters of Commendation, including an Outstanding Flight Assist, during his tenure.

Don was also one of the initial founders of the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, and was the very first general (non-officer) member. He was appointed the NATCA Facility Safety Representative for Atlanta Center in 1997 and served in that position until the end of 2005.

A full-time controller, you can find Don in front of a scope and on the frequency five days a week, just like every other controller at the Atlanta Center.