D.O.M. Blogs

As I'm writing this, it's the end of day two at NBAA-BACE 2025 in Las Vegas. The D.O.M. magazine team has had a busy two days with lots of conversations at our booth, plenty of press conferences and seminars, and walking the show floor looking for new products and services for aircraft maintenance professionals. 

A popular topic this year has been artificial intelligence (AI) in aviation — including AI in aircraft maintenance. 

On July 29, the US Senate Committee on Commerce, Science, & Transportation issued a press release announcing that Committee Chairman Senator Ted Cruz has introduced the Rotorcraft Operations Transparency and Oversight Reform (ROTOR) Act to improve aviation safety. The bill comes six months to the day after the tragic January 29th midair collision near Ronald Reagan Washington National Airport (DCA).

In an upcoming article in our June/July issue of Helicopter Maintenance magazine, Mike Broderick discusses communication in the workplace. It reminded me of a past article on Lack of Communication that D.O.M. magazine contributor Gordon Dupont wrote. Here are some communication tips he shares (you can read his full article at dommagazine.com/article/lack-communication):

Some Don’ts

The D.O.M. magazine team will be at the NBAA Maintenance Conference in Columbus, OH April 29 – May 1. If you will be at the conference, please stop by our booth and say Hi. We welcome the opportunity to talk with you!

If you have never attended an NBAA Maintenance Conference before, I would encourage you to do so. The conference has plenty of educational sessions for aircraft maintenance professionals — from DOMs to mechanics. If you work in the business aviation field, this conference is for you!

This is the busiest time of year for our sales team. They are working with our advertisers and potential advertisers lining up their advertising schedules for the year. Being in sales is tough, and I admire those who are successful doing it. Just like in business publishing, aviation maintenance operations couldn't be successful if it weren't for successful sales professionals.

I met with the Honorable John Goglia, former NTSB Board member, at NBAA last week. He shared some good news with Greg Napert and me — he recently was informed he will be inducted in the 2025 class of the National Aviation Hall of Fame next September

The D.O.M. magazine team has been in Vegas this week attending NBAA-BACE 2024.

One of the big topics being discussed is the taxing situation some corporate flight departments are finding themselves in.

Just prior to NBAA-BACE, NBAA hosted its annual Tax, Regulatory and Risk Management Conference. A major topic discussed at the conference (has continued through NBAA-BACE) was the targeted IRS audits of some companies and individuals operating corporate flight departments.

Not the best headline for the start of blog, but I was just reading about the two Delta maintenance personnel who were killed and a third who was injured at a Delta wheel and brake shop near the Hartsfield-Jackson international Airport in Atlanta.

Greg Napert and I will be traveling to East Alton, IL on August 27th to help celebrate the grand opening of West Star Aviation’s Hangar 67. Weather permitting, we’ll be taking an air trip in Greg’s Sundowner from Fort Atkinson International Airport to East Alton. If Mother Nature doesn’t cooperate, we’ll be taking a road trip to East Alton. 

West Star has been a long-time partner with D.O.M. magazine since our launch in 2008, and Greg and I are looking forward to the event.