Members of the National Association of State Aviation Officials (NASAO) have elected Gary Cathey, Chief of the Division of Aeronautics, California Department of Transportation, as Chairman of the Board of Directors for 2016.
He has been a member of NASAO since January 2009 and previously served as NASAO’s vice chairman, treasurer and secretary of the board.
“These are very important times for aviation,” said Cathey. “A new FAA authorization could contain major changes in how our system is funded and governed. New technologies such as implementation of NextGen technology and the integration of unmanned aircraft systems into the NAS challenge current thinking and practices.”
“As the only aviation organization representing the public’s interest at the state and federal level, NASAO will be working to help shape important decisions which we will live with for decades,” he added. “It is an honor to be chosen to lead this organization at such a critical time.”
Cathey accepted the gavel during NASAO’s 84th Annual Convention and Trade Show, held last week in Boise, Idaho. He has served on the NASAO Center for Aviation Research and Education Board of Directors, Finance Committee, AASHTO/NASAO Standing Committee on Aviation, Land Use Committee and as a Regional Director.
Also elected to the board were Brad Brandt (Louisiana), Vice Chair; Ronnie Mitchell (Nebraska), Treasurer; and Cassandra Isackson (Minnesota), Secretary. Carol Comer, Georgia, the 2015 Chair, will continue as Immediate Past Chair.
Brandt, the aviation section director for the Louisiana Department of Transportation & Development, has been a member of NASAO for six years and has served as Secretary and Treasurer on the Board of Directors. In addition to the Executive Committee, Brandt has served on the Center Board of Directors, AASHTO/NASAO Standing Committee on Aviation, Engineering and Events Task Groups and has served as a Regional Director.
Mitchell, the director of the Nebraska Department of Aeronautics, has been a member of NASAO since August 2009 and was elected Treasurer of the Board of Directors. He has been an active member of the Center Board of Directors, Land Use Committee and served as a Regional Director.
Isackson, the director of the aeronautics office of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, was elected Secretary of the Board of Directors and has been a member of NASAO since April 2009. Isackson is Chair of the Air Service Committee.
As immediate past chair, Comer, Director, Division of Intermodal, Georgia Department of Transportation, continues to serve on the NASAO Executive Committee. A member of NASAO since February 2008, Comer has held all of the offices of the board.
Members elected to serve as Regional Directors for 2015/16 include Dennis Byrne (Wyoming), representing the Northwest Mountain Region; David M. Greene (Wisconsin), Great Lakes Region; Amy Ludwig (Missouri), Central Region; Ashish Solanki (Maryland), Eastern Region; Kelly Fredericks (Rhode Island), New England Region; Mike Klein (Arizona), Western-Pacific Region; Steve Summers (New Mexico), Southwest Region; and Bobby Walston (North Carolina), will represent the Southern Region. The board members each serve a one year term from Oct. 1, 2015 through Sept. 30, 2016.