CHICAGO — Jet Support Services, Inc. (JSSI) reports that Louis C. Seno, chairman emeritus and a member of the board of directors, has earned the Wright Brothers Master Pilot Award.
The FAA Wright Brothers Master Pilot designation recognizes individuals who have exhibited professionalism, skill and aviation expertise for at least 50 years while actively piloting aircraft.
The award was presented to Seno by Patrick M. Ryan, FAA Safety Team Program Manager-Operations for the FAA Great Lakes Region Flight Standards Division, at a ceremony recently conducted at the Pentastar Aviation facility at Oakland County International Airport (KPTK) in Pontiac, Michigan.
Patrick Ryan (left) present the award to Lou Seno.
Seno is a life-long aviation enthusiast, aircraft owner, and advocate for general aviation. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot certificate along with a Cessna Citation Jet type rating, including single pilot endorsement.
Accomplishing his first solo at age 16, he has accrued more than 6,500 hours of flying time in numerous piston and turbine aircraft and currently owns a Beechcraft Bonanza Model F33A and Aviat Husky Model A-1B on amphibious floats.
Lou and his Bonanza.
“It is an honor to be recognized by the FAA for this Master Pilot award and I am thrilled to join this outstanding group of aviators that represent the first pilots in the United States, the Wright Brothers,” commented Seno. “Aviation and the spirit of flying have always been an important part of my life and always will be. I would like to thank my family, my wife, and all my colleagues and friends in the aviation community that have supported me and my passion for flying all these years.”
Active in many aviation associations during his flying career, Lou is a lifetime member of American Bonanza Society, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, Experimental Aircraft Association and currently serves on the EAA Board of Directors. As a member of the General Aircraft Manufacturers Association (GAMA), he serves on the GAMA Board of Directors and is a member of its Communications Committee.
He is also an active member of the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), National Aircraft Resellers Association (NARA), National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA), and is an Accredited Aircraft Appraiser certified through the American Society of Appraisers.
Lou’s original aviation roots go back to when he was a young boy growing up in a Chicago suburb. Lou and his father began assembling their first homebuilt aircraft in 1956, a Corben Baby Ace Model “D” open cockpit, high wing parasol with a Continental C-85-12 engine in the basement of his childhood home.
Lou departing Oshkosh in the Corben Baby Ace in 1965.
Years later, they would build several more homebuilt aircraft and successfully compete for awards at AirVenture. Lou has attended 62 consecutive EAA AirVentures since he first went with his father as a 6-year old boy, only missing the first two events in its long 64-year history.
Lou’s fascination with flying led to his ownership of several aircraft over the years and an extensive career in business aviation with Boeing Capital, GE Capital, JSSI, and Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
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