Elected Officers and Directors

Hello, on behalf of the RedStar Pilots Association, I would like to welcome you to our virtual online headquarters here at Flyredstar and the Governance section of our website. Here you can reflect on the democratic system the membership has voted in place through a 2005 National Referendum reflected in the public By-Laws which are posted online for your review. This change, among other things, allows for a nine member board of directors that both represents our International membership, and our North American regional membership.

Whether you are an aircraft owner, future owner or enthusiast, we hope you join us as we continue to build one of the finest aviation organizations around -

Darrell "Condor" Gary - rdgary@windstargroup.com
President/Operations Officer
Southwest Regional RPA Member

David McGirt - david@mcgirt.net
Vice President
Southeast Regional RPA Member

Ron Lee - ronlee@rjlpartners.com
Secretary/Treasurer
Southwest Regional RPA Member

The RedStar Pilots Association is fully democratic!

The Board is made of 9 members elected by the membership. Terms last three years. The Board of Directors then take member nominations for National Officer positions and elect the President, Vice President, Treasurer and Secretary. National Officers also serve for 3 years. Please see the "Elections" section for a complete discription of the Nomination and Election process for Directors and National Officers.

The current Board of Directors:

Email the president at: rdgary@windstargroup.com or the Vice President at david@mcgirt.net

BoD member email addresses are located in the "member locator" section of services.

Brief History of the RedStar Pilots Association:

Originally started as the Yak Pilots Club (YPC) founded by Bud Harrell in 1993 with approximately 18 members operating the Nanchang CJ-6A aircraft. The membership expanded to over 200 by 1999 when leadership transitioned to Mike Filucci who established the organization as a non profit named the Yak Pilots Association (YPA) and signed on as signatory to FAST, the Formation And Safety Team program. The membership climbed to approximately 280 members, most operating the CJ-6 and Yak-52 aircraft. In 2002, Drew Blahnick was elected President of the YPA, and through a national referendum, changed the name to the RedStar Pilots Association (RPA) and modified the charter to insure the organization was fully inclusive of both prop and jet aircraft of all types. The RPA then ushered in a new set of bylaws and overhauled the infrstructure (web, magazine, online store) to form a regionalized organization to support growth. Membership has grown to over 400 with members operating all types of jet and prop aircraft. In 2007, Darrell Gary was elected President and Operations Officer by the Board of Directors for a three year term in accordance with the Bylaws.

R.P.A. OFFICERS

STANDARDIZATION/TRAINING OFFICER: Drew Blahnick
Oversee training, standardization of procedures and performance standards throughout the RPA. Lead the Check Pilot group in reviewing and updating the content of the Formation Manual and other training/standardization tools of the association. Oversee online check pilot meetings in compliance with the F.A.S.T. FF&P. Establish standards for conduct and content of association training clinics. Manage open book tests for clinic participation as well as annual Wing, Lead and Check Pilot currency testing.

PUBLIC RELATIONS OFFICER: John Graham
Communicate the mission, organizational goals and activities of the RPA to media outlets. Assist event organizers with news releases and event packages. Assist the Red Star national program in communications with ICAS and the air show organizers.

SAFETY OFFICER: Alan Cockrell
Assemble data on accidents and incidents involving RPA aircraft. Utilize the NTSB, FAA, insurance underwriters and personal interviews to identify circumstances, causes and outcome of occurrences. Disseminate the information to membership without identifying pilot names or location. Look for trends or recommendations in order to optimize the safe operation of our aircraft.

MAINTENANCE INFORMATION OFFICER: Jill Gernetzke
Assemble and disseminate information regarding the maintenance and upgrades of our aircraft. Solicit and review input from all credible sources. Coordinate maintenance articles for publication in Red Alert magazine and any maintenance information posted on the RPA website. Establish a national maintenance directory for parts and maintenance services.

ADMINISTRATION/INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY OFFICER: Heath Frantz
Maintain organizational records. Coordinate annual income tax filing. Coordinate communications from the national office. Schedule Officer/Director meetings. Respond to member questions and concerns. Oversee the RPA website.

MAGAZINE EDITOR: Phil Cogan
Establish an editorial staff. Select, assemble and edit magazine content. Ensure timely publication of the magazine in accordance with predetermined deadlines. Utilize RPA resources to accomplish the task.

STORE MANAGER: Byron Fox
Oversee stock selection and payment of vendors. Conduct sales and report sales results to the national office. Support event organizers in obtaining special orders in support of events. Track and report store receipts for event registration to the national Treasurer. Track and report new members and membership renewal to the national office. Forward all income received to the national treasurer.

RED STAR FORMATION TEAM DIRECTOR: TBD
Interface with ICAS in scheduling air shows and participants. Identify regional teams. Assist in developing communications promoting RPA at Red Star air shows. The Red Star program should not be limited to mass formations. Our goal should be to provide air show organizers with whatever they need from two ship static displays to formation acrobatic routines or mass formations. Develop the national program to provide air show organizers with a menu of options and pricing. Develop a plan to promote Red Stars including promotional materials to be utilized at ICAS and Air shows.