NBAA Welcomes Darren Pleasance as AOPA’s New President, CEO, Thanks Mark Baker for His Service

Contact: Dan Hubbard, 202-431-5970, [email protected]

Washington, DC, Sept. 24, 2024 - Today, National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) President and CEO Ed Bolen welcomed Darren Pleasance as president and CEO of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), effective Jan. 1, 2025. He will succeed Mark Baker who announced his retirement earlier this year.

"Over a course of decades, NBAA and AOPA have developed an extremely strong working relationship based on promoting the freedom to fly," Bolen said. "Over that time, AOPA has been led by presidents who have combined a deep passion for aviation with a strong business acumen and an ability to leverage AOPA's membership into laws and regulations that benefit aviators everywhere.

"Naming Darren as the next AOPA president is clearly consistent with the kind of committed, powerful leadership for which AOPA is known and we look forward to working with him closely in the years ahead," Bolen added.

Pleasance, who has flown over 8,000 hours in more than 50 different types of aircraft, most recently led Cisco's Acceleration Center, an organization focused on the success of mission-critical aspects of Cisco's business transformation. Prior to joining Cisco, he led global customer acquisitions for Google and served as a partner in consulting firm McKinsey & Co.'s high tech sector and marketing and sales practice.

NBAA has long had an effective relationship with AOPA on numerous key issues facing the general aviation community. Among the initiatives on which both associations collaborated during Baker's tenure include promoting pilots' rights, developing the industry's next generation workforce and successfully combating attempts to privatize the nation's air traffic control (ATC) system.

Most recently, AOPA and NBAA joined with other aviation associations to champion the GA community's efforts to remove lead from aviation gasoline through the FAA's Eliminate Aviation Gasoline Lead Emissions (EAGLE) initiative.

Bolen expressed gratitude to Baker for his leadership and tireless dedication to the industry.

"For more than 10 years in the left seat at AOPA and throughout his entire career, Mark has been a steadfast advocate for the entire GA community and a true friend to business aviation," Bolen said. "We're profoundly grateful for his leadership, his friendship and the incredibly positive impact he's had on aviation."

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Founded in 1947 and based in Washington, DC, the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) is the leading organization for companies that rely on general aviation aircraft to help make their businesses more efficient, productive and successful. The association represents more than 10,000 company and professional members and provides more than 100 products and services to the business aviation community, including the NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE), the world's largest civil aviation trade show. Learn more about NBAA at nbaa.org.

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