NBAA Announces Recipients of 2007 Schedulers and Dispatchers Training Scholarships

Contact: Dan Hubbard at (202) 783-9360 or dhubbard@nbaa.org

PHOENIX, AZ, January 23, 2007 – The National Business Aviation Association (NBAA) and its Schedulers & Dispatchers Committee today announced the six recipients of the Schedulers & Dispatchers Training Scholarship. These training awards, given in conjunction with sponsors Airline Ground Schools, CornerStone Strategies LLC, Flight Safety International and MedAire, Inc., promote the career development of current and aspiring schedulers and dispatchers. The 2007 Schedulers & Dispatchers Training Scholarship is made possible by its sponsors and the NBAA GA Desk.

The following are the recipients of the 2007 NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Training Scholarship, with descriptions of their training awards.

• Rafael Pelaez, Student and Flight Instructor, Embry Riddle Aeronautical University, Daytona Beach, FL – Training toward an FAA-approved aircraft dispatcher license offered by Airline Ground Schools.
• Malachi O’Neill, Mountain Aviation, Broomfield, CO – Two-day initial training course for in-flight medical illness, injury and emergencies from MedAire, Inc. at their location in Tempe, AZ.
• Irina Malamova, ASA Delta Connection, Powder Springs, GA – Six-week course providing preparation for an FAA dispatcher exam at Flight Safety International at the Flushing, NY campus.
• Susan Moss, Textron, Inc., Providence, RI – One week of on-site training offered by the NBAA GA Desk staff at the FAA Air Traffic Control System Command Center. This course includes an introduction to traffic-flow management and decision-making processes as they relate to the airspace system and business aviation community.
• Zsasha Diaz, Citigroup Corporate Aviation, White Plains, NY – One NBAA Schedulers Professional Development Program (SPDP) Course taught by CornerStone Strategies.
• Lodielyn Cruz, TransGlobal Airways, Taguig City, Philippines – Any scheduled 2007 class offered at the Flight Safety International St. Louis Learning Center or at a scheduled on-site location.

These winners and seven other scholarship recipients were announced today during NBAA’s 18th Annual Schedulers & Dispatchers Conference, held this week in Phoenix, AZ.  Applications for the 2008 NBAA Schedulers & Dispatchers Training Scholarship will be available in the summer of 2007.

NBAA’s Schedulers & Dispatchers Committee offers its scholarships through two separate but related programs that specifically promote professional and career development for schedulers and dispatchers in business aviation.

First, through the Schedulers & Dispatchers Scholarship Program, the Committee offers cash grants, which can be used for a variety of professional development initiatives. Since 1997, more than $240,000 has been awarded to schedulers and dispatchers through this program. In 2005, the program was expanded to provide scholarships specifically to Canadian schedulers and dispatchers.

A separate Schedulers & Dispatchers Training Scholarship Program offers opportunities for scholarship recipients to have access to hands-on teaching initiatives. These scholarships were first offered in 2004.

For more information about NBAA scholarships, contact NBAA Director, Operations Jay Evans at (202) 783-9353 or jevans@nbaa.org. For information about NBAA’s Schedulers & Dispatchers Committee, contact NBAA Senior Manager, Air Traffic Operations Jo Damato at jdamato@nbaa.org.

NBAA offers several scholarships to promote professional development and business aviation careers. For more information or to download application forms, visit www.nbaa.org/scholarships.

# # #

Founded in 1947 and based in Washington, DC, the National Business Aviation Association, Inc. (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 7,000 companies and provides more than 100 products and services to the business aviation community, including the NBAA Annual Meeting & Convention, the world’s largest civil aviation trade show. Learn more about NBAA at www.nbaa.org.

Members of the media may receive NBAA Press Releases immediately via e-mail. To subscribe to the NBAA Press Release e-mail list, submit the online form at www.nbaa.org/news/pr/subscribe.