Latest news with #GreaterOrlandoAviationAuthority
Yahoo
22-05-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Greater Orlando Aviation Authority to honor Tuskegee Airmen hero with distinguished award
The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority announced that Tuskegee Airman Flight Officer Daniel Keel will be the 2025 recipient of the Col. Joe Kittinger Award on June 28, 2025 28 during the annual Liberty Weekend concert at the Orlando International Airport. Officer Keel was selected for the honor by a group of local veterans. Officer Keel, who is out of Central Florida, is the only triple-rated Tuskegee Airman. Drafted into service during World War II, Mr. Keel served his nation with courage and bravery during a time of conflict and racial discrimination. 'In honoring Flight Officer Daniel Keel, we not only recognize a trailblazer in American aviation, but we also pay tribute to the courage, sacrifice, and unyielding spirit of all who have worn the uniform,' said Mr. Lyttle. 'As a living embodiment of duty, dignity, and history, Mr. Keel's selection for the Col. Joe Kittinger Award reflects the deep pride the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority holds in its legacy, and in the veterans whose service continues to uplift this nation.' Officer Keel will be the 10th recipient of the Col. Joe Kittinger Award. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
Yahoo
22-04-2025
- Yahoo
‘I tried to stay calm': Delta Flight passenger describes moment fire broke out on flight
Two hundred-eight two passengers on a Delta flight from Orlando to Atlanta had to be evacuated because of a fire before takeoff Monday morning just before noon. The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority (GOAA) confirmed 3 minor injuries during the evacuation. >>> STREAM ACTION NEWS JAX LIVE <<< 'I hear someone yelling fire, so I open my window shade, and I see the engine is on fire,' said passenger Kyle Becker who was on Delta flight 1213. 'I tried to stay calm, but my adrenaline was through the roof. I stayed as calm as I could, and my instinct was to grab my things and follow directions, and it was definitely a crazy experience.' According to a Delta spokesperson, the fire started in the tailpipe of one of the plane's two engines. Delta released the following statement: 'We appreciate our customers' cooperation and apologize for the experience. Nothing is more important than safety, and Delta teams will work to get our customers to their final destinations as soon as possible.' [DOWNLOAD: Free Action News Jax app for alerts as news breaks] Read: Cardinals set Pope Francis' funeral for Saturday morning, with public viewing starting Wednesday Read: Clay County bailiff arrested after forging military leave documents, stealing over $8K Read: Six suspects named in connection with Baker County shooting [SIGN UP: Action News Jax Daily Headlines Newsletter] Click here to download the free Action News Jax news and weather apps, click here to download the Action News Jax Now app for your smart TV and click here to stream Action News Jax live.
Yahoo
09-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Search firm narrows Orlando Airport CEO field, but contenders are a secret
The agency that runs the Orlando International Airport wants to hire a CEO as early as the end of the month, and a search firm has flagged 13 contenders for the job. But so far, the public has been mostly shut out of the firm's work finding a new leader to oversee the nation's seventh busiest airport. A list of the candidates hasn't been released, with the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority insisting to the Orlando Sentinel that no written list even exists. It's unclear if interviews will take place in public. The executive search firm Korn Ferry is handling CEO recruitment for GOAA, the public entity that oversees the airport. A Florida open government group contacted by the Sentinel said Korn Ferry's secretive process seems designed to bypass public scrutiny. The aviation authority is subject to Florida's open meetings and public records laws. The authority's board has said it wants to move quickly to replace the airport's outgoing CEO Kevin Thibault, who resigned in September, citing his wife's illness and the need to spend time with her. Last month, the authority's board chairman, Tim Weisheyer, said the search firm identified 45 potential candidates and then whittled that pool down to 13. Those 13 candidates will be further narrowed to a few finalists, he told the board. The Sentinel asked for a list of candidates and for the applications of the 13 contenders, but the aviation authority said it had no records responsive to that request. 'The search firm has done its work by phone calls and verbal reports, and we haven't required applications,' said Angela Starke, an agency spokeswoman, in an email. It's unclear how the board will proceed next. 'Whether the candidates will have individual meetings with board members or undergo a public interview process has not been decided,' Starke said. Korn Ferry 'will recommend to board members which candidates to interview, based on the firm's conversations with both board members and candidates, its national expertise with CEO searches, and its familiarity with the Greater Orlando Aviation Authority,' she said. Michael Barfield, public access director for the Florida Center for Government Accountability, said he's alarmed by the lack of a paper trail and the suggestion that interviews could be conducted through individual meetings with board members. The state's Sunshine Law guarantees Floridians a right of access to governmental proceedings, and courts consistently have interpreted the law to prohibit 'evasive devices' designed to circumvent open government. 'Holding one-on-one meetings is not per se illegal, but when you do it in the manner it has been suggested to evade Sunshine, it does run afoul of the law,' Barfield said. 'Any process to winnow or cull down has to be done in the Sunshine.' In a surprise, Orlando airport director Thibault resigns Barfield said he also was surprised the aviation authority's search firm has no written list of potential candidates. 'Even if they wrote them down in a notebook, that is still a public record. It just defies logic,' he said. Starke defended the process and disagreed with Barfield's analysis. 'It isn't a violation of Florida law,' she said. 'We work hard to ensure 100% compliance with all laws, including open government, sunshine, and public records laws.' In 2023, then-Attorney General Ashley Moody determined Florida Atlantic University's presidential search committee ran afoul of the Sunshine Law. The issue involved whether the committee could use a recruitment firm to anonymously rank candidates who would be presented for consideration at a future meeting. Moody wrote that members are barred from 'ranking that occurs by way of anonymously surveying and organizing members' input, even if those rankings are not a final vote and are only used to replace or limit discussion at a future meeting.' 'This process is inconsistent with the Sunshine Law because it uses an evasive device to circumvent public deliberation,' she wrote in an opinion. 'In fact, it appears that the very purpose of the process … is to inject secrecy into the deliberative process.' Weisheyer, the chairman, did not respond to a phone message and email seeking an update on the search. The board is set to meet next on March 19. During the February meeting, Weisheyer said it's possible that some candidates may withdraw from consideration to avoid having their names become public. That issue has been cited as a challenge for other Florida agencies filling high-level executive posts. The state's expansive public records law means candidates could be outed to their employer as someone seeking a new job, and some say that's a potential deterrent keeping talented prospects from applying. Others, though, argue closed-door searches benefit politically connected candidates and cut the public out of the process. The aviation authority's board hired Thibault, a former Florida Department of Transportation secretary, in January 2022 at an annual base salary of $375,000. His resignation date was Jan. 31, but Thibault agreed to stay on until a replacement is in place. The airport is governed by a seven-member board. Five governor-appointed members serve on the panel, along with Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer and Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings. Neither mayor was available for comment. Ryan Gillespie of the Sentinel staff contributed to this story.
Yahoo
21-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Orlando could start to resemble ‘The Jetsons' with flying cars from airport site as soon as 2028
ORLANDO, Fla. — Like something you'd see in the utopian future of TV's 'The Jetsons,' Orlando International Airport is trying to realize a long-desired dream of bringing flying cars to the region. The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority on Wednesday took steps toward that future by seeking partners to develop and operate a flying car landing pad — called a vertiport — at the airport. The invitation is expected to publish in March with a 2028 target for a finished product. The airport expects to put the vertiport on land in the East Airfield region on the northeast side or land on the south side near the train station, according to a news release. Airport spokesperson Angela Starke said by email that inviting partners will help the airport gather information such as costs to build the vertiport. At present the aviation authority has no budget for the project. Orlando Mayor Buddy Dyer, a member of the aviation authority, said the city is a global leader in Advanced Air Mobility (AAM) — the technology behind flying cars — and having the hub at the airport makes sense. 'We envision the airport to be a multimodal hub of the future,' Dyer said. 'That means expanding the SunRail to the airport, Brightline from there to Tampa and making sure we have readied the airport as a vertihub of the future.' He said vertiports may help manage the city's growth, but that's much farther off. He envisions starting with a four- to six-passenger vehicle operating out of the airport and eventually corridors for flying cars will follow. The small aircraft are expected to use electric power, and take off and land vertically. 'You can't just have a vertiport at the airport, you have to have places for the vehicles to go from the airport to downtown Orlando or Tampa,' Dyer said. 'I think before we see 'The Jetsons' this is going to be developed slowly.' But not too slowly, if the mayor has his way. After the first vertiport is established at the airport in three years, he said another in the downtown area is a real possibility soon after. Eventually he hopes to have a manufacturing facility in the city as well. For years Orlando has been working to become the nation's first city with a vertiport — but previous attempts haven't taken flight. A contract announced in 2020 between German flying car company Lilium Air Mobility and Lake Nona developer Tavistock ended before fulfilling its promise to have vehicles in Orlando by 2025. In 2021, Orlando partnered with NASA to establish a plan for how advanced air mobility could potentially be integrated into the city, but excitement died down over three years and nothing moved forward. It wasn't until 2024 that the idea was again propelled forward by key players including the Federal Aviation Administration. In February of that year, Lilium announced it was interested in establishing a vertiport hub at the airport. While Lilium doesn't have a contract with the airport yet, Starke said by email the announcement of negotiations for a vertiport hub may move the project along. She said the airport is working alongside the FAA. In October, the FAA took a critical step forward when it issued a final rule for qualifications and training for AAM pilots and instructors. Then in November, the airport hosted a two-day tabletop exercise sponsored by the FAA focused on operating rules, aircraft certification and more. Dyer said the one thing that could slow down progress is the FAA. 'A lot of the timing hinges on the development of rules and regulations by the FAA,' he said. 'They're responsible for things like developing routes or how they integrate with traffic control systems that we already have at airports so there's a lot going into it before we have 'The Jetsons' flying around.' Outside of Orlando, vertiports and flying vehicles are finding support, as well. Earlier this month Jared Perdue, secretary of the Florida Department of Transportation, expressed his backing for advanced air mobility, which would involve establishing vertiports in urban areas that could serve as hubs for short aerial commutes by battery-powered aircraft that have characteristics of airplanes and helicopters. And a bill filed in January by state Sen. Gayle Harrel, R-Stuart, would provide sales tax exemptions on the sale or lease of electric vertical takeoff and landing aircraft or flying cars. ----------
Yahoo
14-02-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Orlando International Airport seeks developer for air taxi vertiport
Editor's note: This story is available as a result of a content partnership between WFTV and the Orlando Business Journal. The Greater Orlando Aviation Authority is seeking a developer for vertiport at Orlando International Airport. The authority put a notice to its board that it will issue out an invitation to negotiate for developers tied to advanced air mobility. Advanced air mobility includes powered-lift aircraft that can transport cargo or people, such as electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) technology. Read: Operation Forced Labor: Central Florida law enforcement arrest 29, save 4 human trafficking victims 'The intent of the invitation to negotiate is to receive information from potential vertiport developers and operators, and other similar entities who can assist the Aviation Authority in developing and operating a vertiport terminal at MCO including identifying the associated infrastructure needed to support eVTOL technology; integrate the development into and resolve conflicts with current airport operations and infrastructure,' the bid process said. Click here to read the full story on the Orlando Business Journal's website. Click here to download our free news, weather and smart TV apps. And click here to stream Channel 9 Eyewitness News live.
