When I wrote my first Aviation Consumer technical report on aircraft intercoms in the mid-1990s while working at an avionics shop, the industry was on the heels of what I call the avionics revolution. There were subtle bits of integration as proof that the market was changing—like aircraft audio system pioneer PS Engineering making the switch from standalone intercoms to audio panels with intercoms built in. A few years later came Garmin’s all-in-one GNS 430 navigator and a big problem: Buyers were frazzled with expensive gee whiz gear, and more than ever they needed solid, unbiased advice when it came to buying it.
Thankfully, the hard-edged Belvoir Media Group-owned Aviation Consumer existed to do just that, and its editor, my mentor and friend, Paul Bertorelli, thought I would be the right guy to do it because who better than a young, brash, chest-puffing avionics guy with a pilot’s certificate to weed out the crummy products—from avionics to airplanes to engines to pee bottles? The age of subscriber-funded newsletter/journal-format magazines was in full swing, and there was and still is nothing like Aviation Consumer. Belvoir’s founder, Robert Englander, recently took me down memory lane where Aviation Consumer was his first title in what would be a long list of successful special-interest titles across many markets. Englander reminded me that in the 55 years of continuous publication, there were only a handful of editors. Jim Holohan was the founding editor until around 1976 before launching what would eventually become Aviation International News. Following Holohan was Dick Weeghman, from FLYING Magazine and Business and Commercial Aviation. Then came Paul Bertorelli, and me, along with Senior Editor Rick Durden. That’s Rick and me pictured above over Lake Michigan on our way to AirVenture 2014 with our kids in the back trying on flotation devices, headsets and O2 cannulas for comparison reports. Holding down the magazine with Durden turned out to be the most satisfying working arrangement of my career. There is also Jennifer Whitley, who is far more than the copy editor. She’s an experienced pilot who backstops our reporting, promptly correcting us when we’re off by one gallon or one knot or continue to spell the same words wrong. Producing clean copy has always been important in our work and it wouldn’t be nearly as tight if it wasn’t for Jen Whitley on the team.
With rising production costs that are unsustainable in the current market, Aviation Consumer’s current owner, Firecrown Media Group, says it’s time to stop producing the magazine in both print and full-issue PDF, even though I was planning on continuing to produce it in full and in a digital format. Regardless, I think there’s more need now than ever for our skilled, authoritative reporting with money-saving advice backed up by thorough research and real-world knowledge. The short list: Buyers still pay too much for aging aircraft only to spend big on unexpected repairs, the current engine market is in shambles with eye-watering prices and delivery times, there’s a need for better training, the avionics product market is more confusing than ever and the insurance market and FAA aeromedical system problems are pushing competent pilots out of their aircraft. No, our trusted collective work is far from over, so stay tuned.
