I received my A&P license in 1982 while working in the production shop of Stoddard Hamilton Aircraft in Kent Washington. After the company moved to its Arlington Washington location I soon moved into the R&D department where I, with my friend and co-worker Tim Straw, maintained the factory demo aircraft, built and tested the FT prototype, the 180 Aerobat which performed at Oshkosh for the first time.

Besides working at one time or another in nearly every part of the kit construction and shipping departments I spent some time doing QA work, assembling the Aerotec Oleo gear struts, actuating cylinders, and providing tech support. I was one of two shift supervisors in the building of the G-III prototype N540RG.

After leaving Stoddard Hamilton I went to work for Frank Miller at Northern Air setting up a builder assist center where we made extensive tooling and jigs for quickly and repeatably building planes and components. We also developed the tooling and wrote the instructions for many of the options sold by Stoddard like the electric flap and elevator trim kits as well as the canted fiberglass instrument panels.

After leaving Northern Air I went to work for Ron Hoelting helping him finish up his G-III project N35HP. We spent about 1.5 years on that plane extensively reworking many of the parts from replacing the windshield to remaking the control surfaces and a couple weeks repairing wing tank leaks. I think that process got Ron to want to make another G-III without feeling he had to accept compromises because something was already built or placed in a certain spot. We worked together on N87RH for a little over 6 years before Ron put a tarp over the project to take a break.

After that I went to work for Jim Muldoon at Muldoon aviation which he started after Stoddard Hamilton gave up on their builder’s assistance program. While there I worked a few weeks in the evenings helping New Glasair build their Sportsman prototype. It was a lot of fun doing prototype work again even if it was in the Oshkosh rush mode. Muldoon aviation was sold to Bill Lochert whom I worked for until that business ended.

After leaving Lochert Aviation I went to work for Brian Rossi forming a new company called Kitplanes Northwest where I am currently employed. Since then I’ve worked not only on Glasairs of all kinds, but I’ve helped build RVs, a Velocity, a Murphy Moose with a Russian radial engine, Glastars, and as large a variety of annuals and mods on all sorts of aircraft makes and models. While working for Brian at Kitplanes Northwest Brian and Ron got to become friends. Brian was actually allowed into the secret sanctum which was Ron’s shop to see N87RH coming together. Ron hired me part time through Kitplanes Northwest to help with the project, but he passed away before it was completed. Brian purchased the project from Ron’s kids with the assurance it would be finished just as their dad had planned to, and he did.