On Wednesday, the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) announced that President and CEO Darren Pleasance is stepping out of the day-to-day CEO role and moving into an advisory capacity to support the organization and its Board of Trustees during the search for a new leader.
According to AOPA’s press release, the move comes as the association determined that the CEO role should be based full-time at AOPA headquarters in Frederick, Maryland. Pleasance, who had been commuting from Bend, Oregon, has spent significant time traveling to meet members and manage operations nationwide. “Now is the right time to transition leadership in a way that best supports the organization’s long-term needs,” the release states.
Effective immediately, Chief Financial Officer Jill Baker and Senior Vice President of Membership Strategy and Growth Katie Pribyl will serve as Acting Co-Presidents, jointly leading the organization’s operations, staff, and strategic execution during the interim period. The association emphasizes that its mission, advocacy, and member services will continue uninterrupted.
Pleasance took over the leadership role on January 1, 2025.
“I’m incredibly proud of what we were able to set in motion at AOPA in a relatively short period of time,” Pleasance said. “In addition, I had the opportunity to meet thousands of members across the country, hear their stories, and work on issues that matter to everyday pilots, which has been deeply meaningful. The most special part of AOPA, though, is the staff. The people here care deeply about pilots and the mission, and it’s been a privilege to work alongside them.”
The AOPA Board of Trustees will begin a formal, inclusive search for the next President and CEO. In a related move, AOPA recently appointed Dale Klapmeier, co-founder and former CEO of Cirrus Aircraft, to the Board of Trustees.
I attended his forum speech during Oshkosh and was very impressed with his background as well as his varied credentials. The thing that stands out is why he as CEO would not have relocated to Frederick Maryland months ago…didn’t the Board advise him during the interviewing process that a relocation would be required. I’ve been a member of AOPA for almost fifty years and have become disillusioned with the organization for a variety of reasons. It seems their main focus is on congressional lobbying and printing a monthly magazine. Meanwhile, EAA puts on a World-class Airventure event, supports and organizes hundreds of EAA chapters, fly-ins, aviation events, informative Webinars, technical hands-on skills training, etc.
I’m sorry to hear this. I had the pleasure of meeting Mr. Pleasance last spring while attending a meeting at AOPA headquarters. From this and watching his work with the organization since then, he seems to be exactly the right person to lead the AOPA. His departure from this position will be a loss, but I understand his reluctance to move his family across the country.
Dan Gryder will be less grumpy…
Not sure thats possible, but I know where you’re coming from!
Can’t say that I blame him. Commuting from Bend OR to Frederick MD frequently is no joke. Sounds like the Board changed its mind and wanted him to permanently relocate to Frederick. I’ve been an AOPA member for over 30 years. They’ve been very helpful to me in buying an aircraft, straightening out FAA paperwork, answering questions and getting insurance. I hope that doesn’t change with the new leadership.
Doesn’t anyone at AOPA own a globe or map? How did anyone ever believe this would work? Now the process starts all over again and more money spent that should not have to be spent.
Most certainly the requirement to be present at AOPA in Fredericksburg would have been quantified and agreed upon by both parties prior to the hiring and acceptance.
For a pilot with Mr. Pleasance experience, personal and airplane capability the “commute” would have been any pilots dream job! All the PAVE issues lined up to make this job - a rewarding commute!
So IMHO there’s another factor going on in the background that is not for publication. I too feel it is a shame to lose such a capable leader after only a year at the helm. But business is business.
You may bemoan the fact that AOPA doesn’t sponsor something like OSH but for my money if AOPA did nothing more than sponsor and nurture the ASI, it would still be a huge value!
There must be details of this change that we just don’t know and that AOPA doesn’t want to reveal, perhaps to protect people’s privacy. When things just make no sense, then it means we don’t have all the information.