Episodes

🎧 Episode Summary What if aerospace engineering students didn’t just design aircraft on paper—but actually watched real test pilots fly their creations? In this episode of The Future in Flight Podcast, host Shawn Staerker takes you inside IT FLIES, an innovative international design-build-fly competition where students bring their aircraft concepts to life in high-fidelity simulators […]

🎧  Summary: In this episode of the Future in Flight podcast, host Shawn Staerker welcomes Robbie Sturdivant and Yuri Milner from Riverside Flight Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, to discuss their unique approach to flight training and the success stories that have emerged over their 25 years in business. They delve into the advantages of training

🎧 Episode Summary In this episode of the Future in Flight podcast, host Shawn Starker interviews J.J. Madison, a Harvard-educated writer, safety advocate, and author of “Yikes! 100 Smart Pilots and the Dumb Things They Did.” J.J. shares his circuitous path to aviation, which began with a childhood fascination with helicopters and eventually led him

🎧 Episode Summary This episode of “The Future in Flight Podcast” explores Riverside Flight Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma, a flight school that has been quietly revolutionizing pilot training for 25 years. The episode highlights the school’s impressive 90% completion rate, cost-effective vocational program, and unique approach to training, which emphasizes real-world conditions and a strong

🎧 Summary In this episode of the Future in Flight podcast, we explore the critical decision facing aspiring pilots: corporate aviation versus airline piloting. We compare the structured world of airline pilots flying scheduled routes with the unpredictable, customer-focused environment of corporate pilots. The episode details a typical day for each type of pilot, highlighting

🎧 SUMMARY In this episode of the Future in Flight Podcast, host Shawn Staerker explores the powerful intersection of aviation legacy, cutting-edge engineering, and the vital importance of clear communication. The episode features an in-depth look at a high-speed mission to save a youth aviation program, the evolution of propeller technology for the light-sport market,

🎧 Episode Summary In this high-energy interview, Michelle Leon, Operations Manager at Levil Aviation, discusses the common thread that links her diverse career background: people. From her early days in hospitality and dentistry to leading operations in aviation and manufacturing, Michelle explains how the philosophy of servant leadership has guided her success. We explore how

🎧 Episode Summary What happens when lifesaving tech, real-world experience, and two powerhouse creators collide? In this episode of The Future in Flight Podcast, host Shawn Staerker dives into the life-changing importance of a truly great aviation headset—through the firsthand stories of Cooper the Pilot and YouTube creator Carl Hancock (Fly With The Guys). From

🎧 Episode Summary What does it take to fly head-first into danger so that others may live?In this powerful episode, host Shawn Staerker sits down with Anthony Dyer—retired Special Missions Aviator, Jolly Green rescue team member, AC-130 gunship aerial gunner, and author of the upcoming book Moonchild. Anthony shares the reality behind the job once