About Us

Ryan Ewing

Founder | President

Ryan founded AirlineGeeks.com back in February 2013 (actually, it was called Aviation Official, but we’ve changed a bit since then). From being on the yoke of a Piper Navajo, to visiting about Delta’s operations center in Atlanta, Ryan has done it all. in 2016, along with American Airlines, Ryan masterminded AAviationDay at more than 10 locations around the world. The smell of jet fumes in the morning along with the countless number of passionate airline employees keep him enthralled in the industry, always seeking more. You can find him helping out travelers at Reagan National Airport near Washington, D.C. when he’s not doing something for AirlineGeeks.

• Location: Washington D.C.

Joe Pesek

Editor-in-Chief

Joe joined AirlineGeeks in 2014, and in his current role as Editor-in-Chief manages a growing team of writers both in North America and Europe. He enjoys spending the bulk of his time researching, learning and analyzing the latest trends in the airline industry, all while mentoring new members of the AirlineGeeks team who seek to do the same. Areas of research include revenue management, codeshare and alliance partnerships and airline financial results.

• Location: Chicago, IL

Justin Sinanan

Director of Communications

Justin is a soon to be college student with quite the passion for aviation. Based out of New York City, essentially an aviation epicenter, he spends lots of time at the local airports to learn and travel. He currently has his mind set on completing his Private Pilot’s License (PPL) and other ratings before college where he plans to study Aerospace Engineering and Business. Justin is also an elite member on his favorite carrier, American Airlines, and often goes on vacations and mileage runs that take him as far as Australia, but as close as Washington D.C.

• Location: New York City

Shane Piper

Director, Business Development

Shane started as an airline geek on the first day that his mother brought him to work with her as a kid at Dulles Airport. Visiting the ground control tower, driving out on the ramp, and even sitting in the engines, he knew this was something awesome.

After learning all the aircraft types and collecting countless model planes, he was addicted. After college, Shane worked at the FAA command center and gained in-depth knowledge of the industry he already loved. For over 5 years, he has worked mainly in Information Technology with the Department of Defense and various military organizations, however continues to grow his passion for aviation and the world of flying. Still today he can’t go to the airport without staring out towards the runway or look up to the sounds of something overhead.

• Location: Scottsdale, AZ

Ryan Kneer

Developer

Ryan joined AirlineGeeks.com in 2018 as a website developer and is responsible for keeping the site reliable and functional for AvGeeks worldwide. When he’s not in front of a computer screen, Ryan can be found in the sky, either working towards his private pilot license or, off on an adventure with his wife somewhere far from home.

• Location: Virginia, USA

Alex Navitsky

Social Media Editor

Alex always had a passion for commercial aviation since his first flight back in 1987. He is a loyal American Airlines Executive Platinum member and has flown over 650,000 miles on over 30 different airlines since 2006. Alex loves spending time in airports and planes and is known for his crazy mileage runs. In his spare time he enjoys traveling to new and adventurous places. Alex enjoys flying new airlines to see different passenger experiences while in the lounge, on the ground or up in the air.

• Location: New York City

Mateen Kontoravdis

Copy Editor

Mateen has been interested in aviation from a very young age. He got his first model airplane at six and has been airplane spotting since he was nine years old. He has always had a passion for aviation and loves learning about different aspects within the industry. In addition to writing for AirlineGeeks, Mateen is also an editor for his high school’s newspaper. You can also find him on Instagram (@Plane.Photos) where he enjoys sharing his aviation photography with thousands of people everyday.

• Location: Austin, TX

Tom Pallini

Senior Editor

Tom has been flying for as long as he can remember. His first flight memory was on a Song Airlines 757 flying from LaGuardia to Orlando. Back then, he was afraid to fly because he thought you needed to jump off the plane in order to get off. Some years later, Tom is now a seasoned traveler, often flying to places just for the fun of it. Most of the time, he’ll never leave the airport on his trips. If he’s not at home or at work as a Line Service Technician at Long Island MacArthur Airport, he’s off flying somewhere, but only for the day.

• Location: New York City

Ian McMurtry

Senior Writer

Ian has been an avgeek since 2004 when he started spotting US Airways Express planes at Johnstown Airport in Johnstown, Pennsylvania. He now lives in Wichita and enjoys spotting planes in St. Louis, Kansas City, and Columbia as well as those flying at high altitudes over his home. He is a pilot with more than 40 hours of experience behind a Cessna 172, Diamond DA-20, and Piper PA-28. He flies Southwest Airlines mostly, but prefers to fly Delta or American on domestic flights and Icelandair when flying to Europe. Ian’s route map spans from Iceland and Alaska in the north to St. Maarten in the south. He is a freshman at Wichita State University, where he will study aerospace engineering with a goal to be an aerospace engineer or test pilot for either Boeing or LearJet.

• Location: Wichita, KS (during school year) | Columbia, MO (during summer)

Daniel Morley

Writer

Daniel has always had aviation in his life; from moving to the United States when he was two, to family vacations across the U.S., and back to his native England. He currently resides in South Florida and attends Nova Southeastern University, studying Human Factors in Aviation. Daniel has his Commercial Certificate for both land and sea, and hopes to one day join the major airlines.

• Location: Fort Lauderdale, FL

Akhil Dewan

Writer

An “Airline Brat” for most of his life, Akhil has always been drawn to aviation. If there is an opportunity to read about an airline, fly on a new airplane, or talk to anyone about aviation, he is on it. Akhil has been on over 20+ different kinds of aircraft, his favorite being the MD-80. Additionally, he has visited 5 continents and plans to knock out the remaining two (Africa and Antarctica) soon. Based in Dallas, Akhil graduated from Texas A&M University with a degree in Management Information Systems and currently works in consulting. His dream is to become an airline executive.

• Location: Dallas, TX

Tyler Tashji

Social Media Representative

Tyler has been an aviation enthusiast for as long as he can remember. He is currently pursuing a Bachelor’s degree in Aviation Administration with a minor in Marketing from Lewis University. Tyler’s preferred airline is United and his favorite aircraft is the Boeing 777. Some of Tyler’s most memorable aviation moments include being on board the inaugural revenue flight of United’s Boeing 777-300ER from Newark to San Francisco, as well as celebrating the retirement of the Boeing 747 with a large number of United employees during the airline’s ‘Queen of the Skies’ Farewell Hub Tours. When not in an airport or 35,000 feet in the air, you can find Tyler sipping on Starbucks binge-watching Netflix. And yes, he looks up whenever he hears the sound of an aircraft above him. 

• Location: Romeoville, IL/Rochester, NY

Matthew Garcia

Writer

Matthew Garcia became interested in aviation at the age of 12 when we installed Microsoft Flight Simulator X on his computer. He was instantly “bitten by the bug” and has been in love with aviation ever since. Matthew took his first introductory flight in 2013 and began normal flight training in February of 2015. Over the years, Matthew’s love and knowledge of aviation has grown tremendously, mainly due to FSX. Garcia flies highly advanced aircraft in a professional manner on a highly complex virtual air traffic network simulating real-world flying. Matthew now attends university majoring in journalism with an aviation minor. His goal is to use his journalism experience to land a job with an airline after university.

• Location: Omaha

Parker Davis

Senior Writer

When he was just six months old, Parker took his first flight. From that point, he was destined to love aviation. His mom worked for Southwest Airlines much of his family have been frequent flyers on American Airlines for years, just as Parker is now. In 2015, Parker, inspired by aviation accounts on Instagram, decided to create an account of his own, and he hasn’t stopped spotting since. On top of that, Parker has been writing for his school paper since his freshman year and has been writing and doing photography for AirlineGeeks since August 2016.

• Location: Dallas, TX

Hemal Gosai

Writer

Hemal took his first flight at four years old and has been an avgeek since then. When he isn’t working as an analyst he’s frequently found outside watching planes fly overhead or flying in them. His favorite plane is the 747-8i which Lufthansa thankfully flies to EWR allowing for some great spotting. He firmly believes that the best way to fly between JFK and BOS is via DFW and is always willing to go for that extra elite qualifying mile.

• Location: New Jersey

Albert Kuan

Writer

Most people hate long flights or overnight layovers, but Albert loves them. The airport
and flying parts of traveling are the biggest highlights of any trip for him – as this avgeek always gets a thrill from sampling different airline cabin products and checking out regional developments happening at local U.S. airports. He’s flown on almost every
major carrier in the U.S. and Asia Pacific, and he hopes to try out the new A350s soon.

Albert recently completed his undergraduate studies in Business Accounting at USC in
Los Angeles and he is currently recruiting for a corporate analyst position at one of the U.S. legacy carriers. During his college years, he interned at LAX for Los Angeles
World Airports working behind-the-scenes (and on the ramp) in public relations and
accounting. Outside of writing for AirlineGeeks, he enjoys trekking the Hollywood hills,
visiting new hotspots throughout SoCal, and doing the occasional weekender on Spirit
Airlines.

• Location: Los Angeles

Peter Biondi

Writer

Peter Biondi has a degree in journalism and a master’s degree in airline/airport management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. He is a former professor of Airline Management, Airline Marketing, Airport Management, Aviation safety, and Introduction to the Aviation Industry. He is an IATA instructor in airline business foundation. He has worked as an aviation consultant, analyst, researcher, journalist and professor. His professional experience includes Varig – Brazilian Airlines, KLM, and British Airways. Before moving to the US, he lived in Europe and South America. He is fluent in English, Spanish, Portuguese, French and Italian.

• Location: Atlanta

James Dinsdale

Writer

James is a keen aviation enthusiast from the United Kingdom. He has been flying since the age of 13 and today, aged 21, flies the Airbus A319/320 series for one of Europe’s largest airlines.

• Location: Berlin

John Flett

Writer

John has always had a passion for aviation and through a career with Air New Zealand has gained a strong understanding of aviation operations and the strategic nature of the industry. During his career with the airline, John held multiple leadership roles and was involved in projects such as the introduction of both the 777-200 and -300 type aircraft and the development of the IFE for the 777-300. He was also part of a small team who created and published the internal communications magazines for Air New Zealand’s pilots, cabin crew and ground staff balancing a mix of corporate and social content.

John is educated to postgraduate level achieving a Masters degree with Distinction in Airline and Airport Management and has recently led an undergraduate Aviation Management course for 450 students at a leading London university. John is currently an external instructor for IATA (International Air Transport Association) and a member of the Heathrow Community Fund’s ‘Communities for Tomorrow’ panel.

• Location: London, UK

Andy Nelson

Writer

Andy flew regularly from a young age on family holidays, but his interest in airplanes really began when I saw Concord flying over his grandparents’ house on final approach. He’s about to begin his honors year studying electrical power engineering, and it’s his ambition to one day work in the aviation industry in an engineering capacity. In his spare time, Andy writes, plays guitar, and plays squash four or five times a week.

• Location: United Kingdom

Adrian Vannahme

Writer

Adrian joined AirlineGeeks as a writer in 2017. He had always wanted to become a pilot and while he chose a different career path for now, his interest in aviation continues to grow every day. Adrian was fortunate to travel extensively for business in the past five years. As a result, he focuses his research and writing on passenger services and experiences on a variety of airlines. His favorite aircraft include the Airbus A350, A380, and the Embraer passenger jets.

• Location: Winnipeg, Manitoba

Pablo Diaz

Writer, Latin America Region

Since a little kid, Pablo set his passions in order: aviation, soccer, and everything else. He has traveled to various destinations throughout South America, Asia, and Europe.

Technology and systems expert, occasional spotter, not-so-dynamic midfielder, blogger, husband, father of three cats; he believes that Latin America’s aviation industry past, present, and future offer a lot of stories to be told.

• Location: Buenos Aires

Jose Antonio Payet

Writer

As a geography nerd, Jose has always been fascinated by the complexities of the airline industry and its ability to bring the world closer together. Born and raised in Peru, now studying in the UK. he has travelled around America, Europe and South East Asia. His favorite aircraft is the Boeing 767-300, which he has flown many times during his childhood; although now the A350 is slowly growing up on him.

• Location: UK

Will Lee

Writer

Will has been a travel agent in Hong Kong for almost three decades, as time goes by he hasn’t lost his passion for his job, He still has plenty of enthusiasm for the airline industry and airport operations.

• Location: Hong Kong

Connor Sadler

Writer

Connor has been in love with flying since the first time he boarded a plane when he was 5 years old. He loves all things aviation, and he hopes to make that his full-time career in the future.

• Location: UK

Shaquille Khan

Photographer

Shaquille was just seven years old when he took his first flight to America on a Surinam Airways 747 from PBM to MIA. Since moving to New York, Shaquille has worked as a ground operations supervisor at JFK and has since moved to LaGuardia Airport to work as an Operations Agent for Spirit Airlines. When he isn’t working, Shaquille is most likely travelling to cities in which he has never been. During his first year of college, he took many photography courses to get closer with one of his favorite hobbies. He spends all of his free time taking pictures of everything that catches his eye. Shaquille’s long-term goal is to be an airline pilot, one that he has already begun working towards.

• Location: New York City

Hisham Qadri

Lead Aviation Photographer

Besides being a student at Wofford College, Hisham Qadri is very passionate about aviation and photography. Hisham’s first flight was as a baby on an Emirates 777, and since then he has remained in love with the Boeing 777 and Emirates airlines. Since his start with photography, Hisham has worked for professional photographers and has even hosted his own professional exhibit. Even though Hisham is studying to become a doctor, you’ll still find him dreaming about becoming a pilot and travelling the world. In about 15 years, if you ever need to visit Dr.Qadri, you’ll be sure to find photographs of his favorite airliners on the walls of his office.

• Website: Link

Michael Raisch

Branding & Lead Designer

Michael is a CLIO award winning designer and digital content producer. Michael has an extensive branding background in sports and event identities for MLB and the NHL. Michael founded Raisch Studios in 2003. His digital content has received international exposure and has been featured on Brand New, HOW Design, People Magazine, the Smithsonian Channel, IFC, and CNN.

In the aviation community, he is best known for his “Toddler Flight Simulator” and producing a photographic tribute for MH370 told through the lens of international planespotters.

• Location: Jersey City, NJ
• Website: Link

Craig Fischer

Photographer

Craig has maintained an overwhelming passion for aviation since his parents started taking him to the airport in elementary school. He has held on to this passion throughout middle and high school and recently started flight training to get his private pilot’s license. Craig wants to eventually be in the left seat of an airliner and is working towards his dream.

When not flying, Craig likes to head to the airport and photograph airplanes right outside of the Nation’s Capital.  He loves his new hobby of planespotting and is thankful for all the new people he has been able to meet that share this passion.  He is ready to continue working hard and provide high-quality content that readers enjoy.

• Location: Washington, D.C.

Fabian Behr

Photographer

Fabian started photographing aircraft at the age of 11, and from there his interest turned to photography and traveling. He’s traveled to more than 20 countries on 4 continents. Right now he is in the process of finishing his Aerospace Engineering studies and completing his frozen ATPL.

• Location: Dusseldorf, Germany

Ben Suskind

Photographer

Ben has always loved aviation ever since he was taken to Gravelly Point as a little kid. He recently started going to the airport more frequently to take photos of aircraft. His goal for the far future is to be the captain of a wide-body airliner and is going to start flight training soon.

• Location: Washington, D.C.

William Derrickson

Photographer

Bill grew up in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania where he was exposed to aviation from a very young age through his family’s avionics business.  He graduated from the University of Pittsburgh and had a 20-year career as a police officer, although he never abandoned his passion for aviation.  He continued to involve himself in the aviation community through his family’s business as well as his overall interest in aviation photography.  In 2007, he shot his first airshow and since then has been working to improve his aviation photography skills by attending many aviation events around the world.

Peter Weiland

Photographer

• Location: Washington, D.C.