Army Lieutenant Colonel (Retired) Adrian Allen Eichhorn has passionately dedicated his life to aviation education, with a focus on safety by using a unique combination of piloting, engineering, innovation, inspiration, and adventure.
Adrian was inspired to fly at age eight by his father, a decorated US Army pilot. After four years of trying to convince the Army to send him to flight school, he finally realized that the nation had different plans for him. On his own, he earned all his flight and maintenance certificates and ratings while on active duty.
Adrian’s career in the US Army Corp of Engineers, culminating in a role at the Joint Chiefs of Staff as a Strategic Nuclear Advisor to President William Clinton, and his aviation career flying for the FAA, NASA, JetBlue, and corporations such as the Washington Redskins, General Dynamics, Leidos, and Lockheed Martin, provided first-hand experience and deep insight into the risks of fatigue, complacency, and distraction. Adrian’s emphasis on professionalism and safety led to his selection to fly Presidential Cabinet members including the Secretary of Transportation, the FAA Administrator, the NASA Administrator, and astronauts such as Neil Armstrong and John Glenn. In addition to Adrian’s 26,000-hour flying career with airline transport pilot type ratings in the Airbus, Gulfstream, Bombardier, and Cessna families, as well as the Aero Vodochody L-39 Albatros, he is a licensed airframe and powerplant mechanic with inspection authorization.
As a civil engineer from Michigan Technological University and an inventor determined to improve night flying safety he designed and received FAA approval for upgraded external lighting systems for all Beechcraft Barons and Bonanzas. Over 600 aircraft are now flying with this modification. For over 30 years, he has taught pilots about the operational hazards and physical limitations that pertain to night flying safety in magazine articles, webinars, podcasts, in-person speaking engagements, and videos.
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Adrian pioneered the use of digital borescopes to examine the condition of piston aircraft engines. The borescope innovation came from the discovery and adaptation of his own dentist’s medical imaging camera. Adrian shared the vital engine examination capability, free of charge, to tens of thousands of pilots and aviation mechanics. In collaboration with AOPA and NTSB, Adrian created a poster enabling field technicians to accurately diagnose exhaust valve problems before they led to catastrophic engine failure, potentially saving lives.
A highly sought after speaker, Adrian has delivered over 480 pro-bono educational presentations hosted and endorsed by organizations such as AOPA, NBAA, NTSB, FAA, WIA, EAA, his own employer JetBlue, Jeppesen, L-3, and the American Bonanza Society. He founded Alpine Aviation, Inc, a flight school dedicated to teaching Beechcraft single and multi-engine pilots and is an FAA Gold Seal Instructor and Master Certified Instructor. Adrian’s volunteer contributions and multi-faceted perspective gained from piloting, maintenance, mentoring, and invention set him apart from other highly qualified aviation educators.
Adrian’s celebrated around the-world solo flight in a flashy single-engine 1962 Beechcraft P35 Bonanza, he completely rebuilt himself exemplified his contributions to flight inspiration and safety education with a powerful combination of high-performance piloting and flawless maintenance. This global awareness flight, followed by over three million people through his Fly Blue Horizons website, seminars, and social media, was superseded by an epic, non-stop 21-hour solo flight in the same airplane from Reykjavik, Iceland, across the North Pole, to Fairbanks, Alaska. These record-breaking accomplishments were not for the Guinness book or Adrian’s personal acclaim, rather their purpose was for elevating aviation safety awareness and education. His commitment to quality and safety in restoring his Bonanza was recognized with the EAA Reserve Grand Champion Silver Lindy in 2018 and later as the EAA Grand Champion Gold Lindy, the highest awards achievable in general aviation at the world’s largest aviation gathering.
Adrian, a Virginia Aviation Hall of Fame inductee, has earned more than 22 national, regional, local, and military awards including the FAA National Maintenance Technician of the Year (2016), FAA National Aviation Safety Counselor of the Year (2001), AOPA General Aviation Safety Commendation, American Bonanza Society Airmanship Award, and the United States Armed Forces Legion of Merit. These awards are more than accolades and decorations to Adrian. The accomplishment, recognition, and notoriety underpin Adrian’s credibility as an educator and ambassador and support his ability to engage at the highest levels of decision making to improve aviation safety.
Adrian Eichhorn has made the dream of flying a reality and significantly safer for corporate giants, senior federal officials, commercial pilots, and general aviation enthusiasts including Women in Aviation, The Ninety Nines, Boy Scouts, Civil Air Patrol, and hearing-impaired students at Gallaudet University. Today, Adrian is rebuilding in his hangar, with safety, education, and maintenance in mind, a 1951 Cessna L19 “Bird Dog,” the exact model flown by his father in the Korean War.