JOHN P. KELLEY  BIO         


John Kelley is the President of Kelley Aviation LLC, a Washington DC based aviation consulting company focusing on issues including airspace modernization and UAS integration.  He is an active Captain on a DC area Gulfstream aircraft serving both domestic and international destinations.

Mr. Kelley began his aviation career in 1986 when he joined the US Navy, accumulating thousands of flight hours in multi-crew, land based aircraft including hundreds of hours of combat time during Operation Desert Shield / Desert Storm.  As a qualified aircraft and mission commander and instructor pilot, Mr. Kelley accrued worldwide experience flying the P-3, C-12, T-39, C-20 and C-9 aircraft including multiple tours flying high ranking VIPs for the Navy’s executive transport operations at Andrews Air Force base.

Mr. Kelley post-dated his Naval career with an airline pilot position at Delta Air Lines.  He flew extensively in the domestic high density northeast, mid-Atlantic and southeastern regions as well as internationally to Europe gaining years of valuable experience in part 121 airline operations flying the B-727, B-737 (-200, -300, -800) B-757 and B-767 (200, 300-ER).

Following his Delta career Mr. Kelley joined a national business jet charter company as their mid-Atlantic regional Chief Pilot.  He managed a base of 15 aircraft and crews while also flying as PIC on multiple Gulfstream aircraft for part 135 and 91 operations. Mr. Kelley was subsequently asked to create and manage a flight department for a Washington DC based financial company.  The department achieved many milestones during its years of operation under his direction, including ISBAO certification, while operating both Bell and Gulfstream aircraft.

Desiring to lend his extensive aviation / airspace experience to make a positive impact, Mr. Kelley embraced the concept of building his own company focusing on advocacy, NextGen operations and airspace consulting. One of the most significant challenges that aviation faces today is the safe integration of unmanned aircraft into the National Airspace System.  This is a major focus of Kelley Aviation.  

Mr. Kelley is an avid supporter of business aviation and very active in interfacing with the FAA and regional and national associations including NBAA, AOPA and AUVSI.  He is currently a member of the board of directors of the Greater Washington Business Aviation Association, a Director of the Virginia Aviation Council, a member of NBAA’s Access Committee for Airspace and Technology, and a Runway Safety Action Team member at both the Dulles International and Manassas Regional airports. He is actively involved with the FAA in creating and implementing the Washington DC and nationwide Metroplex initiatives, and acquires immediate feedback to their effectiveness during FAA group meetings and while flying in U.S. airspace.  Sought after for his operational airspace expertise, he has participated in the design and rollout of numerous DC area procedures from Charted Visual Approaches to RNAV SIDs and OPD RNAV STARs and has participated on numerous teams evaluating concepts such as Limited Time Based Operations (L-TBO) / Flow Management, Closely Spaced Offset Parallel Approaches, Trajectory Synchronization and 4-Dimensional Trajectory (4DT) programs including Advanced Interval Management and Dynamic Required Navigation Performance initiatives (AIM / DRNP) where he helped design the flight operational test and evaluation plan.  He is a key contributor and team member on NextGen projects such as Flight & Flow Information for a Collaborative Environment (FF-ICE), Global Air / Ground System Wide Information Management (Global AG SWIM), and International Interoperability Harmonization & Validation (IIH&V), including participation in large scale exercises at the Florida NextGen Test Bed in Daytona Beach.

He is currently involved with the Virginia Department of Aviation’s effort to implement an automated remote tower at the Leesburg airport and is a member of the FAA’s safety panel evaluating that project.

Mr. Kelley is a graduate of Embry Riddle Aeronautical University and the US Navy’s flight school and instructor pilot program.  He and his family have lived in the Washington DC area for over 20 years.

Kelley Aviation LLC is a Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business approved by the Veterans Administration.