Jeff Skiles is best known as Captain Sully Sullenberger’s First Officer in the Miracle on the Hudson, but he has also served as the Vice-President of the Coalition of Airline Pilots Associations representing over 28,000 pilots in airline safety and security issues, as well as Vice President of Communities and Member Programs for EAA, a 200,000 member association of general aviation pilots.

Through his advocacy for airline safety Jeff has been involved in crafting and defending legislation that has significantly improved regulation in the airline industry. He was principally involved with several components of the Airline Safety and Federal Aviation Administration Extension Act of 2010 and worked with the House of Representatives Aviation Sub-Committee to write language that expands the requirement to possess an Airline Transport Pilot’s license to both the Captain and First Officer positions. To support these efforts Jeff has testified before congressional committees on several occasions and has served on government rule-making committees tasked with developing the final regulatory language for this pivotal legislation.

Jeff is qualified as a Captain on eight different transport aircraft and is also a Certified Flight Instructor for basic, instrument, and multi-engine operations.

Jeff regularly speaks at air safety forums and to public and private audiences regarding aviation safety and the transformative changes that have revolutionized airline operations. He also writes and consults for the aviation industry and to date has published over 100 articles in a variety of publications from Air & Space to the Physicians Executive Journal.

Currently, Jeff is a Boeing 787 Captain based in Chicago and flies primarily international routes while continuing to speak, write, and consult on aviation issues.