Put your name on the flight list for the 2025 Aviation Symposium! We look forward to celebrating 20 years of the event with you.

The Symposium will feature panels and presentations on topical issues in the aviation industry that affect your business. 

Preliminary Agenda

Tuesday, February 4, 2025

12:30 - 6 p.m.    Arrival and Registration

3 - 3:45 p.m.    Aviation Emergency Response Organization (AERO) Board Meeting

4 - 5:15 p.m.    AERO General Membership Meeting (Open to all members and conference attendees)

5:30 - 7 p.m.   Welcome Reception (Salon I, 5th floor)

Wednesday, February 5, 2025

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.    Registration and Continental Breakfast (5th floor, Salon II and III foyer)

9:30 - 9:45 a.m.    Welcome and Opening Comments (5th floor, Salon II & III)

9:45 - 10:30 a.m.  Criminalization of Aviation Accidents in the United States

• Who prosecutes?
• What law applies?
• Fraud, manslaughter and assorted crimes
• Pending cases

10:30 - 11:30 a.m.  The FAA, DOT and NTSB: What to Expect in The Next Four Years!

• The regulatory process and priorities
• UAS/BVLOS
• Urban mobility
• Certification/delegation
• Mental health

11:30 - 11:45 a.m.    Networking Break

11:45 a.m. - 12:30 p.m.    Being on the NTSB: An Informal Discussion with the Honorable J. Todd Inman, Member, National Transportation Safety Board

12:30 - 2 p.m.    Lunch, Featuring Aviation Trivia (For a second season, test your aviation knowledge against your peers)

2 - 2:45 p.m.    Flight Attendants and Customer Service Agents: Risks and Liabilities

• Dealing with disruptive passengers
• Learning and using self defense
• Role of other passengers

2:45 - 3:15 p.m.   The View from the Cabin and the Top: A Discussion with Sara Nelson, International President of the Association of Flight Attendants (AFA)

3:15 - 3:45 p.m.    Marc Nichols Unleashed: The Former FAA Chief Counsel Calls It As He Sees It

3:45 - 4 p.m.    Networking Break

4 - 4:45 p.m.    Behind the Crash: Working Effectively With the NTSB, FAA, Unions, Media, Families, Employees, etc.

• What really happens after an accident
• The investigation and litigation
• To party or not to party
• Current and former employees
• Media issues
• How all the pieces fit together

4:45 - 5 p.m.    First Day Wrap Up and Preview of Day Two

5 - 6:30 p.m.     Networking and Reception Mix and mingle with your colleagues. Join us for a cocktail before you go to dinner.

Thursday, February 6, 2025

8:30 - 9:30 a.m.    Continental Breakfast

9:30 - 9:45 a.m.    Welcome and Opening Comments

9:45 - 10:30 a.m.    Accidents Outside the United States: The Role of the Department of State and the NTSB

• The NTSB and the State Department: who does what?
• Protecting the crew
• Passenger issues
• Criminal prosecutions
• Civil litigation

10:30 - 11:15 a.m.    Family Assistance: The First Line of Defense Against Liability

• Training your family assistance team
• The role of NTSB Office of Transportation Disaster Assistance
• The role of the airline
• How family assistance shapes/affects litigation/civil claims

11:15 a.m. - 12:15 p.m.    Navigating Emotional Distress, Runway Overruns and Departures, Near Misses and Emergency Evacuations

• Proving it didn’t happen
• What is emotional distress?
• What are the legal duties of an airline?

12:15 - 12:30 p.m. Wrap Up Comments and Adjournment

Revisit the Symposium material:

• Criminalization of Aviation Accidents in the United States
• The FAA, DOT and NTSB: What to Expect in The Next Four Years!
• Flight Attendants and Customer Service Agents: Risks and Liabilities
• Behind the Crash: Working Effectively With the NTSB, FAA, Unions, Media, Families, Employees, etc.
• Accidents Outside the United States: The Role of the Department of State and the NTSB
• Family Assistance: The First Line of Defense Against Liability
• Navigating Emotional Distress, Runway Overruns and Departures, Near Misses and Emergency Evacuations