RAA Elects Trans States? Rick Leach 2009 Chairman

Richard A. Leach, President, Chief Executive Officer of Trans States Holdings, has been elected Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Regional Airline Association (RAA) for the 2008/2009 term.

Other officers elected at the association's fall membership meeting held this week in Washington, DC were Vice-Chair Russell "Chip" Childs, SkyWest; Treasurer James Rankin, Air Wisconsin; and Secretary Daniel Wolf, Cape Air. ExpressJet's Jim Ream was elected to the RAA Board to fill a vacant slot, joining Joe Randell, Air Canada Jazz; Peter Bowler, American Eagle; Doug Voss, Great Lakes; Steve Farrow, Piedmont; and re-elected directors Bryan Bedford, Republic; Tim Komberec, Empire and Dave Hackett, Gulfstream International.

Karla Cadden, Account Director, Commercial Airline Sales/Aviation Solutions at Arinc, and Barry MacKinnon, Marketing Regional VP, Bombardier Commercial Aircraft were elected chair and vice-chair respectively of RAA's Associate Member Council (AMC) representing nearly 300 leading suppliers of products and services to the regional airline industry. Most recent past chair Rick Townsend, V.P. Sales Marketing & Customer Support for AAR Aircraft Services remains on the AMC.

"With the range of serious issues facing regional aviation, particularly during the transition to a new Administration and Congress, RAA is privileged to have the leadership and support of such committed, savvy airline CEOs," said RAA President Roger Cohen. "We're also tapping the expertise of our Associate Members to help guide us through these issues, as well as help shape the centerpiece of RAA, our Annual Convention and Tradeshow, May 18-21 in Salt Lake City."

Founded in 1975, the Regional Airline Association (RAA) represents regional airlines before legislative and regulatory agencies, and also provides a wide array of technical, educational, and promotional support to regional airlines and their supply company partners. RAA's 40 member airlines operate one half of all U.S. scheduled passenger flights and carry more than one in five domestic passengers. RAA members serve more than 600 U.S. airports, and some 70 percent of those airports depend on regional airlines, exclusively, for their only source of scheduled air service.