Pilot in command

He succeeds Mark Baker, who retired after leading AOPA for more than 11 years. Pleasance’s aviation and business background make him the ideal next chief executive for the association. “I’ve been lucky to have participated in almost every dimension of aviation,” said Pleasance. “I will bring that understanding and appreciation for all those dimensions into the role.”

Pleasance’s passion for aviation started not long after moving from Boston to Livermore, California, at age 13. After discovering model airplanes, he became interested in full-scale aircraft while in the Scouts, seeking to earn an aviation merit badge. His Scout leader was a flight instructor, who noticed Pleasance’s interest in airplanes and gave him his first flight lesson in a Cessna 172 at Livermore Municipal Airport (LVK). Pleasance was soon riding his bike to the Livermore airport after school to wash and help owners work on airplanes in exchange for rides. He learned early that the pilot community is generous to young people looking to break into aviation.

On his sixteenth birthday, Pleasance completed his first solo flight in a Cessna 150. He earned his private pilot certificate at age 17, his instrument rating and commercial certificate at age 18, and shortly thereafter his flight instructor certificate.

Pleasance chose to attend University of California, Santa Barbara “because it was positioned right next to the Santa Barbara airport,” he said. “It allowed me to go to school during the day and then sneak away between classes and teach lessons.” After a few months teaching primary students, Pleasance pursued his instrument instructor and multiengine instructor ratings. By age 19, he had earned all his ratings. Pleasance is still an active flight instructor, but because of time constraints he focuses primarily on instrument proficiency checks, tailwheel endorsements, and aerobatics and upset recovery training.

Initially, Pleasance intended to be an airline pilot, until a chance opportunity to fly second in command in actor John Travolta’s Hawker jet led him down a different path. He then spent a season flying bush airplanes all around Alaska before returning to California to fly corporate jets for a private equity firm. Here, Pleasance gained an early appreciation for the benefits of general aviation travel. As a corporate pilot, he learned how powerful it was to have access to an airplane that could reach multiple destinations in a single day and conduct business in ways that would not otherwise be possible. Between flights, Pleasance’s time at the firm taught him about commercial real estate and how to buy and sell companies.

Intrigued by his newfound business skills, Pleasance earned his MBA at the UCLA Anderson School of Management, and joined consulting firm McKinsey & Co, “which allowed me to work with some of the biggest companies in the world on some of the most challenging issues that they contend with,” he said. Pleasance next led global customer acquisitions for Google before joining Cisco where he advanced into more senior roles—ultimately leading Cisco’s Acceleration Center, formed to accelerate the success of Cisco’s business transformation.

Pleasance is a savvy aircraft owner who enjoys the camaraderie of ownership as much as the airplanes themselves. While he owns more than one airplane, “I have partners in all of them,” he said. “I’ve discovered that I can only fly one at a time. And it’s good for airplanes to fly. Because of that, I’ve been intentional about having at least one, sometimes a couple of partners.” Pleasance co-owns a Progressive Aerodyne SeaRey light sport amphibious airplane for landing on nearby lakes, a Van’s Aircraft RV–6 for aerobatics, and a Piper Meridian to commute for work. And he’s a member of a club that operates a North American P-51 Mustang and T-6 Texan.

Pleasance has just started to consider how AOPA’s agenda may evolve over time. “The advocacy work we do at the federal and local level is foundational to the value we provide members,” he said. “I think the work we do around safety is critical. We have to continue to be seen as an organization that stands for safety.” There are also areas of opportunity, particularly reaching communities of people who don’t know much about general aviation and wouldn’t normally find themselves at a general aviation airport. “My good friend who came from one of these communities always said, ‘You gotta see it to be it.’ And his point was so many individuals don’t even know aviation is an opportunity for them.”

Since earning his pilot certificate, Pleasance has been introducing people to general aviation. “For me, the emotion of flying is really about the views, but also the ability to experience the world in the way that most people don’t. I love sharing that with other people because they give you that energy back.” Pleasance often takes someone who’s never experienced the joy of seaplane flying to a nearby lake in his SeaRey, and occasionally gives P-51 Mustang rides to individuals who have a historical connection to the airplane or period.

Pleasance also sees general aviation—and AOPA—as central to the futures of aspiring air ambulance pilots, aerial firefighters, bush pilots, and airline pilots since most of these pilots are trained at local airports. “I’d love to have AOPA playing an even bigger role in helping more individuals out there see the breadth of opportunities that exist in aviation.” 

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