Safety Standdown Advisory Council welcomes new members and chairs

Bombardier’s Safety Standdown Advisory Council provides advice, recommendations and suggestions for the content and direction of Safety Standdown programming. Council members evaluate past activities, assist in the development of current projects, and create and support the future goals of Safety Standdown. Their duties include selecting the Safety Standdown Award winner, promoting the program year-round, and building the event curriculum. 

This year’s Advisory Council chair is Melissa Cooper, A.A.E, Deputy Director of Aviation, Property Management and Commercial Development, Kansas City International Airport (KMCI) & Charles B. Wheeler Downtown Airport (KMKC). Melissa has been a council member since 2019. This year, she will guide the council’s strategic goals and build the foundation for future Safety Standdown events.   

The 2023 Advisory Council vice chair is Marty Grier. A member of the council since 2019, Marty was awarded Safety Standdown’s first maintenance award in 2018. He is currently the director of aircraft maintenance for The Home Depot Aviation Department and will become chair of the council in 2024. 

A warm welcome goes out to our two newest members: 

Bethan Williams, Chief of Cabin Experience at Bombardier, and Kellie Roby, Vice President of Safety Services, Polaris Aero.  

Bombardier would like to acknowledge Amy Grubb, Ph.D., Digital Transformation Advisor to the Chief Information Officer at the FBI and founder of Organizational Insights, LLC, for her dedication as the 2022 chair and contributions to the council since 2018. 

Bombardier’s Safety Standdown was founded on the principles of continuous learning, integrity, collaboration, professionalism and leadership. The free annual event aims to elevate safety in business aviation while inspiring all industry stakeholders to learn, apply and share the knowledge they take home from Safety Standdown.  

To learn more about any of our council members, click here.