December 11, 2024
Mel & Tony

Our own Mel Asberry certifies his 1,000th aircraft!!!

On Friday, December 11, 2020, I issued an Airworthiness Certificate to Mr. Gregory Rodriguez for his Amateur-Built AL18. This was, in fact, my 1,000th aircraft certification as a DAR since receiving my designation in September of 1999.

Shown are pictures of me handing Mr. Rodriguez the Airworthiness Certificate for N867GR, and of Tony Baumgard, my FAA PMI, handing me a Certification of Recognition from the FAA North Texas FSDO.
Being able to certificate Light-Sport and Experimental aircraft means a lot to me.  It’s a personal goal to try to make sure these aircraft are as safe as possible before leaving the ground for the first time.  I’ve always said, “This is the perfect retirement job; I get paid to go look at airplanes.”  But in all honesty, it’s NOT about the money.  I love this job.
(photos by Darin Rodriguez)