The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) recognizes Michael France’s long-time achievements and thanks him for 13 years of service to the association, first as Director of Regulatory Affairs and later as Managing Director of Safety & Training. France recently announced plans to leave NATA on January 28, 2022.
“We can’t thank Mike enough for his hard work and dedication over the past 13 years as an advocate for our members and champion for continuous improvement of our Safety 1st program—focusing the safety learning paradigm on employee learning and development. Mike’s work has built a solid foundation for the association to continue to grow and expand our industry-standard training and education programs,” stated NATA President and CEO Timothy Obitts.
As Director of Regulatory Affairs, France fought on behalf of NATA’s California members to protect students from predatory educational institutions, while preventing the destruction of flight training institutions across the state due to burdensome administrative requirements passed by the California State Legislature in 2009.
Under France’s leadership as Managing Director of Safety & Training, NATA’s Safety 1st team launched an extensive knowledge base and support center to provide instant access to thorough information and assistance related to our suite of safety training, education, and guidance.   Â
France also worked alongside NATA’s current Managing Director of Industry & Regulatory Affairs Megan Eisenstein to advocate for changes to the 2022 National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) 409: Standard on Aircraft Hangars, giving aviation businesses significant tools to protect against fire without the use of foam fire suppression systems—a longtime effort that represents a major win for NATA members and the industry at-large.
And in the early days of the COVID-19 crisis, France moved quickly to support the industry by working with the Safety 1st team and Safety Committee to develop the Safety 1st Clean standard, providing facility cleaning and sanitation guidance for operations during a pandemic and a means to demonstrate conformity with those heightened standards.
“Mike is a visionary—always thinking ahead when it comes to setting and then raising the bar for aviation businesses. His creativity, enthusiasm, and energy are unmatched. We are pleased he will continue to support the industry and serve as a cheerleader for the association in his future endeavors. On behalf of NATA’s leadership and staff, we wish him all the best,” added Obitts.
