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\u201cBeing Director for the last 18 years has, indeed, been the\nhonor of a lifetime,\u201d Bird told the State Aviation Journal. \u201cRepresenting my\nconstituents, airports, the aerospace industry, military aviation, pilots, and\nother professionals in our aviation workforce has been a profound privilege.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bird not only has had an impact on the State of Oklahoma,\nbut nationwide as well, serving on the Board of the National Association of\nState Aviation Officials (NASAO). He was the Association\u2019s Chair in 2010 and\nco-chaired the Legislative Committee for many years. \u201cHaving the ability to\ncall upon the wealth of expertise among my NASAO brethren was always my secret\nweapon,\u201d quipped Bird. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bird\u2019s career in state government started in the Oklahoma\nAttorney General\u2019s office under Mike Turpen in 1983. He subsequently served at Oklahoma State\nUniversity, the Office of the Lieutenant Governor and again in the Attorney\nGeneral\u2019s office under two different attorneys general. Bird earned his juris\ndoctorate and bachelor\u2019s degree from the University of Tulsa, leading to him to\na career in law within the public sector. \nIt was this legal background and his knowledge of state government that\nultimately led him to the Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission as Director in\n2002. Although he was a newcomer to\naviation and aerospace, he saw the amazing opportunities to help foster and\ngrow the industry and immediately put his knowledge and connections within\nstate government to work. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
In the Oklahoma Attorney General\u2019s office, Bird had a great\ndeal of interaction with other attorneys general offices, and many other public\nofficials. \u201cMy brethren in NASAO are the most dedicated public servants that I\nhave I have ever had the privilege of associating with,\u201d said Bird. \u201cEach and\nall of them are committed to improving all sectors and aspects of aviation for\ntheir respective states. Serving alongside them has been an honor and a\nprivilege.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Greg Pecoraro, NASAO’s President & CEO, said Director\nBird has been critical to the success of NASAO over the years, particularly in the\nAssociation\u2019s legislative endeavors. \u201cWe cannot thank him enough for his\ndedication and continuous leadership.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In 2017 Bird was the recipient of NASAO\u2019s Kenneth A. Rowe\nAmbassador of Aviation Award \u2013 the Association\u2019s most prestigious. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bird developed many important friendships during his tenure\nin Oklahoma including U.S. Sen. Jim Inhofe (R-Okla.) \u201cCongratulations to my\nlongtime friend on his retirement after 18 years of service as director of the\nOklahoma Aeronautics Commission,\u201d said Sen. Inhofe. \u201cAs the longest serving\ndirector in Oklahoma history, he has been a tireless advocate for aviation and\naerospace.\u201d The Senator said Bird\u2019s efforts have resulted in pro-aviation\nlegislation in Oklahoma, growing its annual economic impact to $44 billion that\nhas resulted in tens of thousands of jobs. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
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<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\nThroughout his career Bird has championed general aviation,\nsupporting pilots and airport investments across the state. His tenure as\ndirector has been marked with distinction from his peers and professional\nfirsts. \u201cHe is the first and only non-elected public official to receive the\nJoseph B. “Doc” Hartranft Jr. Award from the Aircraft Owners &\nPilots Association (AOPA). I am proud of his service to Oklahoma and the\naviation community as whole,\u201d said Sen. Inhofe. \u201cThank you, Vic.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Oklahoma Secretary of Transportation Tim Gatz also congratulated\nVic on a lifetime of service to the State of Oklahoma and thanked him for\nbringing a vision and energy to the Aeronautics Commission at a critical time\nin its history. \u201cVic is a nationally respected leader in the aerospace sector\nand his expertise and advocacy have helped grow the industry and ensure that\nOklahoma has a long-term plan for keeping our air transportation system safe\nand effective,\u201d said Gatz. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Highlights of Bird\u2019s tenure include formation of the\nGovernor\u2019s Aerospace Task Force in 2004, which resulted in several\nrecommendations to ensure the viability and growth of the state\u2019s aerospace\nindustry. One of those recommendations\nthat Bird was instrumental in bringing to fruition was the Legislature\u2019s creation\nof Engineer Tax Credits for Aerospace, which provides tax credits to engineers\nthat go to work in aerospace and the aerospace companies that hire them.\nEngineers that go to work for Tinker AFB, the FAA Monroney Aeronautical Center,\nBoeing, Northrop Grumman and others, and the employers that hire them have\ngreatly benefitted from these tax credits. Bird also championed a sales tax\nexemption on purchases of products and services from the maintenance, repair\nand overhaul (MRO) sector of the aerospace industry. Up to 80% of aerospace\ncompanies in Oklahoma are engaged in MRO and this provided them a critical\ncompetitive advantage. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Other legislative successes include the Aerospace\nDevelopment Act of 2008, which transferred two key aerospace programs, the\nCenter for Aerospace Supplier Quality and the Oklahoma Aerospace Institute, to\nOAC. These programs evolved into the\nvery successful Aerospace Commerce Economic Services (ACES) program now\noperated by the Oklahoma Department of Commerce. The Aircraft Pilot and\nPassenger Protection Act, which became law in 2010, was also accomplished under\nBird\u2019s watch and ensured that public-use airports and military airports were\nprovided legal protections from encroaching development. It was this\naccomplishment that led to Bird receiving AOPA\u2019s coveted Hartranft Award. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\u201cVic has been a personal friend of mine for years,\u201d said Oklahoma\nnative and retired astronaut Gen. Thomas Stafford. \u201cHe has done more for\naviation and aerospace in Oklahoma than anyone I know. He is our #1\n\u201cAirvangelist\u201d and has spread the good news about how important aviation is in\nOklahoma to everyone. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
Gen. Stafford said Bird\u2019s expertise and experience\nadvocating in Congress and at the State Capitol will be sorely missed. \u201cI am so\nproud of the fact that Vic received the award bearing my name for his\noutstanding contribution to the Oklahoma aerospace industry for his authoring\nand championing of the engineer tax credits for aerospace that are the most\nunique tax incentives for aerospace in the country. This isn\u2019t the end of Vic\u2019s\nservice to aviation. I can\u2019t wait to see what he does next, concluded\nStafford.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Bird said he knows that it will surprise none of his colleagues and friends in aviation that he could go on for hours about the innumerable gratifying rewards that he has been the beneficiary of in serving as the Director of Aeronautics for the State of Oklahoma. \u201cI\u2019ll see my aviation friends and colleagues again as I\u2019ll be doing a little consulting for an aviation and aerospace company,” said Bird. “No way I\u2019d go back into practicing law and billing hours. I\u2019ve learned that a job where you just do a little lawyerin\u2019 on the side is much better! See you down the flight path!\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Grayson Ardies, Deputy Director for the OAC, was appointed\nby the Commission at the same meeting as the new Director.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
At its Wednesday, Oct. 14 meeting, the seven-member Oklahoma Aeronautics Commission accepted the retirement of long-time State Director of Aeronautics Victor Bird. Bird leaves a long legacy of state policymaking with 36 years of public service to the State of Oklahoma. During his 18-year tenure with OAC, Bird\u2019s emphasized promotion of the aerospace industry, one […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[56],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16682","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-oklahoma"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16682","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=16682"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16682\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":16690,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16682\/revisions\/16690"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=16682"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=16682"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=16682"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}