![\"\"](\"\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dan-kasowski-2-872x1024.jpg\")
Dan Kasowski was born in Buffalo, North Dakota in 1958. He\ngrew up on his family\u2019s farm where his mechanical aptitude began at a young\nage. His journey as an aviation mechanic began immediately after high school,\nwhen he pursued his Airframe & Powerplant (A&P) training and\ncertification at Dakota Aero Tech in Fargo. In 1978 he started his career at\nRugbee Air Care in Rugby N.D. After one year in Rugby he moved back to Fargo\nand worked at ProAir Services for a short time until they permanently closed\noperations. In the fall of 1979, he emerged as a pioneering force in the new\naviation school that was formed at the University of North Dakota (UND). As the\nsecond full-time mechanic employed by the organization, Dan became an integral\npart of UND’s aviation program, eventually ascending to supervisory roles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Throughout his career at UND, Dan’s influence reached beyond\nthe mechanics and technicians that he mentored, his impact extending to\naviation professionals across North Dakota and the nation. He traversed various\nroles, progressing from a technician to supervisor, inspector, shop manager,\nand quality assurance manager. Notably, he held the position of Director of\nMaintenance for over two decades, overseeing both the main campus and satellite\noperations under the FAR Part 145 certificate. He received his I.A. (Inspection\nAuthorization) in 1982 and his Private Pilot Certificate from the University of\nNorth Dakota in 1988. Dan currently oversees approximately 100 full and part\ntime employees.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Under Dan’s leadership, UND’s flight operation consistently\ngarnered the FAA Diamond Award, a testament to their commitment to training,\nsafety, and professional development. His strategic guidance navigated the\ninstitution through multiple fleet changes, significantly enhancing safety\nacross all flight operations. Dan’s humble demeanor and unwavering dedication\nto safety contributed to UND’s impeccable safety record, establishing North\nDakota as a premier global destination for pilot training.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Beyond UND, Dan actively participated in the North Dakota\nProfessional Aviation Maintenance Association (NDPAMA) throughout his entire\ncareer. He held various officer positions and served as its President multiple\ntimes. Dan also had a pivotal role in establishing the NDPAMA aviation mechanic\nscholarship which gave a preference for North Dakota students. He continually\nshowcased his commitment to nurturing the next generation of aviation mechanic\nprofessionals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dan served on the North Dakota Aviation Council for 7 years,\nand in 2004 and 2005 he assumed the role of Chair for the North Dakota Aviation\nCouncil, where he played a key role in organizing the state’s annual conference\nand fostering collaboration among aviation stakeholders. His involvement\nextended to advisory boards at area technical schools offering A&P\nprograms, where he championed the value of giving back to the aviation\ncommunity by leading through example.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Dan\u2019s legacy is not just a testament to his technical\nexpertise but also to his commitment to mentorship, safety, and the broader\naviation community. His profound impact, stemming from mentorship and dedicated\nwork in the field, has positively impacted many individuals within and beyond\nthe North Dakota aviation community.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Induction Ceremony Information:<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The induction banquet ceremony will take place in Grand Forks, at the annual \u201cFly North Dakota\u201d Conference on Tuesday, March 5th at the Alerus Center. The social will begin at 6 p.m. and the banquet starts at 7 p.m. To learn more about the state\u2019s aviation conference or to purchase tickets for the hall of fame event, visit the Fly ND website.<\/a> <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" The North Dakota Aviation Hall of Fame committee announced that Dan Kasowski has been selected for induction into the state\u2019s Aviation Hall of Fame. Dan will join the prestigious aviation hall of fame group that currently includes 48 other individuals who have all had a significant impact on the growth, development, and promotion of aviation […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":27639,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[54],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-27638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-north-dakota"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/Dan-Kasowski.jpg","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27638","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=27638"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27638\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":27641,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/27638\/revisions\/27641"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/27639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=27638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=27638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/stateaviationjournal.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=27638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}