Avemco's Jim Lauerman Is The Featured Speaker

Jim Lauerman, President of Avemco Insurance Company, is the featured speaker for the Rochester Wings Aviation Expo at the Greater Rochester International Airport June 18-19, 2010.

Lauerman will address the issues of risk management in the cockpit that go beyond training and technology in his feature presentation entitled “We Have Met the Enemy, and He is Us.” He will discuss the motivation and mindset needed to help prevent accidents while flying, and share his unique perspective on the key causes of aircraft accidents.

His insights are based on actual Avemco insurance claims data, his 35 years of experience in general aviation, and his career as an insurance executive. “Despite enormous changes in equipment and the well-intentioned developments of technology, equipment and regulations, people are still dying at high levels in general aviation accidents. The NTSB statistics haven’t changed much in the past 20 years – the average is still about ten people dying every week. This has got to change,” says Lauerman.

For several years, Avemco has supported pioneering research that has uncovered the need for aviation education based on professional airmanship development in tandem with skills-based pilot training. This groundbreaking research is led by Bill Rhodes, Ph.D. from Aerworthy Consulting, LLC. Lauerman (pictured, right) will also introduce Rhodes for another Expo presentation: “Experts Reveal – Traits of Superior Pilots.” Rhodes will share the interesting results of his work on why some pilots are less likely to have accidents and what all pilots can learn to be more like them; this information is based on initial findings from the Airman Education Research Initiative (AERI) sponsored by Avemco.

With over 4,000 hours of flight time, Lauerman’s career has spanned almost every aspect of general aviation. It began in the Navy where he was an acoustic sensor operator aboard a P-3 Orion. On returning to civilian life, he purchased and managed his own flight school and Grumman-American dealership, which he later sold to become Chief Pilot and Chief Flight Instructor at Elliot Beechcraft. Then, in 1985, National Aviation Underwriters recruited him to enter the aviation insurance profession. Jim was soon promoted to Vice President of US Specialty Insurance Company (USSIC) and later became Executive Vice President of Operations at Avemco. He added Chief Underwriting Officer to his list of titles in 2001, and in 2007 became President of Avemco.

FMI: www.rochesterwings.com, www.avemco.com