KitDarby.com Aviation Consulting, LLC

Mr. Darby was an aviation career consultant and president of Aviation Information Resources, Inc. (AIR, Inc.) in Atlanta, Georgia through February of 2009. AIR, Inc. provided a wide array of aviation related services including out-placement pilot services and career seminars, pilot and technician career counseling, aviation marketing and product development, employability studies and career earnings models. He has authored:

The Airline Pilot Application Handbook,

Worldwide Simulator Supply Study

Civil Simulator Database

Airline Pilot Career Decision Guide

US Airline Salary Survey

Major Airline Career Earnings Comparison

Airline Pilot Test Kit

Questions-Questions-Airline Interview Guide

Airline Pilot and Technician Seminar Workbooks.

Mr. Darby served as the Publisher and Executive Editor of:

The Airline Pilot Job Monthly Newsletter

The Flight Attendant Job Monthly Newsletter

The Maintenance Technician Job Monthly Newsletter
Airline Pilot Careers Magazine

His technology launch endeavors include:

An online application system (AIRApps) for airlines and pilots featuring automated application scoring. The www.Jet-Jobs.com pilot career information web site contained a 5,000 page on-line archive peaking at 15,000 visits and 130,000 hits per day.

He has lead and produced over 100 Airline Pilot Career Development Seminars, Forums, and Job Fairs nationwide since 1985. These were both commercial events and that supported outplacement activities for union sponsors (Airline Pilots Association, Teamsters, and Allied Pilots Association) and air carriers. Mr. Darby designed the content and audiovisual presentations as well as hosted these events for the past twenty years. The venues drew typical crowds ranging in size from 250 to 700 pilots/technicians and 100 representatives from twenty-five to thirty-five airlines and pilot training and services vendors.

Additionally, his efforts lead to the production of seven three-hour career workshop programs for:

Furloughed Pilot's and Technicians

Civilian-to-Airline Pilot Transition

CRM in the Pilot Interview

Pilot and Technicians Resumes and Applications

Airline Pilot Interview Survival

Pilot Testing and Simulator Evaluations

Military-to-Airline Pilot Transition.

Worldwide, Mr. Darby is recognized as an expert in US pilot hiring, pilot selection, pilot supply and demand forecasting, and interview preparation including: testing, simulator evaluations, medical exams and personnel interviews. He is regularly quoted in the national media — newspapers, magazines, and on television, including The Wall Street Journal, Atlanta Journal & Constitution, New York Times, Flying Magazine, AOPA Pilot, Airline Pilot Magazine, Time Magazine, Business Week, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC and many more. 

He has provided labor contract negotiation support to FedEx (company and union), UPS, Airborne Express, Continental, Netjets, Teamsters, and ALPA. Furthermore he has adapted AIR, Inc.'s annual Pilot Salary survey to compare the pay, benefits, work rules, and retirement among the Major, National, Regional airlines and corporate fractional operators.

Additionally, Mr. Darby and AIR, Inc. has provided consulting services to a wide range of airlines, training organizations, aviation consulting firms, airline unions, and aircraft and simulator manufactures. Past projects include: worldwide pilot supply and demand studies for Japan Airlines, AeroStrategy for Oxford Aviation Training, CAE, and the Rand Corporation for the Air Force: pilot wage, benefit, retirement, and work rule analysis for Boeing, ALPA, APA, Teamsters, Netjets, UPS, FedEx, Airborne Express and the General Accounting Office; Simulator supply, demand and rental rate studies for Raymond James, FlightSaftey, and Bombardier.

From 1983 through 1989, Mr. Darby was the Executive Vice President and 1/3 owner of Future Aviation Professionals of America (FAPA), the largest US aviation career information service at the time. Responsible for product development, sales, and marketing, Mr. Darby conceived the Airline Pilot/Maintenance Technician/Flight Attendant Career Day seminars, the annual Pilot Salary Survey and the Ultimate Career Pilot Starter Kit. While with FAPA, he also co-authored the self-prep Resume Kit, Simulator Flying Guide, Beginners Guide to Becoming a Career Pilot and World Wide Pilot Supply Report. Under Mr. Darby's direction, FAPA's sales grew from approximately $300,000 in 1983 to over $3.6 million in 1989. Personnel increased from three to forty- two full and part-time staff.

Since his career in commercial aviation began in 1978, Mr. Darby has interviewed twenty-one times with seventeen different airlines. Currently, Mr. Darby is a retired captain at United Airlines, he held positions as a flight engineer, first officer, captain, and instructor pilot while flying B-717/727/737/757/767, DC-8 and DC-9 aircraft. Mr. Darby has also worked for Braniff International, Capital Air Republic Airlines, and Delta Air Lines. Mr. Darby received his BS in Aeronautical Studies from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. Prior to Embry-Riddle he spent four-years at NC State University School of Design majoring in Product Design.

Mr. Darby was the chief executive officer of InterFite, Inc. in Homestead, FL, a complete FBO that included a FAR 141 and VA-approved flight school plus a Cessna aircraft dealership. He was the Chief Instructor for a B-727 flight engineer school that was part of this school while working at Braniff as a DC-8 flight engineer and first officer from 1978 to 1980.

As a captain in the US Army, Mr. Darby established training programs, wrote flight training manuals and trained instructor pilots in all Army fixed-wing aircraft (T-41, T-42, U-8, U-21, and OV-1). Mr. Darby co-authored the initial Army Aircrew Training Manuals for each Army fixed-wing aircraft. He was standardization Instructor Pilot and Instrument Examiner in all active Army fixed-wing aircraft and a rotary-wing Instrument Examiner. Mr. Darby held the Flight Commander position for each Army fixed-wing aircraft graduate flight training courses and the instructor pilot course. He was the fixed-wing branch chief at the Department of Army-wide Flight Standards for two years. In this position he and his teams traveled to large Army aviation bases throughout the US and overseas conducting training audits and giving spot check rides to local pilots, examiners, and instructors. For twenty-three years, he was active in the Army and the Georgia National Guard flying the OV-1 Mohawk as an instrument flight examiner and standardization instructor pilot. In the National Guard he conducted CRM, ground and flight training for his unit and other units throughout Georgia. He achieved more than 4,000 hours of military flight experience and 2,500 hours as an instructor pilot and instrument examiner conducting basic single and multi-engine, instrument, aerobatic, simulator, and tactical instruction and evaluations.

 He was employed by Delta Professional Services (A division of Delta Air Lines) as a B-717/737/757/767 and MD-88 ATP – CTP instructor and previously as a B-717 flight and ground instructor pilot at the Boeing/Delta Flight Training campus in Atlanta, GA from 2013 to 2023. He was a B-717 and B-737 flight and ground instructor pilot at Boeing Flight Training Center from 2007 until 2014. Currently an ATP-CTP instructor for Sanders Aviation in Jasper, AL.  He is also the president of KitDarby.com Aviation Consulting, LLC in Peachtree City, GA. KitDarby.com provides pilot career consulting to individual pilots, flight schools, government agencies, investment firms, and both domestic and international airlines. The company also provides litigation support for pilots that are delay, injured, or have been involved in a fatal accident to determine potential career values and earnings capacity.

 His pilot qualifications include: 24,513 hours total time, 16,221 hours jet time, ATP with B-717/727/737/757/767 and DC-8/9 type ratings, flight instrument and engineer instructor with over 7,000 hours on simulator instruction, commercial instrument helicopter pilot, CFI/II/MEI 15 years, plus military instructor and instrument examiner ratings in 2 helicopters and 5 fixed-wing multiengine aircraft over 23 years.