Alexandria, VA, April 23, 2013 – The National Air Transportation Association (NATA) named James P. Miller of Flight Options/Nextant as the recipient of NATA's Distinguished Service Award. NATA's Distinguished Service Award is presented to an individual or organization still active in general aviation on a regular, day-to-day basis and recognizes outstanding service and ongoing contributions to the industry.
Mr. Miller has spent over 45 years creating concepts and innovative solutions to help foster and modernize our industry. Starting his career as an engineer and programmer with IBM Federal Systems Division, Mr. Miller was responsible for various avionics and ship-board systems design and development efforts. In 1968, he founded Miller Aviation and later Miller Avionics and Miller Information Technologies, serving as their President and CEO.
In 1998, Mr. Miller merged his aviation holdings into Corporate Wings and served as its Chief Operating Officer and a board member until 2000, at which time he became Executive Vice President of Flight Options. Here, he held various assignments, including overall responsibility for fleet maintenance, quality control, and aircraft acquisitions as well as many other key areas. In 2008, Mr. Miller became President of Nextant Aerospace, which introduced the concept of remanufacturing to business jets, applying the transformative principles of modernization and modification. With Nextant Aerospace, he was responsible for all phases of aircraft remanufacturing, engineering, certification and distribution, ultimately creating the industry's first remanufactured aircraft - the Nextant 400XT.
Mr. Miller is a graduate of Penn State University with a degree in Electrical Engineering. He is a founding member of the FBO 20 Group, served on the National Air Transportation Association Board of Directors and the Northeast Ohio Business Aviation Association Board of Directors and was a past member of the Exxon Avitat Advisor Board. Mr. Miller holds an Air Transport Pilot's certificate with more than 7,000 flight hours in numerous fixed wing aircraft.
"As a long-time industry leader, Jim Miller epitomizes the values recognized in NATA's Distinguished Service Award," stated NATA President and CEO Thomas L. Hendricks. "His keen insight and in-depth industry knowledge have enabled him to serve as a mentor to many throughout his career and especially during his time as a NATA Board of Directors member. It is a pleasure to honor one of our industry's greatest thought leaders."
