The General Aviation Awards (GAA) honorees for 2026 have been chosen by the GAA board of directors in partnership with the FAA for contributions to the flying community in safety, flight instruction, and maintenance.
Here are this year’s recipients:
FAASTeam Representative of the Year
Aviation would be nothing without the dedicated professionals who strive to improve safety.
Mike Jesch from Orange, California, is one of those and has been recognized as the 2026 National FAASTeam representative. Jesch was born into an aviation family, as his father was an aerospace engineer who worked on the Apollo Lunar Module program.
At the age of 6 Jesch already knew he wanted to be a professional pilot and a discovery flight he did at 14 sealed the deal. He earned his private pilot certificate before graduating high school, became a flight instructor by 21, and secured a place at the airlines at 23. Today he has 40 years of aviation experience and is a senior captain on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner at American Airlines…