Steve Varsano (’77), CEO of The Jet Business, has more than four decades of experience in the marketing and acquisition of corporate jet aircraft. His company boasts the world’s first street-front corporate aircraft showroom, featuring a full-size Airbus Corporate Jet ACJ319 interior mockup. Extensively profiled by The New York Times, BBC, Forbes and The Sunday Times, Varsano was officially inducted into the Living Legends of Aviation at a ceremony held Aug. 31, 2024, in Salzburg, Austria.
Leanne Caret, former CEO and president of Boeing Defense, Space and Security, led finance, operations and management divisions at the aerospace giant, managing a $30 billion budget and overseeing 30,000 employees. A senior advisor to Blackstone, Caret currently serves as board director and chair of audit committee for both Deere & Company and RTX (formerly Raytheon Technologies). She is also a senior advisor to MyNextSeason, which offers coaching to C-suite leaders.
Kenn Ricci is principal of Directional Aviation Capital, a firm that owns and invests in a wide range of aviation related businesses, including FlexJet, a provider of fractional private jet services. Collectively, Ricci’s firms account for over $4 billion in revenue, operate more than 300 aircraft and employ over 5,000 people. In 2016, Ricci was honored with the Lifetime Aviation Entrepreneur Award from the Living Legends of Aviation and in 2019 was inducted as a Living Legend of Aviation.
U.S. Air Force General Jacqueline Van Ovost recently retired as a four-star general after 36 years of service. Before her retirement in 2024, Van Ovost served as the 14th Commander of U.S. Transportation Command. She also held posts as commander of an air refueling squadron, a flying training wing and the Presidential Airlift Wing. She has been honored with the Defense Distinguished Service Medal with oak leaf cluster and the Defense Superior Service Medal with oak leaf cluster, and more.