Gailen David
Managing Partner, Airoplex LLC
As Managing Partner of Airoplex, Gailen is focused on guiding a group of travel-inspired enterprises and a not-for-profit dedicated to the preservation of aviation history.
His passion for commercial aviation began at the age of 7. Following his first flights aboard Pan Am and Eastern Airlines, he created his own neighborhood travel agency, garnering the attention of Eastern’s Washington DC sales office. An Eastern reservationist got word to Eastern’s sales team when she learned, on a reservation call from Gailen, that he was booking travel for his parent’s business associates and friends.
Eastern invited “Rocky” and his friends to a private tour and lunch at Washington National Airport, where Fran Durban, a writer at Travel Weekly Magazine, sat down with him for an interview which later appeared in the magazine. Gailen’s been flying ever since!
Today, Gailen enjoys his work in air history preservation, business, and travel.
He has partnered with Accor Hotels, American Airlines, Amtrak, Air Transat Canada, Fairmont Hotels, Middle East Airlines, National Car Rental, Quito Tourismo, Rail Canada, Switzerland Tourism, and other brands and organizations that go out of their way to make the travel experience special.
Gailen also lends his expertise in airline safety, pet travel, customer service, and flight crew labor issues to news and media organizations including USA Today, ABC, CNN, HLN, NPR, and others, He shares his experiences, gathered during his 24-year airline career, with audiences during speaking engagements at travel shows and other special events.
