President
National Air Transportation Association

 

Born in Farmville, Virginia, and raised in suburban Philadelphia, James K. Coyne holds a B.S. degree from Yale and an M.B.A. from Harvard. During the 1970s he was a faculty member at the Wharton School (University of Pa.) and the CEO of a family business in Philadelphia (Coyne Chemical Company). He defeated an entrenched incumbent Congress in 1980, and was then chosen to serve in the White House as a Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and Director of the Office of Private Sector Initiatives. The National Air Transportation Association, representing nearly 2000 large and small aviation businesses, selected James K. Coyne as its president in April 1994. Prior to joining NATA, Mr. Coyne has had a distinguished career as a Representative in the U.S. Congress, a member of the White House senior staff, successful businessman, teacher, author and association executive. For the past 25 years, he has been an active pilot with instrument and multi-engine ratings.

 

Since leaving the White House in 1985, he has been an author, consultant, and association executive. He has been the president of the American Consulting Engineers Council, founder and president of the American Tort Reform Association, founder and president of Americans to Limit Congressional Terms, and the author of two books on Congressional reform. He has also been a director of numerous private and public corporations, including the Association of Former Members of Congress.

 

His love for and commitment to aviation has been an important facet of his professional and private life. Two business airplanes helped him to expand his business significantly in the 1970s. He also regularly flew from Washington to Pennsylvania during his term in Congress. As NATA president, Mr. Coyne has visited over 300 FBOs and aviation service businesses across the country. He also regularly presents the viewpoint of our industry before Congressional committees, the FAA, and other federal agencies.

 

Coyne lives in McLean, Virginia, with his wife, Holly, an instrument-rated pilot, and has three children, Sandy (also a pilot), Kate, and Michael.

 

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Eric R. Byer
Vice President, Government & Industry Affairs

Eric Byer has had broad experience in government and public affairs. Currently he leads an experienced policy team at NATA that focuses on a wide array of legislative and regulatory issues affecting association members.

 

Prior to NATA, Byer was a senior government affairs coordinator at Smith, Bucklin and Associates. Previously Byer was Legislative/Staff Assistant to Congressman William F. Clinger, Jr. of Pennsylvania; he also worked for Congressman Dean Gallo of New Jersey. He holds a B.A. in Political Science from Gettysburg College in Gettysburg, Pennsylvania and an M.A. in Government from Johns Hopkins University. Byer resides with his wife, Zoe, and their children Dylan, Brody and Abigail, in Ashburn, Virginia.

 

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Timothy J. Heck

Vice President, Financial Operations

 

Timothy J. Heck has dedicated his career to improving the financial management of non-profit and for-profit organizations to ensure informed business decisions are based on sound financial analysis. He has been successful affecting change by implementing best practices in the areas of operations, cash and treasury management, budgeting, process reengineering and strategic planning to improve organizational efficiency and effectiveness.

 

Prior to joining NATA, Heck was the Comptroller for the Academy of Managed Care Pharmacy and held similar positions with other associations. Heck earned a Masters of Business Administration from George Mason University, Fairfax, Virginia, Bachelor of Science in Accountancy from Miami University, Oxford, Ohio, and Certificate of Public Accounting. Heck resides in Alexandria, Virginia with his wife, Patti, and their children, Olivia and Timothy Jr.