Second Gen Sun ‘n Fun

22 Feb Second Gen Sun ‘n Fun

“This is not just a one-week party,” says incoming Sun ‘n Fun President and CEO John ‘Lites’ Leenhouts of the celebrated fly-in event. Addressing the joint VASI EAA membership at City Hall February 20th, Leenhouts put out the distress call for General Aviation, citing political pressures, financial pressures and a declining pilot population.

Leenhouts is no stranger to challenges facing aviation. As a decorated, 27-year Naval Aviator holding the world’s record for the most “traps” of any pilot at 1,645 in three different fighters, Lites has turned every problem he’s faced inside out. “Did you know that Sun ‘n Fun is a not-for-profit, 501(c) 3 corporation?” he asked the audience. It’s no secret that the Sun ‘n Fun organization has suffered its own challenges and setbacks, including a horrifying squall that damaged numerous aircraft at the 2011 event. Under the new leadership of Leenhouts, a 30-year attendee to the event, he has crafted a vision of transforming the world’s second largest week-long fly-in into a 52 week institution. In short, he’s re-inventing the Sun ‘n Fun brand, from the ground up.

Once his vision materialized, it came time to find out who was on board. “Sun ‘n Fun was a little heavy,” he recalls. Some people just weren’t ready to buy in to the notion of the brand  working 365 days a year. “The time had come to do more with less. We didn’t fire anybody. We just told them we’d help them with their resume.” The strategy pared a full-time staff of 30 down to 20.

Less Is More

The leaner, meaner organization is connected, energized, motivated, empowered and most importantly, agile. Suddenly, fewer people are overseeing more projects. “It’s not a job. It’s a calling,” he mused.

Leenhouts’ hour-long presentation summarized his life, noting key milestones along the way that carried him through an exemplary military career, a second career as a program manager for an F-18 Hornet program, his transition into philanthropy and community service and finally his most recent opportunity to combine it all into a meaningful contribution for the future of General Aviation.

The Central Florida Aeronautical Academy brings the institutional knowledge and infrastructure of the Sun ‘n Fun organization into the academic world by offering accredited programs that teach life skills that include Airframe and Power Plant (A&P) certifications, pilot certificates and Associates Degrees in aviation related fields.

Beginning as early as nine years old, students can attend weekend camps, after schooling, special events and even scholarships for dedicated students. “Imagine teaching kids about vectors. Then that afternoon, we head out to the flight line and put that concept to practical use,” he says. And there is some practical value to translating sterile, class room academics to real-life. Studies prove that the application of a learned concept in a real-world environment enhances understanding and retention.

Beaming with contagious enthusiasm, Leenhouts went on to describe the many programs future growth potential that will not only reinvigorate but grow the aviation industry to its healthier state.

This year’s Sun ‘n Fun kicks off April 9 through the 14th. More information is available at http://www.sun-n-fun.org.

Photos courtesy of Gary Palinkas, EAA.