2022 Phillips 66® Aviation’s EAA Young Eagles Leadership Award

Phillips 66 Aviation is excited to announce the 2022 Phillips 66 Experimental Aircraft Association (EAA) Young Eagles Leadership Award winner is Ken Jordan, EAA Lifetime Member 481552. This award recognizes exceptional Young Eagles volunteers that have continually supported the future of aviation by exceeding expectations.

“What truly brings me joy is working with youth and seeing the looks on their faces when they experience flying for the first time,” Ken said. “I’ve flown over 1,600 kids, some of them I know have continued with aviation and are a great success within the industry. With the Young Eagles program, it’s all about encouraging younger generations to get involved in aviation, and I get a lot of self-satisfaction doing it.”

Ken is the founding member of EAA Chapter 1632 and has been involved in Young Eagles since 2000. In addition, Ken has served as president and Young Eagles coordinator for EAA Chapter 1632 since 2019, and he was EAA Chapter’s Young Eagles coordinator from 2015 to 2020.

A resident of The Villages, Florida, Ken grew up in England and moved to the U.S. over 50 years ago. His passion for flying began in Southfield, Michigan, where he watched planes land and take off every day from his office window.
“I would see so many planes fly into Detroit Metro Airport and decided that one day, I wanted to fly,” Ken said. “So, I picked up the Yellow Pages, and the rest is history.”

After living and flying in Michigan and Pennsylvania for years, Ken retired to Florida and currently flies out of Umatilla, Florida. His local EAA chapter drives several special projects within the community, including the local high school’s aviation club where students have the opportunity to go to the airport to learn more about aviation. “I am a firm believer in giving back,” Ken said. “I think we all need to share what we have, and in my case, I’m sharing my abilities as a pilot. The aviation industry is struggling with the current pilot shortage, so encouraging youth today is more important than ever.”
Ken credits much of his success with EAA to his wife Linda who conducts all of Ken’s ground registration.”I couldn’t do it without my wife. She’s been incredibly supportive and is by my side always,” Ken said. “Both of my daughters are also pilots, one a corporate pilot, so it’s a shared family passion.”

As Chairman of the North 40 camping at AirVenture, Ken is thrilled to be returning to the Oshkosh event for the 28th year. “I love AirVenture because of the people, the friends and the variety of aircraft,” Ken said. “The event is so special because you will see things you’ll never see again.”

In addition to his involvement with Young Eagles, Ken is an instrumental volunteer for EAA, not only as the chairman of the North 40 Aircraft Registration but also as a key volunteer at Sun ‘n Fun each year at the EAA booth. Ken and Linda also built a Rans S-19, which he owns along with his Piper Lance.

To learn more about the EAA Young Eagles program, visit https://www.eaa.org/eaa/youth/free-ye-flights

To learn more about how Phillips 66 supports the Young Eagles program, visit https://www.phillips66aviation.com/