PrivateFly Airport Poll Judges 2016

Lee Abbamonte

Lee Abbamonte is the youngest American to visit every country in the world. He's visited 318 total countries and is one of the world’s most-traveled people. Lee is a successful entrepreneur, travel television personality, speaker, travel writer, travel expert and global adventurer who recently made it to the South Pole. 

Lee has been featured in the New York Times, Washington Post, Conde Nast Traveler, Huffington Post, Today and more. He's also a sports fanatic and loves the New York Yankees. Lee lives in New York City when he's not traveling the world!

Lee's Favourite Airports

• Ice Runway, Antarctica
• Paro, Bhutan
• Aitutaki, Cook Islands

Ross Atkinson

Accomplished business leader with 24 years experience, 17 of which developing new models in software, services and delivery in the travel industry. As co-founder, Intermedia Travel Group is that latest venture that combines new and traditional product, marketing and media solutions to Business Travel communities. 

Intermedia Travel Group operates Business Traveler Magazine, the leading publication for the frequent business travelers and a brand that embraces thought leadership that drives progress, innovation, and value for hi-flyers and travel suppliers alike.

Ross's Favourite Airports

• Tocumen International Airport; Panama City
• El Dorado International Airport; Bogotá, Columbia
• Reagan National Airport (DCA); Washington, D.C.

Charles Audier

Charles Audier is a young lifestyle journalist at GQ France and a true aviation geek. Although he is now often confined to the passenger seat when he is travelling, he used to fly the Robin Aircraft DR 400 and learnt the barrel roll on an Albatros L39. 

Since he achieved a world tour in 2012, Charles is constantly looking for the most interesting remote places in the globe to collect the stories and testimonies of locals.

Charles's Favourite Airports

• Courchevel
• The Ice Runway en Antarctique
• Aéroport Tenzing-Hillary, Lukla (Nepal)

Paul Brady

Paul Brady is a senior editor at Condé Nast Traveler, with a focus on the strategies that help consumers have better trips. He has been covering the travel industry for nearly 10 years, at Condé Nast Traveler, The Huffington Post, Budget Travel, and other outlets. He graduated from the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications at Syracuse University.

Paul's Favourite Airports

• Mataveri International Airport
• Venice, Italy
• Courchevel, France

Carol Cork

Prior to launching PrivateFly as co-founder in 2008, Carol worked in the media, including several roles at Conde Nast. She brings extensive experience and understanding of luxury travel brands.

Carol's Favourite Airports

• Rio de Janeiro
• St Moritz
• Jackson Hole

John DiScala "Johnny Jet"

Johnny Jet travels around 175,000 miles and visits over 20 countries each year. He and his website JohnnyJet.com have been featured over 10,000 times in major publications, including USA Today, Time, Fortune and he has appeared on ABC, CBS, CNBC, while recently hosting “Hot Spots 2012” on the Travel Channel.  

JohnnyJet.com has been named "one of the top best money-saving web sites for travel" by Budget Travel Magazine, while the L.A. Times calls it "one of the top 10 essential travel resources on the internet." Sign up today for Johnny Jet’s free weekly travel newsletter at JohnnyJet.com and follow him live on Twitter.

John's Favourite Airports

• Queenstown
• Nice Cote D'Azur
• LAX

Tiffany Dowd

Tiffany Dowd is a globally recognized social media influencer for luxury travel know as Luxe Tiffany and Founder & President of Luxe Social Media.

Tiffany’s Favourite Airports

• Nice Cote D’Azur
• Cape Town
• Hong Kong International Airport

Jeremy Dwyer Lindgren

Jeremy Dwyer-Lindgren is a photojournalist and aviation reporter based in the Seattle area, not that he's there too often. His work has appeared in everything from blogs to the BBC, local news to USAToday. An avid traveler, Jeremy specializes in aviation and travel, spending as much time as he can on the road and in the air. Look him up on JDLMultimedia.com.

Jeremy's Favourite Airports

• Paro Bhutan
• Reagan National
• Cordova Merle Mudhole Smith Airport in Cordova Alaska

Doug Gollan

Doug Gollan is founder and Editor-in-Chief of DG Amazing Experiences, an e-newsletter that reaches over 14,000 private jet owners worldwide. He is considered an expert on UHNW luxury marketing and previously launched Elite Traveler building it to over $15 million in sales before selling his shares. He is co-author of "The Sky's the Limit: Marketing to the New Jet Set" and is working on his next book "Sales Superstars: Secrets of Selling to the Super Rich." 

His blog at douggollan.com covers sales and marketing issues related to catering to the wealthy. He is a contributor to ForbesLife.com. Previously, Doug was Group Publisher of Travel Agent Magazine Group, and he is a member of the Luxury Marketing Council.

Doug's Favourite Airports

• Las Vegas McCarran
• Los Angeles International
• Courchevel

Rupa Haria

Rupa Haria is editor-in-chief of leading aerospace website AviationWeek.com, where she oversees digital content development and audience engagement for a number of publications in the Aviation Week Network. She previously worked at London City Airport and has lived in Gibraltar and the Maldives, giving her the opportunity to regularly experience some of the world’s best airport approaches.

Rupa's Favourite Airports

• Male, Maldives
• Cape Town
• Gibraltar

Paul Johnson

Paul is editor of A Luxury Travel Blog, one of the most popular travel blogs in the world. He has worked in the travel industry for more than 25 years and has travelled extensively, from his home in Kendal, Cumbria (UK) to places all over the world.

Paul's Favourite Airports

• Grumeti Airstrip
• Cape Town International Airport
• Islay Airport

Seth Miller

Seth Miller was bitten by the travel bug at a young age and hopes that no one finds a cure. A world traveler turning 150,000+ miles annually, no adventure is too far, to long or too crazy. Seth is an expert in the field of airline loyalty programs and an analyst of the IFEC market.

Seth's Favourite Airports

• Queenstown, New Zealand
• St. Barts, St Barthelemy (French overseas territory)
• Amsterdam Schiphol, Netherlands

Christine Negroni

Christine Negroni is an aviation writer and commentator and very frequent traveler. Her work appears primarily in The New York Times but she is also a contributor to many other publications especially those that begin with the letter “A” including, Air & Space, Airways and ABC News. Her book on the disappearance of Malaysia 370 and other aviation mysteries will be published by Penguin in 2016.

Christine's Favourite Airports

• Reagan National Airport Washington, D.C.
• Juancho E. Yrausquin Airport Saba Dutch Antilles
• Madeira Airport Funchal Santa Cruz, Madeira

Maxime Pagnoux

You have perhaps crossed "The Flights of Max", looking up to heaven, or opening up a Facebook page. After studying photography and pilot training, Maxime Pagnoux decided to complete a tour of France by plane. After this extraordinary adventure, he published a book featuring all the photos taken during his tour.

Maxime's Favourite Airports

• Courchevel
• The Ice Runway en Antarctique
• Aéroport Tenzing-Hillary, Lukla (Nepal)

Chloe Pantazi

Chloe Pantazi (@ChloePantazi) is an editor at The Weeklings and a freelance writer living in London. Her travel writing has appeared on Travel + Leisure, BBC Travel, and Thrillist. Besides London, her two favourite places in the world are New York City and Cyprus, where her family's from.

Chloe’s Favourite Airports

• Vancouver, Canada
• London City, UK
• Kastellorizo, Greece

Sylvie Peron

Sylvie Peron is Editor in Chief of Altitude European Edition, a leading luxury lifestyle magazine dedicated to business aviation. A former TV News producer educated in Boston, USA, with a background in international yachting events, Sylvie is based on the French Riviera, where she was born and raised. Business Aviation is her field of expertise. “An industry where the people are passionate and the machines truly beautiful."

Sylvie's Favourite Airports

• Nice Cote d’Azur
• Koh Samui Airport
• Male Maldives

Jason Rabinowitz

Jason (@AirlineFlyer) is the #AvGeek Data Research Manager at Routehappy, tracking all things related to the passenger experience, and contributing travel writer for Forbes and Airline Reporter.com

Jason's Favourite Airports

• LaGuardia, New York
• Aspen
• Nadi, Fiji

David Scowsill

David Scowsill is President and CEO of the World Travel & Tourism Council (WTTC). Previously he has held senior, global roles at some of the biggest names in travel and aviation. David has been CEO of Opodo; Vice Chairman, Worldhotels; Senior VP Sales, Marketing & IT at Hilton International; Managing Director EMEA at American Airlines; Regional General Manager Asia/Pacific at British Airways and Sales & Marketing Director at EasyJet airlines.

David's Favourite Airports

• Juancho E Irausquin Airport
• Hamilton Island
• Daocheng Yading Airport

Joe Sharkey

Joe Sharkey, a veteran journalist and author, wrote the weekly business travel column in the New York Times for 16 years. He is now working on a novel series about the adventures and exploits of an international business traveler who hates to travel. He lives in Tucson.

Joe's Favourite Airports

• Saba's Juancho E. Yrausquin
• Malta's Luqa International Airport
• LAX

Ana Silva O’Reilly

Ana Silva O’Reilly is the Mrs. O behind award-winning luxury travel blog Mrs. O Around the World, which is now 4 years old and renowned for sharing stunning destinations, tips and tricks and insights into the best places to eat, drink, shop and everything in between.

True to her mother’s motto, if she leaves home, it has to be better - and each travel experience begins the minute the leaves home, so everything counts. A city girl at heart, she moved to the quiet English countryside for love, and lives her travel dreams through her award-winning alter-ego and travel blog.

Ana’s Favourite Airports

• Skukuza, South Africa
• Male, Maldives
• New York JFK

Adam Twidell

Adam is the CEO and co-founder of PrivateFly. After 10 years as a RAF pilot, Adam moved to flying private jets before starting PrivateFly, and has enjoyed a variety of airplane approaches around the world as both an airplane pilot and passenger.

Adam’s Favourite Airports

• Gibraltar
• Barra
• Billy Bishop Toronto City

Benet Wilson

Benét J. Wilson is founder and sole proprietor of Aviation Queen LLC, an aviation/travel freelance writing, multimedia and consulting business. She is a long-time aviation/travel journalist and blogger, currently serving as the Air Travel Expert for About.com. 

She has written for publications and blogs including USA Today, AirwaysNews.com, ACI-NA Centerlines, Jetrader magazine, the Runway Girl Network, Aviation International News, Airport World and the Airline Passenger Experience magazine.

Benet’s Favourite Airports

• St. Maarten
• Telluride
• London City Airport

James Wynbrandt

Author and journalist James Wynbrandt writes for many aviation publications covering events around the globe from Shanghai to Dubai, and he has flown his Mooney M20K 252 on assignments throughout North and Central America. 

His work has also appeared in The New York Times, Barron’s, Forbes and Fortune, and his ten books span genres including history, business, popular music, political humor and medical science.

James's Favourite Airports

• Aspen-Pitkin County Airport
• Staniel Caye Airport (TYM), Bahamas
• Santa Monica Municipal Airport (SMO), USA