Skyryse Appoints Former Delta Airlines Pilot Bill Warlick as Head of Flight Test Operations to Bring Commercial Safety Approach to General Aviation

LOS ANGELES, Nov. 17, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Skyryse, a transportation company building the future of general aviation, has announced the appointment of Bill Warlick as Head of Flight Test Operations to oversee the planning, coordinating, and monitoring of Skyryse's aircraft and flight test operations. Warlick comes from Delta Airlines and was a former U.S. Navy test pilot instructor for over a decade.

Skyryse's mission is to transform safety in the general aviation segment for all pilots with its flagship technology, FlightOS. By removing the complex controls in a typical cockpit, FlightOS leverages fly-by-wire hardware and software that automates most actions, increases interoperability across aircraft, and automatically keeps pilots within the safe flight envelope so they can fly without worry. The technology removes many of the complexities of flying and is designed to safely manage the aircraft through emergencies and almost all weather conditions.

"Bill's history and expertise as both a commercial and military pilot will be invaluable as we expand our aircraft testing program to bring FlightOS to market across more aircraft types,'' said Dr. Mark Groden, Skyryse's founder and CEO. "Bill will help us deliver our mission of making commercial aviation-level safety accessible to the general aviation market".

As a pilot for the U.S. Navy, Warlick served as a Naval Aviator, Test Pilot, and squadron Commanding Officer. Warlick also served as a Technical Director for a Navy Flight Test Squadron and taught at the United States Naval Test Pilot School for 12 years following his graduation from the same institution with an M.S. in Aeronautical Engineering.

"I'm excited to work alongside Skyryse's industry veterans and innovators to make flight simpler and safer, in an effort to enhance general aviation safety," said Warlick. "Operating different types of aircraft involves a substantial learning curve, so Skyryse's interoperable technology will be a gamechanger to give seasoned and new pilots more flexibility in how they navigate the skies."

Skyryse has tripled its headcount over the past year, including hiring its first Chief Financial Officer, as well as appointing a new Chief Operating Officer and VP of Product and Marketing. To date, Skyryse has secured partnerships with five of the world's largest fixed wing and rotorcraft original equipment manufacturers, which collectively produce over half of the world's new general aviation aircraft.

Headquartered in Los Angeles, CA, Skyryse is a transportation technology company built by transportation experts from Airbus, Boeing, Ford, General Atomics, JetBlue, Moog, SpaceX, Tesla, Uber, the U.S. Military and Zoox. The company is building the future of general aviation, and its flagship automation technology, FlightOS, removes many of the complexities of flying and safely manages aircraft through emergencies and almost all weather conditions.  Skyryse has raised $250 million to date and is backed by leading investors including Fidelity Management & Research Company, Monashee Investment Management, ArrowMark Partners, Venrock, Eclipse Ventures, Cantos, Stanford University, and Bill Ford, the executive chairman of Ford Motor Company. For more information, visit www.skyryse.com.

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SOURCE Skyryse