Steve Czapka
USFWS
Steve is a Certified Wildlife Biologist with over 20 years’ of experience with NGO (Ducks Unlimited), federal government (USDA Forest Service and U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service), and private consulting firms. He has conducted bird surveys/research throughout the U.S., including Alaska and Puerto Rico. Steve has over 15 years’ of NEPA experience including managing NEPA projects. He has worked on projects with many different industries, including onshore/offshore wind power, solar power, transmission, oil and natural gas pipelines, and subsea fiber optic and electric cables. Steve has also worked on many NEPA/natural resources projects with the Department of Defense, particularly the Navy, including aircraft operations and BASH.
Antoine Pilon
Airbus
Antoine Pilon is a Powerplant Safety and Certification engineer at Airbus Commercial airplanes where he works in the powerplant integration department. He’s the Airbus rotorburst and propeller blade release expert but his duties cover all major engine failure issues such as FBO or Bird Strike. Antoine has responsibility to design and certify safe aircrafts against rotorburst and is involved in all stages of the design process, from R&D to certification and accident / incident investigations. He took part in a major investigation related to a bird strike that occured in 2019. Antoine is a member of several industry / Airworthiness authorities committees related to aviation safety (Bird Strike / FBO / Rotorburst) and was an Airbus representative in the EASA Open Rotor Bird Strike rulemaking.
In his previous role within systems safety, he worked on multiple Particular Risk Assessments related to trajectories or vibrations.
Antoine joined Airbus in 2006 and has 15 years experience in aircraft safety. Antoine holds an engineering master degree in Aerospace Engineering from ISAE-ENSMA in France.
Jennifer Murphy
The Wildlife Society
Jennifer Murphy is a wildlife biologist with 23 years of experience in both the government and private sectors. For the majority of her career, she has focused on the management of wildlife hazards at airports.
For 13 years, Jennifer worked with USDA’s Wildlife Services program to help resolve human-wildlife conflicts. Her first attendance at a Bird Strike conference was in the early days of the organization, in Dallas in 1995; and she has attended several meetings since. Jennifer has worked with the Wildlife Services program in Colorado and Massachusetts where she oversaw the airport wildlife programs at Denver International Airport and Boston’s Logan Airport for four and two years, respectively. In addition, she consulted with and provided assessments for many more airports and military bases.
Jennifer was employed as an airport wildlife biologist for 10 years in the private sector by C&S Engineers and by Epsilon Associates. She conducted many wildlife hazard assessments around the country and provided wildlife hazard training for dozens of airport employees.
Jennifer earned her B.S. is wildlife biology from the University of Massachusetts at Amherst (UMASS), and her M.S. in wildlife biology from Utah State University. She is a longtime member of The Wildlife Society (TWS), first joining the student chapter at UMASS in 1993. She became an Associate Wildlife Biologist with TWS shortly after graduation, and received her Certified Wildlife Biologist status in 2000.
Jennifer became the Operations Coordinator at TWS in February 2020. She supports the TWS mission by helping to execute programs and projects in finance, administration, marketing, business relations, fundraising and communications.
Luis Saavedra
ALPA
Luis Saavedra works as a Captain for Air Wisconsin Airlines. He serves as a volunteer for ALPA as a Regional Airport Safety Coordinator for the Eastern region, and before that he was the DCA Airport Liaison. He previously served as Contract Negotiator, Chairman for Legislative Affairs. He recently attended the AAAE Bird Strike conference in 2021. Luis currently holds an Multi ATP, Gold Seal CFI, AGI IGI Ground instructor and a UAS certificate. Luis Saavedra graduated from Embry-Riddle University 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Aeronautical Science and a Minor in ATC.
