The General Aviation Manufacturers Association (GAMA) has appointed Mazdak Hobbi as senior director of engineering and certification and Archie Miller as director of government affairs. GAMA has also promoted Andy Phillips to director of regulatory affairs and innovation and expanded Kyle Martin's title from vice president of European affairs to vice president of engineering and European affairs to reflect additional responsibilities.

Hobbi previously served as senior representative to the European Union in the FAA’s Office of International Affairs, where he represented the FAA on aviation safety, certification and regulatory matters with European and international partners. He brings over 25 years of FAA technical, management and international leadership experience, with expertise in aircraft certification, production oversight, flight test, continued operational safety, international validation, bilateral agreements and emerging technology policy.

A Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical Society, Hobbi holds a BS in Mechanical Engineering with an Aerospace Concentration from the New York Institute of Technology. He will lead GAMA’s technical policy efforts, with a concentration in regulatory, airworthiness, certification and validation activities.

Miller joins from the Aviation Subcommittee of the US House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, where he served as legislative assistant. A political science graduate of the University of Mississippi, he will support GAMA’s advocacy efforts across all branches of the US government.

“Their collective experience is a great complement to the outstanding, hard-working team at GAMA and will serve our member companies well,” says James Viola, GAMA president and CEO.

Phillips, who joined GAMA in 2024 as manager of airworthiness and regulatory affairs, will expand his role to encompass the association's strategic activities to foster the development and entry-into-service of innovations in technologies, products and services. This includes the work of GAMA’s Electric Propulsion and Innovation Committee (EPIC) portfolio.

Martin has taken charge of GAM’s engineering team, with the objective of further strengthening the association’s ability to advance globally coordinated approaches to the industry's technical policy priorities. He has been with GAMA since 2016 and has served as vice president of European affairs since 2020.

“Their respective role changes were hard-earned and I am confident that they will continue to excel under their expanded roles,” Viola adds.