Dan Johnson moves on

LAMA founder Larry Burke appointed Johnson as chairman of the board in 2007. After Burke’s retirement, Johnson served as president for another 17 years. During his tenure he was known for “advocating to government and others on behalf of the light aviation industry,” according to his biography on ByDanJohnson.com.

Johnson has written articles and produced videos about more than 400 different aircraft. He was the publisher of ByDanJohnson.com, a website specializing in reporting on light sport aircraft and kits. Since its inception in April 2004, the website has served as a platform for advocating for and informing pilots about everything LSA. Johnson’s biography on LAMA’s website states that in 2023, he sold ByDanJohnson.com to Flying Media Group. According to a news article on the group’s website, ByDanJohnson.com “will be rebranded as AffordableAviation.com.”

Even though Johnson is a 6,000-hour pilot with a commercial certificate and instrument and multiengine ratings, as well as a former certified flight instructor, his main interests are LSAs, ultralights, and kitbuilt aircraft. 

His involvement in that specific segment of general aviation has won him several awards, such as the Society of Experimental Test Pilots’ Spirit of Flight Award; the American Society for Testing and Materials’ Outstanding Leadership Award; LAMA’s Outstanding Individual Award; and The United States Ultralight Association’s Moody Award. In 2020, Johnson was inducted into the Experimental Aircraft Association Hall of Fame in the Ultralight Division.

Today, Johnson remains on the Light-Sport F37 Executive Committee for ASTM International, as stated in his online biography.

At LAMA, Johnson was succeeded by Scott Severen, a longtime LSA pilot, who had served on the board of LAMA in 2017 when he“established a Technical Standards Committee for FAR Part 103 compliance efforts, according to his biography on the LAMA website. He’s also the North American representative for Jabiru Aircraft.