Our Team.
AirScript’s team of specialists are all highly experienced in their field and their expertise is recognised by regulatory authorities such as the UK CAA and EASA. AirScript is unique in the industry in being able to provide such a broad range of disciplines and such a complete package of services and support.
Consultants
Graham Sturrock
Graham has worked in the airline industry for over 40 years as a pilot of large commercial aircraft flying world-wide routes. In 1986, Graham joined Emirates as one of the first pilots employed and was part of the team that set the company on the road to becoming one of the world’s leading operators. Having held a number of positions including being a line captain on the Boeing 727, TRE on the Airbus A310 and A300-600R, Flight Safety Officer, Manager Flight Crew Resourcing and a member of the Flight Operations Policy Group, Graham was one of the team that introduced the Boeing 777 into Emirates and he subsequently became a Standards Captain and TRE on the fleet.
Graham left Emirates in 1997 to join the UK CAA as a Flight Operations and Training Inspector, and there he specialised in AOC management, ETOPS & MNPS, EFBs, RNAV operations and cabin safety on small aircraft. Graham continued to regularly fly the B777 as a Captain with British Airways until the middle of 2006 when he left the CAA to further the development of AirScript.
Graham chaired the Boeing 777 and Cessna Citation Encore+ JOEBs for EASA and he is the principal advisor on EFB matters for EASA. In this role he was part of the team that evaluated the Onboard Information System for the Airbus A380.
Nicola Sturrock
Nicki has had an extensive and varied career in civil aviation having worked on the ground for leading operators before becoming a cabin crew member for Gulf Air in 1989. Whilst at Gulf Air, she flew as an In-flight Supervisor on Lockheed Tristar, Boeing 737 and 767 and Airbus A320 and A340 aircraft where her duties included cabin crew training and operating VVIP flights.
After returning to the UK in 1996 and a spell as cabin crew manager at a low-cost airline, Nicki set up the cabin crew operation and became Cabin Crew Manager for Flexjet Europe on their Challenger 601 operation based in Denmark.
Nicki then branched out into general cabin safety consultancy where her unique experience and knowledge were crucial to a number of start-up operations and company expansions including aircraft ranging from the Kingair, via Challengers and Boeing BBJs, up to Boeing 757s and Airbus A340s. Nicki was chosen in 2006 to contribute her knowledge and skills to the cabin crew department of a Royal Flight in the Middle East where she introduced new systems and procedures to enhance the department’s performance.
Amongst her other qualifications, Nicki has been accredited as a UK Department for Transport Security Instructor and as an IOSA auditor.
Nigel Johnstone
Nigel is AirScript’s Ground Operations and Flight Dispatch specialist. Nigel has a wealth of experience in his field and he holds a FAA Flight Dispatcher’s licence.
During his time in the industry, Nigel worked closely with industry peers and the JAA and CAA to encourage the formal recognition of flight operations officers’ training standards and qualifications. These principles and recommendations have now been incorporated into EU-OPS which recognises ICAO 7192D3 as the training syllabus for operations officers.
More recently, Nigel was Operations Manager at DHL where he was responsible for the introduction of a number of state of the art operations management systems. Nigel’s knowledge and experience has been in demand by a number of new and expanding operators and his ability with both traditional and modern systems is probably unique.
David Gurney
David is AirScript's Performance Engineer, specialising in Electronic Flight Bags. With 30 years of aviation behind him, David comes from an engineering background, initially as an airframes and engines engineer.
David continued his career as a Flight Engineer, working for airlines such as Singapore Airlines and Air Mauritius then, with many years of flying behind him, he moved into Aviation IT and aircraft performance.
David spent 10 years as Head of a large operator's IT and aircraft performance department, also being responsible for their flight simulators and technical publications. In this role, he gained his experience of Electronic Flight Bags and he has been involved with the implementation of both Class 1 and Class 2 devices hosting a variety of software applications.
David also specialises in technical publications, including mass and balance documentation and MELs.
Nick Butcher
Nick is AirScript’s cabin configuration and safety equipment specialist.
Nick commenced his aviation career with Pan American Airways before moving to Aer Lingus. In 1973 he joined the United Kingdom Civil Aviation Authority in Flight Crew Licensing. Nick first became involved in Cabin Safety issues in the early 1980s and, at the time of the Boeing 737 Manchester accident in August 1985, he commenced full time activity in operational Cabin Safety issues and was a founder member of the CAA’s Cabin Safety Working Group where he was responsible for the development and implementation of the many actions taken as a result of the Manchester accident.
Subsequently he was appointed as Head of the CAA’s Cabin Safety Office and he was responsible for developing the Cabin Safety Office into a working unit, conducting ongoing inspections and audits of both UK AOC holders and foreign operators. He was also closely involved in numerous research projects, many of which were follow-up actions resulting from the Manchester accident.
Nick was later involved in resolving the cabin safety issues that resulted from accidents such as the Boeing 737 at Kegworth and the South African Airways Boeing 747 ‘Combi’ in November 1987. This resulted in him being responsible for developing JAA cabin crew fire training standards and procedures for ‘Combi’ aircraft operations.
Nick was also involved in the investigation of an incident involving a UK registered B747-400 in Kenyan airspace where a passenger managed to access the flight deck and briefly took over the controls of the aircraft. Nick wrote the report into the incident that was sent to the Secretary of State for Transport and this led to two years of intensive work dealing with the follow-up actions to the 9/11 terrorist attacks in the US in respect of flight deck security.
For more than 20 years, Nick has also been deeply involved with aircraft certification issues, mainly in respect of emergency evacuation. Nick was the Chairman of the A380 JOEB Cabin Crew Subgroup and was also a member of the EASA A380 Cabin Safety Panel involving direct negotiations with Airbus at a senior level, as well as having been involved in many of the certification tests related to cabin safety, including the full-scale evacuation test.
Nick’s contribution to cabin safety in the UK and Europe is unparalleled.
Pete Griffiths
Pete is a flight operations consultant and training specialist. After serving in the Fleet Air Arm, Pete joined Dan-Air in 1972 where he flew HS748 and BAC 1-11 aircraft. During his career in Dan-Air, Pete became a TRE/IRE and subsequently Chief Training Captain. Pete left Dan-Air in 1992 when the company was taken over by BA and then, after a short spell with Air UK Leisure as Captain on the B737-400, he joined the CAA in 1994 as a Flight Operations and Training Inspector and became Regional Manager for Gatwick in 1998. Soon afterwards, he was appointed as Head of Training Standards which included responsibility for all training approvals for the UK industry. During his time as Head of Training Standards, Pete was also responsible for the introduction of CRM Instructor Accreditation and he produced CAP 737.
In 2003 Pete was given responsibility for the introduction of the Airbus A380 as chairman of the A380 Joint Operational Evaluation Board. He became one of the first commercial pilots to fly and become qualified on the A380 in addition to his existing qualifications on the A340, A330, A320 and Boeing 757/767 and B737 300-900.
Pete became a valued member of the AirScript team on his retirement from the CAA in June 2007, and he continues to be involved in the A380 project and other matters for EASA.
Fiona Riddle
Following 6 years in charter and scheduled flying as an in-flight cabin crew supervisor, Fiona has worked for the past 10 years exclusively in the private aviation sector gaining extensive experience in the cabin management of VVIP flights. From the development of bespoke menus to tailoring cabin interiors, Fiona has established highly successful cabin service operations for corporate clients, regularly flying Heads of State and Royalty.
Working on a wide range of Corporate Aircraft, from Learjets to Boeing Business Jets, Fiona has successfully managed every aspect of cabin service including recruitment and specialist training of ab-initio personnel, conversion training for experienced cabin staff and planning and implementation of multi-aircraft crew rosters.
Since 2004, Fiona has acted as a consultant for the selection, sourcing and delivery of interior designs and cabin equipment for Hawker, Challenger 604, Global Express, Gulfstream and BBJ 1 & 2 aircraft for international corporate operators.
For the past 3 years, Fiona has been involved in the successful and rapid expansion of a private airline in Euro Asia. In addition to her flying, training and catering management roles, Fiona has developed effective processes for the preparation and production of cabin service manuals and crew checklists, pre-delivery inspection of new and previously owned aircraft, (including re-design of galleys where necessary), the design and adaptation of cabin furnishings and fittings, and the design and purchasing of crew uniforms.
David Orringe
David started his career as a management trainee with British European Airways before deciding that he wanted to be a pilot; which led to 12 years in the Royal Air Force during which a notable experience was being seconded as the personal pilot to the Sultan of Brunei.
David’s career in civil aviation took him via the BAC 1-11s of Dan-Air and British Island Airways to the CAA as a Flight Operations Inspector, from which he progressed to being the Lead Inspector for British Airways, the Gatwick Regional Manager and subsequently the Head of Operations Quality Assurance. During his time with the CAA he regularly flew line operations on aircraft such as the B737 and A320.
During his time at the CAA, David was the co-author and editor of CAP 712, “Safety Management Systems for Commercial Air Transport Operators” and that led him into his current speciality of Safety and Quality Management.
Since leaving the CAA in 2001, David has worked as a freelance consultant for some notable clients and as the Director of Flight Operations for two significant operators before being appointed as the Director of Safety and Quality for the UK’s largest all-cargo airline in 2005; a position he occupied until becoming an AirScript Associate in April 2009.
David brings with him enormous experience, knowledge and expertise in the field of Safety and Quality Management Systems and he will be providing this speciality to AirScript’s clients.
Robert (Rob) Calvert
Rob is a flight operations consultant with aeroplane and helicopter licences specialising in training. He served all over the world in the Royal Air Force for 22 years before leaving as a Squadron Leader commanding a helicopter training squadron. Retiring from the RAF, Rob flew helicopters as a TRI/TRE in support of the Offshore Oil Industry and was one of the Bristow team who founded the CRM Course in 1992. During his time at Bristows, he augmented his first degree with an MBA (Dundee University). He is currently an active member of the RAeS CRM Advisory Panel. Rob was approached to join the UK CAA in 1993 as a Flight Operations and Training Inspector, but he subsequently transferred to the Training Standards Department and became Manager in 2000. At this time he was also responsible for TRE policy matters and the review of all AOC training manuals.
Rob worked with the JAA evaluation team qualifying various helicopter simulators in the USA and UAE to JAR-FSTD standards and was responsible for the introduction of the first helicopter FTD3 into service with a UK operator. During his time as Manager of Training Standards at the CAA, he worked with the JAA and subsequently with EASA on the development of the requirements for the licensing of pilots in JAR-FCL and EASA Part FCL. As part of the CAA team, he commented on the proposal for EASA Part OPS and therefore has extensive knowledge of the new regulations for all fixed and rotary wing operations.
In 2007, Robert joined the ICAO International Working Group 9625 to revise the training standards requirements for FSTDs and the work is nearing completion.
Rob retired from the CAA in 2009 and became a member of the AirScript team where his training background and knowledge of legislation allows further expertise to be made available to AirScript’s clients.