Jeff Guzzetti

Biography

Jeff Guzzetti is the President of Guzzetti Aviation Risk Discovery, LLC (GuARD), which is an aviation safety consulting firm that he established following his retirement from the Federal government after a 35-year career in aviation safety and accident investigation.

Jeff began his career with the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) in 1985 as an aerospace engineer at the FAA Technical Center’s Aviation Safety Division in New Jersey. He later held positions in systems safety engineering for the U.S. Naval Air Systems Command, and then as an air safety investigator with the Cessna Aircraft Company. While at Cessna, Jeff traveled across the U.S. to assist FAA inspectors and National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) investigators with technical expertise on Cessna airplanes.

Jeff was then recruited by the NTSB in 1992 and worked in the agency’s Office of Aviation Safety for 17 years, first as a field investigator, then as a systems engineer for the NTSB “go-team,” and later as an investigator-in-charge of major investigations. He led key aspects of many notable investigations including Alaska Airlines Flight 261 in California, the John F. Kennedy Jr. Piper accident, and numerous business jet accidents in the U.S. and abroad. Jeff was then promoted to Deputy Director for Regional Operations in 2002, a position responsible for overseeing the NTSB’s investigation and probable cause determination of 1,600 general aviation accidents each year.

In August 2010, Jeff left the NTSB to accept an appointment as the Assistant Inspector General of Aviation Audits at the Department of Transportation’s (DOT) Office of Inspector General (OIG). He was responsible for the issuance of audit reports addressing major FAA programs, and he personally testified before Congress on several occasions regarding aviation safety topics.

In 2014, Jeff was asked to serve as the Director of FAA’s Accident Investigation Division (AVP-100). This division is responsible for ensuring the integrity of policies and practices for FAA inspectors assigned to investigate aircraft accidents and incidents. The division also serves as the primary FAA liaison with the NTSB, and it employs a group of senior investigators to represent the agency for major air safety investigations domestic and abroad. Jeff retired from this position in February 2019.

Jeff graduated from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a B.S. degree in Aeronautical Engineering. He is also a commercial-rated pilot with multi-engine instrument ratings in airplanes, seaplanes, and gliders. Jeff lives in Burke, Virginia with his wife and two sons. His brother is a major airline pilot, and his father served as a Boeing B-17 navigator.

Published on August 19th, 2019Last updated on October 1st, 2021