Burning Blue was founded in 2001 by college buddies Peter Schmidt and Chris Reed (MIT classes of ‘88 and ‘87 respectively), who, while studying for impossible final exams, decided that they'd really rather be out flying cool airplanes, and that someday, they were going to make it happen.
Peter H. Schmidt, President. Peter is a serial entrepreneur, having co-founded five startups and worked in two others. He is a board member, an advisor, or lead investor in nine additional startups in the internetworking and Internet spaces. Peter holds a private pilot certificate and is an avid student of aerobatics.
“I've wanted to be a pilot as long as I can remember. My first flight in an S-2C was what I'd always dreamed flying could be - I couldn't stop smiling for the rest of the day. With Burning Blue, I hope to share that feeling with as many people as possible. Everybody ought to have this much fun!” - PeterChristopher B. Reed, Director. Chris is a Captain and Check Airman on the Embraer 170 for a major US
airline, where he has previously flown the Boeing 737 and Fokker 100. He
holds an ATP certificate with type ratings in the ERJ-170, B-737 and
BE-1900. He also holds a flight instructor certificate with single-engine,
multi-engine, and instrument ratings. Chris has been an aerobatic and
taildragger instructor, a corporate pilot, and a regional airline pilot. He
has also been a Senior Research Associate in NASA's Human Factors and
Technology Division, and an active Air Safety Representative with the Air Line Pilots Association.
"The Pitts S-2C is awesome! Great performance, very responsive; lots of fun! And the basic aerobatic course I took many years ago was the single most valuable flight training investment I ever made. Every pilot should have aerobatic training.” -Chris
Hollie
K. Schmidt,
Director. Hollie is the Vice President of Scientific Operations for the Boston Cure Project, a 501(c)(3) non-profit dedicated to finding the cause(s) of and cure for Multiple Sclerosis. She lends her extensive business experience to the board of Burning Blue. Also active in community service, Hollie is on the board of the Association of MIT Alumnae and volunteers in the emergency room of Emerson Hospital in Concord, Massachusetts.
“I love roller-coasters, and aerobatics has all the same elements - only more so! If you like amusement-park rides, you'll have fun in the Pitts.“ -Hollie
Mark Lander,
Director. Mark is
currently a Master
Electro-Mechanical Technician
in development engineering for
a microwave company in the
Boston area. He is also a
part time Flight Instructor,
and has been preparing students for their Private through
Multiengine Instructor ratings since 1987, as well as for aerobatics
and taildragger operations.
He recently started flying in local aerobatic competitions, taking 2nd
place in Primary at Orange in
2002 and winning the Highest Scoring First Time Sportsman in 2003.
“I have always wanted to be a part of teaching people aerobatics, since
my first ride in a Super Decathlon when I was 20. But the Pitts has
always been my favorite, and the S-2C is an experience in itself. If you have ever dreamed of flying a fighter jet, this is the aircraft
for you, the response and handling is unbelievable, you have to fly it
to believe it.“ -Mark
