Industry leaders gathered at a Newsmakers Kickoff Luncheon ahead of the 2026 NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE) to hear inside details about two of the year’s most significant merger/acquisitions in business aviation.
Dan Drohan, founder and CEO of charter and aircraft management company Solairus, discussed his company’s recent deal to acquire Clay Lacy Aviation’s management and charter divisions, and Steve Varsano, president of Flexjet and founder of brokerage and advisory firm The Jet Business, spoke about Flexjet’s acquisition of his company.
“I needed to have a bigger platform,” explained Varsano. Flexjet Chairman “Kenn Ricci has built an incredible business. He's a real entrepreneur ... and he has big plans. ... [the deal provided] a lot of big opportunities to take some of my knowledge of the industry and bolt it on with his business and see what else I could do besides just sell airplanes.”
Varsano said he is currently “looking at some much more macro opportunities. So, [the acquisition] gives me a lot more innovative, entrepreneurial leeway to go do that kind of stuff. I’ve got a big foundation, and it gives me a lot of opportunities to find things I couldn't do on my own.”
‘Big Enough to Matter, Small Enough to Care’
Moderator Emily Deaton, NBAA senior vice president, product development and sales, asked Drohan about Solairus’ longtime ethos, “Big enough to matter, small enough to care,” and how the expanded company would protect that mindset.
“The minute we start just being big and not good at what we do, then it's not worth it,” said Drohan. “With this sort of injection of 130 new relationships, we're kind of testing new waters out, and the team has done an unbelievable job. ... The focus on the employees. The focus on the clients.”
And Drohan expressed optimism about the future of Part 91 operations. “I think there is absolutely a place in the future for the small Part 91 flight department – or the really large Part 91 flight department. It's the middle zone that I think really benefits,” he said.
When it comes to managing personnel after a merger between two different companies, Drohan acknowledged, “We had to really make sure that we communicated well with all the interested parties. Make sure you know who your interested parties are and make sure you're talking to them.”
Honoring a Congressional GA Champion
Also during the luncheon, the association bestowed its prestigious Silk Scarf Award to the retiring Chairman of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, Rep. Sam Graves (R-06-MO). The honor recognizes Graves’ many years of championing legislation fostering innovation, development and safety across the nation’s aviation industry.
In the decades since he was first elected to Congress in 2001, Graves, an accomplished GA pilot, has consistently been a strong Capitol Hill advocate for the industry.
In 2024, Graves led the passage of the landmark FAA Reauthorization Bill with nearly unanimous bipartisan support. He also was instrumental in providing $12.5 billion as a critical first step in the work to build a Brand New Air Traffic Control System – a top priority for government and industry. And earlier this year, Graves led the T&I committee to approve legislation designed to implement NTSB recommendations related to the tragic 2025 midair collision in Washington, DC.
Recognizing Excellence in Aviation Journalism
NBAA Board Chair John Witzig also presented retiring Aviation International News Media Group editor-in-chief Matt Thurber with the association’s Platinum Wing Award, recognizing a remarkable four decades of documenting many of the industry’s most important milestones.
And Lee Ann Shay, Aviation Week’s executive editor of MRO and business aviation, was also recognized for her journalism excellence with NBAA’s prestigious Gold Wing Award.