Press Releases - April 30, 2010

Avemco Insurance Company President to Keynote New England Aviation Safety Expo

April 30, 2010 – Jim Lauerman is the keynote speaker for the FAA's New England Aviation Safety Expo at Daniel Webster College in Nashua, New Hampshire on Saturday, May 8, 2010.

Lauerman will address the issues of risk management in the cockpit that go beyond training and technology in his speech, "We have Met the Enemy, and He is Us." He will discuss the motivation and mindset needed to help prevent accidents while flying and share his unique perspective on the key causes of aircraft accidents. His insights are based on actual Avemco® insurance claims data, his 35 years of experience as a flight instructor and his career as an insurance executive.

"Despite enormous changes in equipment and the well-intentioned developments of technology, equipment and regulations, people are still dying at high levels in general aviation accidents. The NTSB* statistics haven't changed much in the past 20 years – the average is still about ten people dying every week. This has got to change" Lauerman notes. (*http://www.ntsb.gov/aviation/Table10.htm)

For several years, Avemco has supported pioneering research that has uncovered the need for aviation education based on professional airmanship development in tandem with skills-based pilot training. This groundbreaking research is led by Bill Rhodes, Ph.D. from Aerworthy Consulting, LLC.

Lauerman will also introduce Rhodes for two forums during the Expo entitled "Warning Signs in Pilots – What Scares the Experts." Dr. Rhodes will share the interesting results of his work on why some pilots are more prone to have accidents and what we all can do to help reduce them; this information is based on initial findings from the Airman Education Research Initiative (AERI) sponsored by Avemco.

With over 4,000 hours of flight time, Lauerman's career has spanned almost every aspect of general aviation. It began in the Navy where he was an acoustic sensor operator aboard a P-3 Orion. Upon returning to civilian life, he purchased and managed his own flight school and Grumman-American dealership, which he later sold to become Chief Pilot and Chief Flight Instructor at Elliot Beechcraft. Then, in 1985, National Aviation Underwriters recruited him to enter the aviation insurance profession. Jim was soon promoted to Vice President of US Specialty Insurance Company (USSIC) and later became Executive Vice President of Operations at Avemco. He added Chief Underwriting Officer to his list of titles in 2001, and in 2007 became President of Avemco Insurance Company.

The event begins with registration at 7:30 am on May 8 at Collings Auditorium on the Daniel Webster College Campus in Nashua. For event information or to register visit: http://www.faa.gov/news/conferences_events/aviation_expo/

Avemco Insurance Company, a leading pleasure and business general aviation insurer in the United States, has been insuring planes and pilots since 1961. Headquartered in Frederick, Maryland, Avemco is rated A+ (Superior) by A. M. Best Company and AA (Very Strong) by Standard & Poor's. Avemco is a subsidiary of HCC Insurance Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: HCC) a leading international specialty insurance group with assets of $9 billion.