Matt Thurber, editor-in-chief at AIN Media Group, has been flying since 1975 and writing about aviation since 1978 and now has the best job in the world, running editorial operations for Aviation International News, Business Jet Traveler, and FutureFlight.aero. In addition to working as an A&amp;P mechanic on everything from Piper Cubs to turboprops, Matt taught flying at his father’s flight school in Plymouth, Mass., in the early 1980s, flew for an aircraft owner/pilot, and for two summer seasons hunted swordfish near the George’s Banks off the East Coast from a Piper Super Cub. An ATP certificated fixed-wing pilot and CFII and commercial helicopter pilot, Matt is type-rated in the Citation 500 and Gulfstream V/550. Based in the Pacific Northwest, Matt and his team cover the entire aviation scene including business aircraft, helicopters, avionics, safety, manufacturing, charter, fractionals, technology, air transport, advanced air mobility, defense, and other subjects of interest to AIN, BJT, and FutureFlight readers.

Editor-in-Chief

Matt Thurber

Two pilots who were forcibly <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2026-02-10/us-business-jet-pilots-seek-release-guinea-jail">detained</a> and held in jail after landing their Gulfstream IV in West Africa on December 29 have since been released on bail but are still being held in detention, according to information provided to AIN.&nbsp;Pilots Scott Schlenker and Fabio Nunez were flying a Brazilian family and landed at Ahmed Sékou Touré International Airport (GUCY) in Conakry, Guinea, for a tech stop. News reports claimed that the pilots were arrested for allegedly landing without authorization and violating the country’s airspace.
According to a CBS News Chicago&nbsp;<a href="https://youtu.be/wwizLIb7Z9k?si=6gXV1JG7mxP4h8yq">interview</a> with Schlenker from his hotel in Conakry, where he is being detained, the pilots had all the necessary permissions for the refueling stop. “We received our clearance, we took off, we showed up over here, talked to tower, talked to ATC. Bottom line is, they cleared us to land.”
Military personnel arrested the pilots, Schlenker said during the CBS News interview, adding, “They searched the aircraft five times and they didn’t find anything. The legal system here, you can’t even fathom.”
In response to a query from AIN, the U.S. Department of State said it “is actively providing consular assistance and remains engaged on this case…The Trump Administration has no higher priority than the safety and security of Americans.”

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