Chris Kunze

Aviation Industry Expert

Chris Kunze

Aviation Industry Expert

Chris Kunze brings vast experience to assist clients with environmental, noise, land use and other related strategic issues. He has managed airports for over 30 years, including the acquisition and re-opening of an ex-military airport for public use general aviation purposes.

Kunze managed all aspects of a commercial airport, with a high percentage of general aviation use, for 27 years until retirement in 2008. Since then, he has been active at that airport and others as an advisor on strategic issues.

Over the past several years, Kunze has chaired the Southern California Association of Governments Aviation Advisory Commission during development of the region’s aviation system plan. He also chairs California’s Technical Advisory Committee on Aeronautics, which advises the state’s transportation commission on key aviation issues. He previously served on the FAA’s Runway Safety Task Force, which developed the first national plan to enhance airport runway safety.

Through involvement in the development, implementation and oversight of the Long Beach Airport’s Airport Noise Compatibility Ordinance, Kunze has developed a comprehensive understanding of issues relating to airport noise and land use compatibility. Working with airport tenants and the FAA, he also developed the Long Beach Airport’s Minimum Standards for Aeronautical Activity.

Dedicated to educating and mentoring the next generation of aviation business professionals, Kunze serves as an adjunct professor at California State Universities Long Beach and Los Angeles. He is CFO and a board member for Global Water, a non-profit organization providing fresh clean water systems to rural areas within certain developing nations.