Originally posted on the AOPA website on January 30, 2024.

After 10 years of growing AOPA, keeping it the world’s largest civil aviation organization, and protecting general aviation pilots’ freedom to fly, AOPA President Mark Baker announced that he is working with the AOPA board of trustees to search for his successor.

Baker stressed that the move is part of a natural leadership transition process and follows his decadeslong, successful career in retail and business before he joined AOPA in 2013 as only its fifth president.

“It’s hard to believe that more than a decade has passed since I joined AOPA,” Baker said to staff. “Now the time has come for me to plan the next chapter—for AOPA and for myself.”

Baker told staff that he is committed to staying at the helm of AOPA for up to two years while the board works to find the absolute best person to lead AOPA into the future. “During this process, it’s business as usual,” Baker added.

The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) along with the Canadian Owners and Pilots Association (COPA) are both members of the The International Council of Aircraft Owner and Pilot Associations (IAOPA), a global network of member organizations representing general aviation interests at the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO).