Here’s a list of all of our authors.
Metropolitan Airport News Editorial Contributors
Lia Ocampo
Born and raised in the Philippines, Lia worked for the U.S. Government for 22 years. She came to New York City in 2012 as an immigrant. In 2014, Lia achieved her dream of becoming a flight attendant. Her flying stint allows her to meet amazing people, create beautiful memories and inspire her to do the things she loves: writing and photography. She became a first-time author in 2020 with What We Know for Sure: Inspirational Stories of Filipino Special Immigrants in America. Lia is a mentor and resource speaker for immigrants. She splits her time between Florida and New York while pursuing her writing, love of travel, and passion for helping others.1 Articles
Dr. Stephanie Austin
Dr. Stephanie Austin received her Bachelor of Applied Science, majoring in Veterinary Technology from the University of Queensland, Australia, and then attended Murdoch University where she received her Bachelors of Veterinary Biology and Masters of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery. Following an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at the Veterinary Emergency and Referral Group, she now works at AirHeart Pet Hospital, a general and urgent care veterinary hospital located inside The ARK at JFK. Dr. Austin’s special interests include emergency and critical care, anesthesiology and neurology as well as equine medicine.1 Articles
Nancy N. Young
Nancy N. Young is the Vice President of Environmental Affairs at Airlines for America (A4A) (formerly the Air Transport Association of America, Inc.) In this capacity, Ms. Young directs A4A’s environmental programs, represents the A4A airlines in international negotiations over new aircraft noise and emission standards and provides counsel to A4A and its members on other environmental issues of significance to the air transportation industry.1 Articles
Nicosia Smith
For a number of years Nicosia has written about entertainment, arts, culture, and conservation issues, but more recently she has started writing about the aviation and airline industry. Nicosia has worked for several years in customer service with the cargo industry.1 Articles
Chaplain Chanoch Lebovic
Civil Air Patrol, the official auxiliary of the U.S. Air Force, is a nonprofit organization with 58,000 members nationwide. CAP performs 90 percent of continental U.S. inland search and rescue missions as tasked by the Air Force Rescue Coordination Center and was credited by the U.S. Air Force with saving 155 lives in fiscal year 2018. Its volunteers also perform homeland security, disaster relief and counterdrug missions at the request of federal, state and local agencies. The members play a leading role in aerospace education and serve as mentors to more than 25,000 young people currently participating in CAP cadet programs. CAP has been performing missions for America for 67 years. For more information, visit www.gocivilairpatrol.com.1 Articles
Michael Taylor
Michael Taylor is managing director of travel, hospitality, and retail at J.D. Power. He is responsible for providing industry thought leadership and business improvement recommendations to the company’s clients in the airline, airport, and car rental segments. He works with airports around the world. Additionally, he develops insights on other airport topics such as concessions, services, and security. Mr. Taylor has also worked with nearly all major North American air carriers and major rental car companies to measure and manage customer satisfaction and loyalty.1 Articles
Mike Lentes
First as a Civil Air Patrol cadet – then as a pilot – Mike found that “altitude affects attitude.” With that in mind, his focus now is to interest the next generation in aviation and is founding a weekend av camp in northern Arizona for kids – Little Brothers. He is also active in his aviation business and spends time writing about its history when not hiking in the mountains.1 Articles
Port Authority of New York and New Jersey Media Relations
One of the recurring comments overheard in elevators and around water coolers at the Port Authority is there aren’t many people who are aware of the really cool transportation stuff the agency does every day. These stories rarely make the news cycle. Not many of us would pause anyway to think about the intermodal freight system that delivers fresh fish to our region, while out dining at a restaurant on Alaskan sockeye salmon.1 Articles