Gregory Polek has spent his entire career in aviation journalism with AIN, starting as a proofreader and assistant to then-managing editor Mary Mahoney in 1995 after serving an internship with&nbsp;New Jersey Monthly&nbsp;magazine and completing his B.A. degree in English/Writing at New Jersey’s William Paterson College. By 1997 Polek accepted a position as an associate editor, covering the regional airline beat for&nbsp;Aviation International News&nbsp;in place of retiring industry veteran Don Anderson. The assignment took Polek across North America and Europe to profile regional airlines varying in size and mission from the likes of floatplane operators Kenmore Air and Chalk’s Ocean Airways to regional jet operators such as SkyWest and American Eagle. Today, in his dual role as Air Transport Editor and International Airshow Editor, Polek writes, edits, and manages AIN’s commercial aviation content while overseeing each of the company’s daily international air show publications in Paris, Farnborough, Singapore, and Dubai. Most recently Polek has assumed oversight of daily coverage of the Helicopter Association International’s annual Heli-Expo convention.

Senior Editor

Gregory Polek

The NTSB has secured the cockpit voice and flight data recorders from the Southwest Airlines Boeing 737 that erroneously landed yesterday at M. Graham Clark Downtown Airport (PLK) in Hollister, Mo., rather than its originally intended destination of Branson Airport. The U.S. safety invetigator said it will also conduct interviews with the crew of the Southwest flight this week.


Roughly an hour behind schedule, Southwest Flight 4013 carried 124 passengers and a crew of five when, at about 6:25 p.m. local time, it safely landed in Hollister, some six miles north of Branson. The flight originated from Chicago Midway Airport and was scheduled to continue to Dallas Love Field after landing in Branson. Branson Airport crews arrived at PLK to attend to Southwest Airlines’ customers and their baggage and dispatch them by bus to the proper airport. Southwest Airlines flew another aircraft into Branson Airport to accommodate passengers scheduled to depart Branson for Dallas that evening at 5:50 p.m.&nbsp; The delayed flight departed Branson at 10:36 p.m.&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;


According to Branson Airport executive director Jeff Bourk, the destination airport operated normally at the time Flight 4013 should have arrived. He described weather conditions as good.

NTSB Investigating Southwest Landing Incident

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