Alvin Brunner is an Aviation Safety Inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA), Flight Standards Division, Southwest Region, Fort Worth TX. His Inspector duties primarily focus on Unmanned Aircraft Systems (UAS) integration into the National Airspace System. This includes a variety of duties ranging from policy formation, risk mitigation for Certificates of Authorization, to public relations. His ancillary duties as an All Weather Operations Program Manager include oceanic navigation operations, special instrument approach procedures, and airport and obstacle evaluations.
Inspector Brunner graduated from Texas A&M University with a Bachelor of Science, Aerospace Engineering, and was commissioned a 2nd Lieutenant in the US Air Force through the ROTC program in 1983. He served as a ballistic missile engineer before receiving his pilot wings from Reese AFB TX. He has over 6000 hours flying various models and mission types of specialized C-135 from Offutt AFB NE. He served as a NATO staff officer in Vicenza Italy during the Bosnian conflict providing timely reconnaissance imagery and later developing the initial plans for the normalization of airspace. His UAS experience came while serving as the Chief of Safety for the 53rd Weapons Evaluation Group. He was responsible for the safe conduct of live-fire air-to-air weapons testing at aerial targets (UAS).
Inspector Brunner retired from the Air Force as a Lieutenant Colonel having completed Air War College, a Master of Aeronautical Sciences degree from Embry-Riddle University, and serving in numerous campaigns worldwide. He joined the FAA in 2010 as one of the initial cadre of UAS Inspectors tasked with UAS integration.
