Legends of Aviation: Ed Wegel – A Visionary Redefining Air Travel

For those seeking a blueprint of bold entrepreneurship and industry-shaping vision within aviation, the career of Ed Wegel offers a masterclass. Over nearly four decades, Wegel has combined financial acumen, fleet innovation and regulatory mastery, evolving from traditional airlines to frontier-defining air mobility ventures. 

Foundations to Flight: Building a Track Record 

Educated at the United States Military Academy and later earning an MBA in finance, Wegel entered aviation with a rare mix of discipline, technical knowledge and business insight, cutting his teeth on the finance and operating teams at Eastern Air Lines and Pan Am, before moving into leadership roles that would shape regional and global aviation. 

In 1991, Wegel co-founded Atlantic Coast Airlines (United Express) after advising airlines and leasing companies at a major Wall Street investment bank. As Senior Vice President of Finance and a board member, he coordinated the airline’s launch of the Jetstream 41 and later its IPO. 

By 1995, Wegel successfully privatised BWIA International Airlines, negotiating new union agreements and international route rights. As President, he delivered the airline’s first profit in 57 years. 

In 1997, Wegel placed a speculative order for the new Embraer 145 aircraft before major US airlines were permitted to operate them under scope clauses and acquired Chautauqua Airlines (US Airways Express). These moves ultimately led to the creation of Republic Airways, which today operates over 300 Embraer jets. 

Innovation, Certification and Resilience: Shaping Modern US Aviation 

One of Wegel’s landmark achievements came in 2012 when he founded the new Eastern Air Lines and led its FAA Part 121 certification with the Boeing 737-800 series. The airline achieved full certification in a record eight months. 

Later, during the turbulence of the global pandemic, Wegel seized opportunity by founding Global Crossing Airlines (GlobalX), where he served as Chairman and CEO. He guided the airline through complex certification processes, securing regulatory approvals from multiple agencies and rapidly growing its Airbus A320-family fleet under challenging conditions. Under his leadership, GlobalX achieved flag carrier status, DoD approval, IOSA certification and became the launch customer for the A321 freighter in the Americas. 

Wegel’s appetite for transformation through fleet diversification, charter and cargo operations and new market entry proved that well-capitalised, strategic entrepreneurship can thrive even when others retrench. 

Pioneering the Future: Urban Air Mobility and eVTOL 

Wegel’s vision now extends beyond conventional aviation. As founder and chairman of URBYN and its main subsidiary, UrbanLink Air Mobility, he is spearheading a bold push into Advanced Air Mobility (AAM), focusing on sustainable, zero-emission transport for urban and regional markets. 

In 2025, UrbanLink signed with a major leasing company for leases on ten (10)  all-electric BETA Technologies eCTOL and eVTOL aircraft, with options for 10 more, a commitment that positions UrbanLink to become the first US airline to integrate eVTOL aircraft into regular service. URBYN has also ordered Regent Seagliders, which would create a comprehensive zero-emission ecosystem throughout Florida. 

From Brookfield’s vantage point, which values scalable, sustainable aviation infrastructure, UrbanLink represents the kind of forward-looking enterprise that can help aviation evolve responsibly and competitively. 

Resurrecting Icons: Reviving Pan Am 

Perhaps the most ambitious of Wegel’s current projects involves reviving one of history’s most iconic airlines. Through his firm Avi8 Air Capital, Wegel is working with Pan Am Global Holdings to bring Pan Am, legendary in global aviation history, back to the skies. 

As of late 2025, Avi8 has completed a business plan and launched the FAA certification process, aiming to re-establish Pan Am as a scheduled commercial airline operating modern Airbus aircraft from a Miami base. This effort blends reverence for aviation heritage with modern strategy, regulations and fleet planning, a hybrid of legacy and innovation that mirrors Brookfield’s own mission. 

For Aviation’s Future and Brookfield’s Global Vision 

Ed Wegel’s career traces a rare arc: from financing and launching regional and charter airlines, through turbulent industry cycles, to reimagining air transport with eVTOLs while also bringing back storied aviation brands. For Brookfield Aviation, Wegel exemplifies the type of leader whose long-term vision, financial sophistication, operational knowledge and capacity for reinvention can drive real progress. His efforts reinforce a powerful idea: the future of aviation lies not just in incremental improvement, but in combining legacy, innovation and sustainability, a commandment for any firm aspiring to lead globally.