Wayne Sand, a Montana native, started his flying career by being taught how to fly in Super Cubs by a crop sprayer while in high school and then by becoming a flight instructor throughout college. Wayne has an extensive piloting career and has flown for different universities to support weather research by a variety of scientists. While conducting research flights, he often flew through hazardous weather such as thunderstorms, icing, microbursts, lake snow events, and snowstorms to collect data. Wayne was also a pilot for the United States Navy in Vietnam and the Mediterranean, flying jets from aircraft carriers. He later joined the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR), where he was the deputy director of the research applications program and helped develop wind shear and microburst warning systems for the FAA. Alongside his impressive piloting career, Wayne holds a Master of Science degree in meteorology and a PhD in atmospheric science.
When he left NCAR, Wayne went on to open an aviation weather consulting business where he examined aviation accidents where the weather was the main cause or a factor. He continued flying his own light airplanes as part of his business. He has taught a continuing education course on aircraft icing for the University of Kansas for over twenty years. Based on his diverse flying experience with hazardous weather, his education in atmospheric science, and his consulting, Wayne felt compelled to share some of the lessons he learned with pilots and others through an entertaining, interesting narrative.