Private aviation recruiting
Recruiting exceptional flight crews for private aircraft owners.
Response Aviation Search is a boutique aviation recruiting firm that places pilots and flight crew with private aircraft owners, family offices and Part 91 flight departments. It works on contingency, with no retainer and no upfront fee, and every client works directly with founder Andrew Gutterman.
View the presentationWhat to expect
Discretion
Every search is confidential, for you and for the candidates.
Expertise
Private aviation only. Not the airlines.
Judgment
Skill first, then temperament, discretion and fit.
Long-term focus
People you will want to keep for years.
Your crew is the operation.
They carry your family, your guests and your schedule. Most owners have no reliable way to find them, or to know they found the right ones.
That is the whole job here.
Two ways to work with Andrew.
Pilot and crew search
Captains, First Officers, Chief Pilots, Directors of Aviation, maintenance leaders and flight attendants. One seat or a full crew.
- Direct, confidential recruitment
- A small, vetted slate
- No retainer, no upfront fee
Flight department design and build
For a new aircraft or a reorganisation. Andrew sets the structure and recruits everyone to staff it, from delivery to a running operation.
- Structure, pay and reporting lines
- Every seat recruited
- Flat annual fee, set by aircraft class
Everything we offer. None of the risk.
Retained firms usually take part of their fee before you see a candidate. We don’t. You get the full search, and a fee is due only when you hire someone we introduce.
We don’t sell aircraft, manage fleets or take vendor commissions.
How contingency works| Comparison | Typical retained search | Response Aviation Search |
|---|---|---|
| Upfront fee | Part of the fee before candidates are presented | None |
| When you pay | In stages through the search | Only when you hire |
| If no one is hired | Retainer usually not refunded | You owe nothing |
| Who you deal with | Often a partner, then a team | Andrew, start to finish |
Start recruiting when the purchase agreement is signed, well before delivery.
How a search runs.
- 01
Intake
Mission, schedule, base and budget. Then the people: your family, your guests and the crew already in place.
- 02
Direct recruitment
Andrew finds the strongest pilots in your type and approaches them confidentially. Most are already employed.
- 03
Assessment
Skill first. Then in-depth interviews for temperament, discretion and fit.
- 04
Slate and hire
A small, vetted slate. Then counsel through interviews, pay and the offer.
The questions that come with the aircraft.
Department structure
Who leads, who reports to whom, and what each role owns.
Compensation guidance
What the right people cost, and how to pay so the good ones stay.
Leadership transitions
Replacing a Chief Pilot or Director of Aviation without disrupting the schedule.
Vendor introductions on request. We have no financial stake in any of them.
Built for private aviation, not the airlines.
Owners, their advisors and the departments that fly for them.
Owners and family offices
Discreet searches for principals, from the first hire to a Chief Pilot succession.
ExploreCorporate flight departments
Captains through Directors of Aviation for Part 91 departments.
ExploreBrokers, attorneys and CPAs
Clients who need crew at closing. We complement the transaction team.
Explore
You work with Andrew.
Andrew Gutterman
Founder & Principal · New York City
Andrew served in some of the U.S. Army’s most elite, high-tempo operational units, where the mission depended on the people trusted to carry it out.
He now recruits pilots and crew for private owners, family offices and flight departments, and advises on structure, pay and succession. Every search runs through him, from the first call to the start date.
Before you call.
Beyond the search, owners can keep RAS involved through RAS Advisory.
- How much does it cost to use Response Aviation Search?
- Permanent searches are on contingency. There is no retainer and no upfront fee. A placement fee is due only when you hire a candidate we introduce.
- Who will I actually work with?
- You work directly with Andrew Gutterman from the first call to the start date. Your search is never handed to a team.
- Do you sell aircraft or offer management?
- We don’t sell aircraft, manage fleets or take transaction commissions.
Tell Andrew about the seat.
A confidential call to scope the search. No retainer, no upfront fee.
- The aircraftType, base and how it flies.
- The seatThe role and who it serves.
- Timing and budgetWhen you need them, and what you plan to pay.
- Principal
- Andrew Gutterman
- Telephone
- +1 (929) 476-9598
- Online
- responseco.com
Tell us about your aircraft, mission and recruiting needs. Your message is confidential.