Matt Quick
Age: 37
Associate
Coffman Associates
- Alma Mater: University of Central Missouri – B.S. Aviation Technology 2001; M.S. Aviation Safety 2002
- Fun fact about myself: I’m outnumbered 5 to 1 in my household (a wife and 4 daughters)
- Favorite book: Crazy Love by Francis Chan
- Favorite TV show: Shark Tank
- Favorite movie: Remember the Titans
- Favorite hobbies: Hiking and Hunting
For Matt Quick, it all started with the movie “Planes, Trains and Automobiles” when he was a child. “After watching that movie, I started out loving trains, then moved to planes and it stuck,” he said. “When I took my first flight in a small airplane as a teenager I was excited.”
As Quick considered colleges, he spoke to a U.S. Air Force recruiter to join the ROTC program so he could learn how to fly. “But my eyesight at the time wasn’t good enough, so I went into my university’s aviation program. I did become a pilot,” he said. “But I took an airport design and planning course and that catapulted me into doing what I do now.”
As an airport planner, Quick enjoys the opportunity to work with many airports. “We all know the saying ‘if you’ve seen one airport, you’ve seen one airport.’ It’s great for me to be a part of that and see just how different airports are,” he said.
A constant stream of new rules and regulations mandated for airports are hurting their ability to thrive as business entities, said Quick. “These mandates are expensive to implement. Emphasis needs to be placed on giving airports financial help to implement these mandates,” he said. “Airports are businesses and need to be run like businesses. I’d like to see FAA and airports work together to not only implement these mandates, but also come up with funding for them so airports can thrive.”
In aviation, it’s all about the relationships that people build, said Quick. “Aviation is a tight-knit industry. Once you get in it, it goes beyond just the work component,” he said. “At a young age, I was fortunate enough to have people mentor me on ins and outs of industry. I hope to pass that along via the relationships I’ve built.”
