Leenhouts Celebrates Retirement at Sun ’n Fun 2022

The longtime president of the Sun ’n Fun Aerospace Expo had a gala send-off from the aviation family this week.

Julie Boatman

Friday, April 08, 2022 at 05:15 PM ET

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John “Lites” Leenhouts is retiring from his role as president and CEO. [Courtesy: Sun 'n Fun]

Key Takeaways:

John "Lites" Leenhouts retired as president and CEO of Sun 'n Fun Aerospace Expo after nearly 50 years in aviation and over a decade leading the organization.
Gene Conrad, with extensive airport management experience, including as Lakeland Linder International Airport director, succeeded Leenhouts.
Leenhouts' tenure included overseeing the development of the Aerospace Center for Excellence (ACE) and the Ramus SkyLAB Innovation Center.
Both Leenhouts and Conrad expressed confidence in the future success of Sun 'n Fun and ACE under Conrad's leadership.

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Last fall, the Sun ’n Fun Aerospace Expo announced that after the end of the 2022 fly-in and airshow, John “Lites” Leenhouts will retire from his role as president and CEO. With nearly 50 years in the aviation industry, and more than a decade at the helm of the second-largest ongoing airshow in the U.S., Leenhouts will turn the reins over to incoming leader Gene Conrad, who steps up on April 11.

Leenhouts will continue to be an active advocate for both the Aerospace Center for Excellence (ACE) and SNF.