Brian Lansburgh

Brian Lansburgh is the founder of The Tailwheeler’s Journal. He was previously Sunriver Soaring’s manager and pilot and ran the Sunriver Airport for a while.

Before coming to Central Oregon, Brian was a pilot for L3 Wescam, a job that kept him flying camera planes all over the US and Canada. His duties for Wescam ranged from providing aerial coverage of Monday Night Football to serving as a surrogate Predator UAV during war games at the Naval Air Station in Fallon, Nevada. He honed his flying skill during fourteen years as a comedy stunt pilot in the air show business. It was comedy flying which launched him into precision airmanship flight instruction. Local pilots would often ask for some help after seeing him fly his comedy routine. Eventually those sessions became formalized into what are now the Tailwheel Endorsement course and the Stick and Rudder Master Class offered at "Tailwheel Town" in Sisters, Oregon.

The flight instruction at Tailwheel town works because of how Brian teaches the maneuvers. Maneuvers like Slaloms and Landing in a Turn require that the pilot really control the airplane when it’s both flying and touching the ground. Most pilots are just going for a ride during the landing experience. Tailwheel Town pilots are placing the aircraft exactly where they want it and are maintaining precise control during this phase of flight. At altitude, maneuvers like Alternating Sideslips, Sky Doodles and Dead Stick flight help the pilot advance far beyond simple coordination of the airplane. And, very importantly, Brian’s philosophy that a flight instructor must teach and protect frees pilots to practice these unusual, challenging and fun maneuvers without once placing themselves in jeopardy.

Brian was raised in the film business with a screenwriter mother and a director father. His experience in both aviation and film production have served him well, not only with an Academy Award Nomination for his film, “Dawn Flight”, but most recently with video projects that serve the Tailwheeler’s Journal as well as a small group of clients.

If asked what accomplishments he’s most proud of, Brian would probably list the Oscar Nomination, the development of Glider Rides at Sunriver and winning the team roping at the Wickenburg Arizona all-girl rodeo.