Nikki Higgins: 2025 Business Aviation Top 40 Under 40

Nikki Higgins, Sales Director, was recently recognized as one of the honorees for NBAA’s 2025 Business Aviation Top 40 Under 40. This accolade recognizes a new generation of innovative thinkers who are challenging norms and breaking barriers to shape the future of the business aviation industry.  

We sat down with Nikki to learn more about her journey at Jet Aviation and the experiences that have shaped this career milestone.  

Tell us about your journey into Jet Aviation. What inspired you to join the industry?

My journey into Jet Aviation is one and the same with my journey into aviation in general.

My grandfather was a fighter pilot, my mom was a flight attendant, and the rest of my family is in real estate. My dad always had aspirational thoughts of me going to the Air Force Academy, but I think attending college at San Diego State University was a little more my speed. I graduated as a business major with an emphasis in marketing. While there, I studied abroad at Oxford University for international policy in the UK.  

Although I always loved aircraft, and used to go see the Blue Angels with my dad in El Toro, I had never dreamt my career would be in aviation. I started with Avjet Corporation in Burbank, California, in 2010, which was eventually purchased by Jet Aviation. I have overall worked in aviation for 15 years, nearly 10 of those being with my Jet Aviation family.  

Why Jet Aviation?  

Jet Aviation is one of the leading companies in the industry, and I feel honored to work with such a passionate team. I have worked in charter roles, VP of owner service roles and aircraft management, so I truly know how important a great team and company is to support our clients with their aircraft journey.

Having the support and infrastructure of Jet Aviation makes us who we are. As a global business aviation company with some 50 locations worldwide and four complementary lines of business, we can support our clients with charter, FBO, MRO, staffing, management, completions and more, wherever they are in the world.  

Having this background allows us to have experts in all areas of the business. We have team members with decades of experience. If an owner is dealing with a challenge, while I may not have experienced the situation myself, I can guarantee someone on my team not only has one but numerous solutions to it.

“Having this background allows us to have experts in all areas of the business. We have team members with decades of experience. If an owner is dealing with a challenge, while I may not have experienced the situation myself, I can guarantee someone on my team not only has one but numerous solutions to it.”

How has your role evolved? What decisions led to where your career is today?  

I started my aviation journey as a Charter Coordinator out of Burbank working as a scheduler in the office next to the studios and bustling lights of Hollywood. My role would later evolve into VIP Client Relations to charter, and now aircraft management.  

During the start of my career, I moved from Orange County to Los Angeles not truly knowing much about the industry, but having graduated in 2008, I had interviewed at Avjet (which Jet Aviation would soon acquire). During this time, they did not have an open role for me, but there was something about being in those old hangars that drew me in, so I kept reaching out to my soon-to-be colleagues with follow ups. Eventually a scheduling role opened in which I would be assigned to specific owners’ aircraft and handle them.  

I still can remember the blue and yellow folders that differentiated between Part 135 and Part 91. These were the printed-out pages of email correspondence and trip details that we would pass to our on-call night shift colleagues. I remember the game of everyone on their computers together to get slots into Aspen on the holidays; the website without fail crashing every year due to overload; the giant board we had that we redid every month with the schedule — and would be horrified if someone accidentally rubbed against and erased some of it; or best yet, the floss we used on the globe when looking at great circle routing.  

Tell us about your current role.

I am currently the director of aircraft management sales for the west, so anything within the Rockies and westward, I cover. I feel so lucky to have the clients we have and be able to interact with people that are shaping and changing the world.  

Aircraft management is all encompassing. You are managing one of a client’s most important and valuable assets, so every detail of that operation must be seamless – crew recruitment, hiring, training, maintenance and flight planning, scheduling, finding hangars for the aircraft, negotiating on the client’s behalf, insurance, financial planning, ensuring compliance, etc.

I find that I am able to pull from my prior experiences in other lines of business, as it does require knowledge about all aspects of aviation to speak to principals’ aircraft management. A huge benefit to me of Jet Aviation is being able to tell the principals I may not always have the answer, but I know someone else here who does and who is the expert, and then I can always tag in a chief pilot, VP of operations or an expert in their field.

I want to make sure that the aircraft ownership experience is seamless for our clients, and that starts at the beginning — by embodying our values and commitment to an effortless customer experience. Whether this is their first aircraft or their 10th, a new delivery or a pre-owned aircraft – our onboarding team works diligently behind the scenes to get the client going and set up for success.  

It is also important for me to build a relationship from that very first moment. You are hopefully with this person from this aircraft throughout their aviation journey. Whether that means they upgrade their aircraft, they add onto their fleet, or even if they decide to sell their aircraft – you are there to help them every step of the way. You see them through some of the most important moments in their life, and they utilize their aircraft to facilitate and get to those milestones.  

What I love about my job is that truly no two days are the same in business aviation. It comes with its set of challenges, but I love being tested.

“I want to make sure that the aircraft ownership experience is seamless for our clients, and that starts at the beginning — by embodying our values and commitment to an effortless customer experience.”

What has been the most memorable moments over your career?

I feel like it’s hard to say the most memorable, but I can name some that stand out as amazing opportunities and experiences:

— Bringing a Hawker over to Europe from Southern California

— Meeting all of the amazing people along the way and to see where their careers and personal lives took them

— Having the opportunity to meet some of my clients in person and learn more about the ways in which the aircraft would be enriching their lives

— All of the amazing events with industry colleagues

— The amazing opportunities that have come from meeting and working with industry colleagues and clients.

What does it mean to you to be in this year’s NBAA Business Aviation Top 40 Under 40?

To me, being nominated for the NBAA Business Aviation Top 40 Under 40 is such an honor, and it is so humbling.

This recognition showcases those from all various parts of the industry that have made an impact on other people, and sometimes I pinch myself to think I am amongst those people. My fellow nominees really reflect an incredible and inspiring array of talent.  

It has also allowed me to reflect on the relationships I have built – not only with clients, but with colleagues. There can be long hours and tough moments, as in any role, but feeling this warmth and connection makes it all worth it!  

I also would not be in this position without the Jet Aviation team. I feel very lucky to have such amazing colleagues; I have people that I look up to and view as mentors due to their extensive knowledge, skillset, and experience, and I now feel fortunate to be able to mentor the next generation of business aviation professionals.  

This award celebrates the next generation of leaders in our evolving industry. How do you incorporate innovative, forward-thinking ideas into your day-to-day role?

I think it comes from always being hungry to learn. Throughout my career so far, I have been keen to volunteer for new situations, roles or responsibilities. I am always willing to learn new things and always looking for creative ideas, or ways in which we could do things differently, by listening to clients (principals, owners, charter clients) and by listening to colleagues as well.  

For me, innovation is also about being solution oriented. Challenges often present opportunities if we look at them in a different way. Always speak with internal teams, listen to their feedback along with clients, and then strategize together and present new ideas and ways in which we can be proactive.

What is one piece of advice or insight you’d like to share with the younger generation in this industry?

I would love to tell the younger generation to just get out there.

Get involved in any local aviation group or committee, volunteer, or go speak to high schools or colleges and talk about what a cool industry this is. These are your people, and we are such a tight knit, small community. You don’t realize until years later when someone you met along the way may be your next opportunity, or they may be representing your client, or a client you are trying to bring onboard.  

Bond with your colleagues and go do things with them outside of work as well. I also believe that having a support system in the industry is so important, of course within your company, but also outside of it. I am truly grateful to those who have given me support and encouragement along the way.  

Thank you, Nikki, for sharing your story. Join us in congratulating Nikki on this incredible achievement!