Denise Wilson, CAM
Aviator. Entrepreneur. Author. Aircraft Advisor.
Denise Wilson is an aviation entrepreneur, professional pilot, author, and aircraft acquisition and sales advisor. She is the founder and president of The Jet Agent, an aircraft brokerage and advisory firm specializing in the acquisition and sale of private jets.
With approximately 9,000 hours of flight experience and eight aircraft type ratings, Denise has spent her career at the intersection of aviation operations, aircraft ownership, and business.
Denise Wilson, CAM
Aviation Experience
Denise’s aviation career spans airline, charter, corporate, aircraft management, and business aviation operations. She has served as a captain, chief pilot, and check airman and holds an Airline Transport Pilot certificate with eight type ratings.
Her operational experience includes extensive time in Citation aircraft as well as experience in Hawker and Challenger aircraft.
Denise is also an NBAA Certified Aviation Manager (CAM) and previously served on the Certified Aviation Manager Governing Board.
Entrepreneur
Denise founded Desert Jet in 2007 and built the company into a group of aviation businesses encompassing aircraft acquisitions and sales, aircraft charter, management, maintenance, and FBO services.
After leaving Desert Jet, Denise continued her work in aircraft sales and acquisitions before founding The Jet Agent, where she advises private aircraft owners and buyers through aircraft acquisitions, sales, valuations, negotiations, pre-purchase inspections, and transaction closings.
Today, her particular area of expertise is the Citation family of business jets, informed by both transactional experience and years of operating Citation aircraft as a professional pilot.
Author
Denise is the author of The Insider’s Guide to Buying and Selling Jets, a practical guide created to help aircraft buyers and owners navigate the complexities of private aircraft transactions and make better-informed decisions. Drawing on her experience as a professional pilot, aircraft operator, entrepreneur, and transaction advisor, the book provides an insider’s perspective on the acquisition and sale process.
Denise is also a contributing author to The Business Aviation Book: Achieving Operational Excellence, an industry resource for business aviation professionals. She authored Chapter 19, “Aircraft Transactions,” providing guidance on the considerations, strategies, and processes involved in buying and selling business aircraft.
She has also developed a series of Citation Aircraft Buyer Guides, providing prospective owners with model-specific information and practical insight into evaluating Citation aircraft. The guides combine aircraft specifications and capabilities with ownership considerations, market perspective, and the transaction experience gained from representing buyers and sellers of Citation jets.
Together, Denise’s books, buyer guides, articles, and other educational resources reflect a central focus of her career: helping aircraft owners and buyers make better-informed decisions about acquiring, operating, and selling business aircraft.
Industry Leadership
Throughout her career, Denise has been active in the business aviation community as an entrepreneur, pilot, speaker, author, and industry advocate.
Her aviation background and business experience have been featured by organizations and publications including the National Business Aviation Association (NBAA), Aviation International News, Forbes, National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA), and other aviation media and industry organizations.
Denise Wilson
The Jet Agent
Denise is the founder and president of The Jet Agent, where she works with aircraft owners and buyers throughout the United States and internationally.
The firm’s work encompasses aircraft acquisitions, aircraft sales, market analysis, valuations, transaction strategy, contract and inspection support, and aircraft ownership transitions.
The Insider's Guide to Buying and Selling Jets
Buying or selling a private jet involves considerably more than agreeing on a price. Denise wrote The Insider’s Guide to Buying and Selling Jets to give aircraft owners and buyers a clearer understanding of the market, negotiation, inspection, documentation, and closing issues that can determine the outcome of a transaction.
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