Mike Dennis Jude Dennis - Oregon Aero

The Story Of Oregon Aero, Inc.
In some ways, the story of Oregon Aero, Inc. began in 1989 because of a
headache — a headache that Jude Dennis (Oregon Aero vice president)
experienced whenever she flew with husband Mike Dennis (Oregon Aero
founder, president and CEO).
Mike set out to tackle Jude’s headache problem. After a great deal of
research, thinking, and experimentation, he created the SoftTop ® Headset
Cushion from leather and sheepskin wool.
The SoftTop ® Headset Cushion worked. Jude’s headaches disappeared, and
Mike and Jude began selling the Cushions at local fly-ins.
Customer feedback was positive, and Mike continued to improve the
SoftTop ® Headset Cushion and add custom designs for various headset
models. Dozens of Headset Cushions were piled high on the kitchen table as
they were sewn by hand; bolts of leather and other materials filled the garage.
From this beginning grew a company which today is the leader in
engineering and manufacturing advanced seating systems for aviation and
other industries. The company also offers a broad range of additional
products and holds dozens of patents.
MAKING AND TESTING — Mike Dennis, in his den,
1990, makes SoftTop ® Headset Cushions and tests
newly designed ear seals which became Oregon Aero ®
SoftSeal ® Ear Cushions.
Even so, the focus remains on the same issues addressed in 1989 with the SoftTop ® Headset Cushion — making the
interface between the human body and manufactured hardware pain-free, safer and quieter.
But even so, the beginning of the story goes back much further than 1989.
In designing products and leading Oregon Aero, Mike Dennis does what he has always loved to do — solve problems
by thinking about them in new ways.
“Most of the time when we solve a problem, it’s because we’ve turned the problem upside down and not accepted
traditional assumptions,” says Mike. That way of thinking led to the development of pain-free, safer seating and headgear
and the hundreds of other products he’s designed.
Mike always has been fascinated with airplanes, boats and machines. He comes by his fascination and design skills
honestly. His maternal grandfather, Ronald Young of Poulsbo, Washington, designed and built the first automobile ever
to appear on the Kitsap Peninsula, around 1914. Ronald Young also designed and built boats by hand, notably the
beautiful wooden Poulsbo boat from 1918-1965. Poulsbo boat owners still treasure their craft, which can be found in the
waters of the Pacific Northwest and elsewhere.
In some ways, it started with
a headache. But it goes back
further than that.
STARTING YOUNG —
Mike Dennis was always
fascinated with planes,
boats, and machines. In his
front yard with model
airplanes at age 16 when
this photo was taken,
Mike already was taking
flying lessons.
THE POULSBO BOAT — Ronald Young, Mike Dennis’ maternal
grandfather, prepares to deliver two unpainted Poulsbo outboard
skiffs, around 1950. Young designed and built these craft by
hand. Many of his Poulsbo Boats can still be found in the waters
of the Pacific Northwest.
LOVE OF EXPERIMENTATION — Ronald Young experimented
with various outboard designs, reversing the traditional
tumblehome of the outboard and allowing the lines to flare
outward along the sheer. He also tinkered with an inboard well for
outboard power, building the well adjacent to the keel. This love
of experimentation and looking at designs in a different way has
carried through to Mike Dennis and Oregon Aero.
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New Ways of Thinking to Solve Old Problems ®