to the management team at Bermuda International Airport.

Mr. Nelson, 30, has been named understudy to air operations manager Mr. John Williams.

Transport Minister the Hon. Wayne Furbert said yesterday that Mr. Nelson will likely take over from Mr. Williams in the next three to five years.

Mr. Williams is part of a management team from YVR of Vancouver, Canada which is in Bermuda under contract. It also includes general manager Mr. Jack Gordon and financial comproller Ms Donna Grapko.

A new Bermudian terminal manager and an understudy to Ms Grapko will be named soon, Mr. Furbert said. There are no immediate plans to name an understudy to Mr. Gordon, as it is possible a Bermudian from a lower management tier will eventually take his job, he said.

Mr. Nelson told The Royal Gazette yesterday he had dreamed of working in aviation since was about ten years old. But until the recent departure of the US Navy which ran the Airport, he held out little hope of pursuing his career on the Island.

"When I first came back here in 1994, I approached every aviation enterprise,'' Mr. Nelson said. "Civil Aviation, BAS, and all the airlines.

"That was at the peak of the recession and there was just no hiring.'' But he knew there would be more opportunities once the Navy left.

"This new venture has created great opportunities for Bermudians,'' Mr.

Furbert said.

Mr. Nelson, the son of Mr. Ivan Nelson and Mrs. Vilma Nelson, has a degree in aeronautical studies from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. There, his studies included courses in airport management, development, and operations.

He is also a graduate of the Moncton Flight Centre in New Brunswick, where he was awarded the John Webster Trophy as the top commercial pilot.

In Bermuda, he attended Warwick Academy and Bermuda College.

Holding Canadian and Federal Aviation Administration commercial pilot licences, Mr. Nelson was a pilot with Miami-based Gulfstream International Airlines. He is also a certified flight instructor.

He has also worked as a management trainee and project administrator with the Bank of Bermuda, and as a management consultant.

A member of Big Brothers and Big Sisters of Bermuda, Mr. Nelson is single. He enjoys flying, tennis, and home computing in his spare time.

Earlier, Bermudian Mr. Marshall Minors was named manager of maintenance engineering.