George Ervin “Sonny” Perdue III has flown airplanes since 1967. The former governor of Georgia and immediate past U.S. Secretary of Agriculture, who now serves as chancellor of the University System of Georgia, likes flying “because it’s functional and fun.” However, he says, “I don’t fly just for fun. It has to be functional and transportive in a way that gets you more efficiently and effectively to different places.”

It was that fun and functionality that helped Perdue to win his race for governor of Georgia and contributed to his legacy of economic prosperity in the state.

Perdue was born on Dec. 20, 1946, in Perry, Georgia, and grew up on a farm in Bonaire, an unincorporated community about 15 miles away. His father, George Jr., was a farmer while his mother, Ophie, was a schoolteacher.

Perdue attributes his interest in flying to watching his neighbor land an aerial applicator aircraft on the flat highway in front of his family home. In 1967, when Perdue was 21, that neighbor became his first flight instructor. His early lessons came on a hand-prop plane with only basic gauges in the cockpit: RPM, altitude and a compass. This gave him what he calls “good seat of the pants” flying experience. Perdue has been flying ever since.

While a student at the University of Georgia Veterinary School in Athens, Perdue and his roommate bought a Piper J-5 Cub. Perdue would often fly the Cub from Athens back to his home where he would land it on the highway in front of his family house. After graduation, Perdue was commissioned into the United States Air Force. He was then stationed at Columbus Air Force Base in Ohio where he was the base veterinarian. Once there, he took flight training, and though he never flew militarily, he obtained his commercial instrument, multi-engine and flight instructor ratings.

In 1972, while still serving in the Air Force, Perdue married Mary Ruff, his sweetheart of four years. The couple would eventually have four children, Leigh, Lara, Jim and Dan, two of whom are now also pilots. He describes Mary as a “very comfortable flyer” and credits her comfort to keeping his nerves calm in the air.

Perdue left the Air Force in 1974 and worked briefly as a veterinarian in Raleigh, North Carolina, before returning to Georgia. He became an entrepreneur and started two successful businesses. In 1990, he decided to run for the Georgia State Senate. He was elected and began his service to the state in 1991. He served in the Georgia Senate until the end of 2001 when he began his campaign for the governorship of Georgia. His love of flying would play a big role in his campaign.

At the start of his gubernatorial campaign, Perdue obtained a Bellanca Super Viking aircraft. He would fly the Bellanca across the state to meet constituents and learn about their concerns and needs face-to-face. As he traveled around the state, he gained an appreciation for Georgia’s aviation network and took note of the many small, regional airports he visited. Perdue credits his flying in the Bellanca as being crucial to his winning the election. He won the election, having only raised $3 million, to his opponent’s $25 million. He jokes that the effort made the Bellanca worth $22 million.

As governor, Sonny Perdue was able to make a real impact on aviation in Georgia. Early in his tenure, he noticed that the state had King Air aircrafts, so he went to flight safety school and earned certification to fly them. He would copilot the crafts, which was another fun but functional activity. He saved the state the cost of a copilot and learned the essence of crew resource management. Toward the end of his second term, he also achieved his rotary license and became a helicopter pilot.

Perdue recognized a vital component of economic development in Georgia would include upgrading and improving rural Georgia airports. In the early 21st century, corporate aviation was becoming a preferred method of travel for time-compressed business and industry decision-makers. He also knew from his campaign trail flights that many of the state’s rural airports lacked the necessary infrastructure to adequately accommodate the growing requirements of these business leaders.

Perdue’s administration used funds from the state’s OneGeorgia Rural Development Program to invest in the state’s regional airports. In July 2006, Perdue launched a competitive grant program for local communities called the Airport Initiative in Rural Georgia or AIRGeorgia. The program’s goal was to extend rural airport runways to 5,000 feet and place every Georgian within a 30-minute drive of an airport capable of serving 85% of the corporate fleet. The initial budget for this program was $15 million.

From 2006 to 2011, Perdue’s leadership saw the AIRGeorgia Program awarded almost $28 million. These funds supported 18 rural airport improvements and runway extensions to the desired 5,000 feet. As of 2024, 82% of Georgia’s airports now have runways 5,000 feet or longer. He also directed more than $6 million of OneGeorgia’s Equity Fund be used to update and modernize airport terminal buildings at 13 rural airports. He likes to use the example of the Thomasville airport, which draws people from all over the country for hunting and other activities. His efforts saw this airport change from a “little cinder block building” to something that could welcome people properly and present a hospitable front door to both in-state and out-of-state visitors.

These improvements have enhanced air accessibility to rural Georgia and led to increased economic development. In addition, these efforts resulted in connecting rural Georgia to the regional, national and global economy. The impact has been profound: Area Development magazine has recognized Georgia as the #1 state in which to do business for over a decade.

After two terms as governor, Perdue continued to serve his state and country. He sat on the Governor’s Council of the Bipartisan Policy Committee (2012-2017) and was confirmed as U.S. Secretary of Agriculture (2017-2021). In 2022, he was named as chancellor of the University System of Georgia, the position he holds today.