Karlene Petitt is a retired Delta Air Lines captain who is an author that writes in multiple genres to include legal writings. She is type-rated on the A350, A330, B777, B747-400, B747-200, B767, B757, B737 and B727 aircraft. Captain Petitt has written training manuals, designed the first ever FAA approved AQP program for a three-person crew at NWA, has written entire airline training programs, LOEs, study guides and has re-written Boeing QRH manuals for various airlines and has been FAA and CAA certified as an instructor and/or designated examiner on the B747, B767, B757, B737 and B727 aircraft. She has instructed as a ground instructor, simulator instructor and line instructor, in addition to being a check airman.

Petitt has worked for Delta, Northwest Airlines, Braniff, Evergreen, Coastal Airways, America West, Guyana, Tower Air, Prem Air, and Boeing as a contracted Human Factors expert. She holds PhD, MBA, and MHS degrees, is a speaker, and currently working as an Aviation Safety Expert, both independently and through Aero Consulting Experts (ACE), and as an aviation legal assistant. She is the mother of three, grandmother of eight, and has been married to Dick Petitt since 1982. They enjoy time in Seattle on Angle Lake, Belfair on Hood Canal and in Palm Desert, on the Sun City Golf course. She is working on improving her golf game.