David Murphy has always had a love of airplanes for as long as he can remember. Maybe that is why after working line service for about eight years and leaving the industry to work with Porsche race cars, he returned to aviation full time about five years ago when he earned his A&P through on the job training.
Murphy has attended all of the Cirrus Aircraft factory training on both the SR and SF50 models, advanced composite repair, Garmin avionics training, and most recently, completed flight safety training for the Gulfstream G280 & advanced troubleshooting.
“I wish I had an entire department of Dave’s,” exclaimed Derek Green, VP of Performance Flight’s Jet Division. “His enthusiasm, drive, skill and thirst for customer service is unparalleled in my 35-plus years in aviation."
Every certification class Murphy has attended, he has brought back superlatives, Green notes. After attending his FJ33/44 class the instructor said Murphy was a “stellar student.” The Cirrus Vision Jet class earned him, “One of the best students I’ve ever seen.” The G280 school earned him the highest accolade yet; he was the only student in his Gulfstream 280 class to score perfect scores on all his tests, earning him the highest average.
On the job, the excellence continues, explains Green. “As our Cirrus Jet lead technician, Dave earned immediate credibility with the manufacturer,” Green said. “He has been given access and clearance to do service on jets only granted to full jet service center facilities. His troubleshooting ability has amazed even the manufacturer. He has solved problems alluding even the most senior technicians. I personally watched him fix a grounded aircraft that would not start. Nobody could figure out the cause. Based on the symptoms, he gathered the parts and equipment he thought was needed and we flew him to the location. Dave’s hunch was right. He fixed a problem that usually took two hours by most experienced mechanics, in a mere hour and a half. In doing so, he saved that particular mission and allowed a larger event to occur worth millions to the owner.”
He is often the first into the hangar and the last to leave, notes Green. “Because of his proven performance and reputation, our clients often go directly to him because of his extremely impressive responsiveness,” Green stated. "As his ultimate supervisor, I am often amazed with his recall when we discuss even the smallest details. If he doesn’t know the answer ... He simply says, ‘I’ll get that answer for you.’ And in short order, I have the detailed and accurate answer that is explained so that even the most unaware lay person can understand. Dave has become my go-to resource, even on topics [to which] he has never been introduced, because of his level of research and ability to communicate.”
