You may or may not have heard of the term “servant leadership.”
Earlier this month, King Aerospace issued a news release saying that as 2024 begins, the company stands poised to continue its mission of servant leadership to VVIP, government and military clients. Based in Addison Texas, King Aerospace is an international aircraft modification and maintenance support provider.
Aircraft Maintenance Technology followed up with company Chairman and Founder Jerry King. We began by asking about the company’s mission.
What is servant leadership and what does that have to do with aircraft maintenance?
King: “Servant leadership is about serving God, country and family. Our customers entrust us with their aircraft and their safety. That means making sure all the bolts are on securely, the torque wrench is calibrated, and all the tools are accounted for. It does cause me to have 'conscious paranoia' to make sure that we're doing our very best at all times, even if that comes at our own expense. There can be no shortcuts when serving those who have trusted us.”
How do would you describe 2023?
King: "2023 was a year with lots of challenges for King Aerospace but also some great new opportunities. Through it all, I remain incredibly proud – and suitably humbled – by how our team joins together through both triumph and adversity to fulfill our most important duty: providing superior service to our valued customers.”
Can you give us a couple examples of challenges that you faced in 2023? And, how did you address these challenges?
King: “We had a few, including a major modification program that the customer opted to cancel due to no fault of our own. We’ve also had to deal with the sundowning of the U.S. Army’s SEMA (special electronic mission aircraft) fleet, because those airplanes have served their purpose, and that fleet has been replaced with different aircraft flying a different profile.
“We also had another contract moved to a 'small, disadvantaged' business that does more than a billion dollars in revenue a year. That occurred shortly after we had been honored for our performance on that same contract. On a more personal level, one of our employees was seriously injured in a non-aviation accident, and I spent the first six days of the Israel-Hamas war in Israel.
“To overcome challenges, and to keep our focus on opportunities, I keep my servant's heart. It’s having faith and commitment to things greater than self. That means touching lives and making a difference. It's about creating jobs for families. It's about taking care of the people in uniform, and it's about taking care of Americans - not Republicans, not Democrats. All Americans. It's that unity that will keep us going.”
New Hires?
To help grow the business, King Aerospace in 2023 added two industry veterans.
Pete Schneider, who has an extensive background in aircraft modifications and completions, is vice president, program development and special projects. This is a new position at King Aerospace. Schneider started his career at Boeing, then went on to Greenpoint [Technologies] where he managed and was involved in the C-32 and the C-40 program. He then went back to Boeing, and he worked on the next-generation presidential aircraft.
King: “We can benefit from that background of modifications, government-type programs and the MRO environment.”
Bob Blanchard, whose career with U.S. Customs and Border Protection, and National Air Security Operations spans three decades, is King Aerospace's vice president, business development focusing on government contracts and special projects.
Blanchard brings more than 20 years of experience in air and marine operations for U.S. Customs and Border Protection to the role. He understands the military and the unique needs of those special ops environments.
In addition, Keith Weaver was promoted to vice president of business development for both commercial operations, working primarily with Boeing Business Jets and some special ops modifications and MRO, and on military contracts.
King: “Keith has been with King Aerospace since 1999, so it made sense to have him oversee both sides of our business. Keith knows our values and principles, and he shares them with both companies to make sure that we live what we profess.
“These new hires and promotions further reinforce the company's offerings and capabilities to government and private clients and help position the company for what promises to be an exciting future.”
"King Kulture"?
The year also provided several opportunities to demonstrate “King Kulture” to its customers. Dozens of guests were welcomed for the opening of two new King Aerospace hangars at Northwest Arkansas National Airport (XNA) near Bentonville. Later in the year, the facility welcomed its first Boeing BBJ, which traveled more than 7,000 miles for maintenance and refurbishment by King Aerospace.
You mentioned two new hangars. What’s the best way to describe the size of King Aerospace?
King: "We have over 300,000 square feet in our hangars, and we probably have over 100,000 square feet of shop space throughout our different locations. But our size is really the size at which we can deliver what we promise and where we feel that we're touching lives and making a difference. That's what counts, not the size of the hangars or our revenues. When you go after pursuing touching more lives, the revenues and the satisfaction come with it."
Other Highlights from 2023?
Other highlights include the second annual King Aerospace BBJ Operators Forum and a productive experience at NBAA Business Aviation Convention & Exhibition (NBAA-BACE.)
King: "I’ve never had a more productive show in 40+ years of attending NBAA," said King. "We had a ton of presidential fleet people there and lots of BBJ customers there. We even had our competition at our booth."
How would you describe your goals for 2024 and what challenges might stand in the way of meeting these goals?
King: “Our goals are to make a difference and deliver what we promise. What that means for maintenance, modifications or interiors is growing in all those areas as we touch lives and earn a fair profit. The primary challenge we face in meeting those goals comes back to finding people who not only are technically competent, but also who embrace our values and principles as a company. Our 'why' is to make a difference.
“I'll quote Andy Grove, who was the former CEO of some big companies [including Intel.] He said that 'bad companies are destroyed by crisis. Good companies survive them. Great companies are improved by them.' I'd like to think that whatever challenges we face will help drive us to be a great company, to live what we profess about service greater than self, but people that you can depend on, that we live up to our cornerstone principles and our values, and our mission about making a positive difference, earning a fair profit.”
