St. Louis, Missouri, December 15, 2009 – After serving as a member of Midcoast Aviation’s senior management team for 22 years – longer than anyone else in the company’s history – Gary Driggers will retire effective December 31, 2009. As senior vice president, Gary is currently responsible for managing key customer and vendor relationships and is the company’s face to industry organizations and OEMs.
Gary Driggers started his illustrious career in aviation when he served his country as a helicopter pilot during the Vietnam War. Before he joined Midcoast Aviation in 1988, Gary had been a client of the St. Louis-based MRO and completions center for many years. He also served the industry as chairman of the board of the National Air Transportation Association (NATA). Now, after 22 years with Midcoast Aviation, Gary has announced his retirement from the company, effective December 31, 2009. During his tenure, where he served Midcoast in various senior management functions, the company grew from 100 to 1,500 employees.
“Gary personifies the spirit of Midcoast Aviation,” said Midcoast President Don Petersen. “He has been instrumental in the growth of Midcoast from a small organization to its industry-leading MRO and completions status today. He will be missed and we thank Gary for his dedication to Midcoast, its employees and its customers,” said Petersen. “His contribution here has been significant and it is appreciated. We wish him all the best.”
Midcoast Aviation, an affiliate of the Jet Aviation Group of Companies, is a full-service AS9100-certified aircraft maintenance, modifications and completions provider. The company employs more than 1,500 people at the St. Louis Downtown Airport and its Savannah, Ga., locations. Just recently, the company announced that it will rename the Savannah based MRO and completions center “Midcoast Aviation”, effective January 1, 2010. The Midcoast operations have in-house design and engineering departments, along with on-site cabinetry, upholstery, composite, avionics, sheet metal and paint shops. Midcoast Aviation is a Dassault Falcon, Bombardier and Embraer authorized service center and also a Hawker and Gulfstream center of expertise. For more information, visit www.midcoastaviation.com.Jet Aviation, a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), was founded in Switzerland in 1967 and is one of the leading business aviation services companies in the world. Close to 5,700 employees cater to client needs from over 25 airport facilities throughout Europe, the Middle East, Asia and North and South America. The company provides maintenance, completions and refurbishment, engineering, fixed base operations, along with aircraft management, charter services, aircraft sales and personnel services. Jet Aviation's European and U.S. aircraft management and charter divisions jointly operate a fleet of more than 200 aircraft. For more information, please visit www.jetaviation.com.
