AerSale’s Barimo Brings Leadership, Technical Expertise to ARSA Presidency

WASHINGTON – The Aeronautical Repair Station Association’s (ARSA) board of directors has announced the election of its new president: Basil Barimo, chief operating officer of AerSale, an international aviation sales and services company based in Coral Gables, Florida. The selection was made during the board’s annual meeting, which followed the 2017 Strategic Leadership Conference in Washington, D.C.

Barimo launched his aviation career in 1987 as an aerospace engineer with McDonnell Douglas before serving in a range of leadership roles with U.S. Airways and then AvBorne Heavy Maintenance. He is personally familiar with the role of aviation trade associations, having worked with airlines and American regulators to shape industry policy as vice president of operations and safety at the Air Transport Association (now Airlines for America). He first joined ARSA’s board when working for the NORDAM Group, where he was executive vice president, repair group prior to accepting the COO position at AerSale in 2017.

ARSA’s board of directors represents a broad range of international maintenance interests. Board members direct the association’s work to best serve the aviation community. Barimo most-recently served as ARSA vice president before moving into the association’s top volunteer leadership position. As an executive for AerSale, a global leader in aftermarket aircraft, material and manger services, he will bring both his professional perspective and technical experience to bear on ARSA’s work in 2018. Warner Calvo, 2017 present and director of quality and safety at Coopesa, R.L, will remain on the board as a representative of international members.

“The maintenance industry is changing,” Barimo said. “Markets are growing, technolgy is advancing and our workforce is evolving. While these changes produce new challenges for my colleagues and I, they also reinforce the core importance of ARSA’s role. No matter who our customers are, what equipment we have or who’s doing the work, we need to engage together on behalf of the industry. I’m eager to help lead that work for the next year.”

During the meeting, Dave Latimer, vice president of regulatory compliance for HAECO Americas, was elected vice president and Ian Cheyne, chief technical and regulatory officer of Dallas Airmotive, became treasurer. Barimo, Latimer and Cheyne will each serve one year terms. 

ARSA is the only association devoted to the unique needs of the global civil aviation maintenance industry. It is committed to helping member companies operate more efficiently and effectively, while continuing to ensure the safety of aircraft worldwide. To learn more about the association’s dedicated work on behalf of both industry stakeholders and the flying public, please visit ARSA.org.