Airshare announced today the hiring of two veteran leaders. David Makowski, former Chief Operating Officer at Elliott Aviation, is now Airshare’s Senior Vice President of Maintenance; Nick Kaufman, most recently Vice President of Aircraft Acquisitions at Ventura Air Services, has also joined the company as Vice President of Sales for the West Coast region.
David Makowski, Senior Vice President of Maintenance
Makowski offers a wealth of aviation maintenance experience to Airshare. He has served in several prominent maintenance positions throughout his career, including 25 years at Delta Airlines, 10 years at NetJets and six years at Gama/Wheels Up.
Makowski enters a newly created role at Airshare, where he will oversee maintenance for both aircraft management and the company’s fractional program.
The position was necessary due to Airshare’s continued strategic growth, including the nationwide expansion of its fractional ownership and EMBARK jet card solutions.
Makowski will report to Alex Franz, President, Fractional Operations, and KC Ihlefeld, President, Aircraft Management.
Makowski said: “With Airshare established as one of the largest private aviation operators, I believe the company is well positioned to significantly grow our maintenance capabilities.
“I look forward to contributing my expertise and experience to the immensely talented group of maintenance professionals we have across all our bases.”
Franz said: “David’s background is a perfect fit for what we envisioned in this role.
“Our fleet has increased significantly so we felt it was the ideal time to reorganize the structure within our maintenance department. We are very confident Dave will make an immediate impact.”
Nick Kaufman, Vice President of Sales (West Coast Region)
Kaufman is a seasoned industry West Coast sales veteran, joining Airshare with impressive experience in selling fractional programs. He previously served as Senior Vice President of Sales for Wheels Up, Director of West Coast Sales for Cessna Citation Air and California Sales Director for Flight Options (now Flexjet). Kaufman will report to Dylan Haynie, Chief Revenue Officer.
Kaufman said: “When Airshare announced the national expansion of its fractional program, I was immediately interested in pursuing an opportunity to represent the brand on the West Coast.
“Fractional customers in this region are going to love the efficiency and flexibility associated with our program, as well as the experience of flying in the Phenom 300 and Challenger 3500 aircraft.”
Haynie said: “Nick has proven to be exceptional at selling private aviation services on the West Coast, and he will be an outstanding addition to our sales team.
“He will represent the Airshare brand extremely well as we offer our fractional program to markets in this territory for the first time.”