Some knowledge comes from formal education, some from hands-on experience, and some from mentors. Put all three together and you have Geoffrey Pence, Twin Commander Aircraft’s technical guru.
Pence will soon celebrate 20 years with Twin Commander Aircraft, but being a sought-after technical advisor for the factory is only his most recent role with the airplane. He’s spent a career maintaining, mentoring, and advising on all matters mechanical and technical for Twin Commanders, including piston, turboprop, and turbojet models.
In his current role with Twin Commander Aircraft Pence serves as a primary technical resource for the service centers. When a technician has a question about a system, repair, or modification, Pence is the guy who helps. Sometimes he relies on memory and past experience, sometimes he consults original drawings and technical publications.
Pence also serves as Twin Commander Aircraft’s on-site accident investigator, helping the NTSB find the cause of major incidents and accidents. “Thankfully that’s been slow lately,” he said.
As the point man on technical issues, Pence knows his ability to solve and diagnose problems is integral to the reputation of the airplane. “You don’t want pilots sitting around a pilot’s longue bad-mouthing your product,” he said.
Such experienced and knowledgeable resources are valuable to a legacy product, especially when documentation can be long lost, or may have never existed. Even the parts system now includes references to Pence’s tribal knowledge. Some entries simply say, “Geoffrey said so.”
Pence doesn’t have a particularly strong connection to any one model, although he does admit a bit of a soft spot for the 690C and 695. In 1980 he was selected to be the technician when Rockwell conducted its first Asian sales tour with a 695. For long overwater legs he would take out the interior, store it in the baggage hold, and fill the cabin with three 125-gallon fuel tanks. “I always had a warm spot for the 695 because of that trip,” he said.
The Twin Commander is “a natural fit for me,” Pence said. He loved the big-airplane feel when first moving up from working on single-engine aircraft, and he said the airplane is straightforward and pleasing to maintain. “I’ve just enjoyed what I’ve done and what I’m doing,” he said. That’s good news for service centers and Twin Commander owners everywhere.
