From left to right: Larry Mates, Mike Bell and Dave Stine National Flight Services is fortunate to have a bevy of highly experienced professionals working in every department.
Larry Mates, the company’s operations manager, is practically a newbie by National standards. He started in 2004 as an airframe mechanic, although that’s not where he thought he would end up. Mates was at an aviation college pursuing a professional pilot degree when 9/11 happened, and anyone who worked in aviation at that time will remember how quickly flying jobs disappeared. He returned to the Toldeo area and a friend helped get him in the door at National. Five years later he transferred to the sales department, then became the FBO manager, and then operations manager in 2016. He has daily oversight of the business and said it’s a joy to watch the company grow and move in a positive direction.
Customer Relations Manager Dave Stine has a bit more tenure, having started in 1991. “It was a co-op from Bowling Green State University and I’m still co-opping,” he joked. Stine worked his way through the component shop, the parts department, and finally into customer relations, where he is the liaison between owners and the engine shop. “I like answering questions and enlightening the customer,” he said.
Among the community of Twin Commander technicians, few are as respected for their expertise as Mike Bell, the shop manager who started at National in 1986. Bell is a Navy veteran who worked on the A-6 for four years. He started at National Flight as soon as he got out. The people keep him coming back. “The people I work with is the best part of the job,” he said. And new owner Herb Harvey has improved the culture even more. “The new ownership has completely changed the look of this company and has brought in some of the top talent in the industry who are dedicated to not only safety but pride in the quality of work presented to the customer,” he said.
