Premier Private Jets Announces Expanded Senior Management to Lead Growth

Premier Private Jets, a Florida-based, national provider of business aviation services, announced its expanded leadership team as it prepares to launch a wider menu of offerings.

“We’ve grown this company methodically and prudently for eleven years, becoming a trusted charter provider,” said Josh Birmingham, Founder and CEO. “Now we are ready to take the company to the next level, and we have put in place an exceptional team to lead this growth.”

Birmingham, a 15,000-hour pilot and entrepreneur, founded the company in 2013, drawing on his extensive charter experience to build a fleet of company-owned light, midsize, and large jets. He also built a strong in-house maintenance capability to ensure reliable, on-time, and economical service to clients.

Last month, Premier Private Jets announced acquiring the MRO operations of Stevens Aerospace & Defense in Dayton, Ohio, as well as its FBO. Premier operates the MRO (its third repair station) under the name Premier Aviation Services DAY and the FBO as Premier Jet Services.

 “We are strongly oriented to provide a better value,” said Birmingham, “putting private aviation within reach of companies and individuals that may be new to business aviation.”

 Introducing the leadership team

To manage a growing network of planes, services, MRO bases, and FBOs, Birmingham has put in place an expanded leadership team.

Steve O’Neill, who founded and led CitationAir, a fractional and jet card provider, for over 12 years, has been providing advisory services for the past year. He works closely with Birmingham to guide strategic planning. O’Neill started his career on Wall Street at Salomon Brothers and co-founded National Healthcare Resources, a large medical cost containment company.

Jeff Lee has been promoted to Chief Operating Officer after serving for seven years as Premier’s VP of Operations and playing an essential role in the company’s growth to date. Jeff keeps the planes running on time and everyone focuses on a uniformly high standard of service, as well as overseeing all facets of the company.

Joanne Aquilina has joined as CFO. A CPA and MBA, she brings extensive financial management skills from the healthcare industry. She was previously VP of Finance and CFO for Bethesda Hospital, part of Baptist Health South Florida, and then Bethesda’s COO before joining Premier Private Jets.

John O’Neill has joined as SVP of Operations, bringing invaluable experience in multiple aspects of flight operations. He most recently served as VP, of Charter Operations at Private Jet Services Group and before that as the company’s VP of Operations and Client Services. He served for 15 years at CitationAir, 10 of them as SVP, Operational Planning, helping to grow that company.

 Darren Blackett is Premier Private Jets’ new VP of Sales. He is a former Senior Director of Sales at Skyshare where he created customized programs for clients involving multiple types of business aircraft. He created similarly tailored programs for customers while serving as VP of Sales at Airshare.

 Kyle Eiserer is VP of FBOs. Premier currently operates FBOs in Waterford, Michigan near Detroit and in Dayton, Ohio. Kyle has 15 years of experience helping FBOs grow their businesses. He’s an ATP pilot. In 2018, NBAA named him among business aviation’s top 40 under 40.

 Ron Jennings joined this year as VP of Sales-MRO. He was previously SVP of Business Development at C&L Aviation Group in Bangor, Maine. Over more than six years there he also served as VP of Sales and as a regional sales manager. In addition, he has held sales positions at King Aerospace and Constant Aviation.

 Steve Purvis was appointed VP of Maintenance in February, moving up from Director of Maintenance, his role at Premier for the past two years. Previously, he led service activities on a wide range of aircraft as Director of Maintenance at Michiana Aircraft Service and Travel Management Company.

 “I am extremely proud of the leadership team we have assembled,” said Birmingham, “but I would be remiss in not recognizing the more than 150 members of our organization:  experienced pilots, maintenance technicians, customer service representatives, and other professionals who give their all to meet the needs of our customers. This is truly a team sport, and we have an all-star team.”