Avionics News December 2013 - 40

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Dave Feuerhak of

ics repair and new aircraft installations. We have five locations,
and I've been at West Star since
October 2005.

What is your background
prior to West Star?

tion
t Star Avia
ak of Wes
ve Feuerh
Da

est Star Aviation Inc. specializes in airframe repair and
maintenance, engine repair
and maintenance, major modifications,
avionics installation and repair, interior
refurbishment, paint, parts, surplus avionics sales, window repair and accessory services. The company also provides
complete fixed base operator services
for transient aircraft at its East Alton,
Ill., Columbia, S.C., and Grand Junction,
Colo., facilities.
Recently, Patricia Luebke, Avionics
News contributor, spoke with Feuerhak
to learn more about his work at West
Star and his life outside the shop.

You're the avionics
manager at West Star.
What does that entail?
I am responsible for the day-to-day
operations of the department for avion40

avionics news

december

2013

With...

I was in the military as an avionics bench technician for an Army
Aviation Special Operations unit.
Then, I then worked at Jet Corp.
in Chesterfield, Mo. I went to the
military right out of high school,
and I had an affinity for electronics. I loved it and went to avionics
school in the Army. At one point in
my career, I wanted to be an electrical engineer. But being young,
I thought school would take too
long, so I didn't pursue it. It was
a long road to get my bachelor's
degree in business management
from Liberty University. It's a challenge going to school when working
and having a family, but my family
was very supportive and helped me
through it.

What's a typical
day for you?
I coordinate with my team and
check on the status of various projects to make sure there are no
catastrophes or anything they need
help with. I communicate with customers to make sure their expectations and what we're doing matches. I review pending quotes. I also
review upcoming projects and transition those into the work process.

West Star Aviation

What do you like best
about your job?
I enjoy the employees - they are
top notch. They're the reason West
Star has grown so fast to become
a world class MRO. They are my
friends and family.

What's the
corporate culture
like at West Star?
The team on the floor
is like one big family. They
really work together and
recognize when one person
is struggling. If someone
makes a phone call and is
frantic, everyone steps up to
help. It's amazing what can
get done. I've worked other
places and in the military,
worked in groups from all
over. The Midwest work
ethic makes for one of the
hardest working groups. Not
to belittle anyone else, but in
the Midwest, we have the old
farm boy mentality - up at 4
a.m. and in bed at 10 p.m.

How is business?
Very good, very busy. The company has grown dramatically, picked
up the pace from 2008 and 2009, and
covered the loss from those years.
We've just added another hangar and
brought on more talented individuals.

Avionics News December 2013

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Avionics News December 2013