Dear Friends,

Leading Edge Aviation Services continued to celebrate its 20th year anniversary at the 2010 Airline Carriers Purchasing Conference (ACPC). It was good seeing all of our old friends and the new ones we made. For those of you who could not make it, the conference was held the 14th – 17th of August 2010, at the Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance Center. As the last big conference before the end of summer, it was the perfect opportunity to hear first-hand the challenges and opportunities faced by airlines as they conclude their busiest – and most critical time of the year.

And at Leading Edge, we’re listening. We know that minimizing downtime and making a good impression are key elements to your success. We are committed to achieve results above and beyond our customers’ expectations. When we commit to getting a job done on-time and on-budget that is exactly what we do. With State-of-the-art facilities and equipment in California, Texas, and Mississippi, Leading Edge has the industry’s most experienced and highly trained painting professionals.

Can’t come to us? We’ll come to you. This year, our “Away Team” traveled to numerous locations including Florida and Louisiana to serve our customers at their own front doors.

Whether it’s a new coat of paint or a fully refreshed interior, Leading Edge has the capacity, expertise, and drive to help you make the most of your downtime. To find out more about these offerings, please contact us at your convenience. As always, we’re here to help.

For those of you who made it to the (ACPC) conference, it was a pleasure to see you.

Sincerely,
Dave Patterson
Executive Vice President

For more information, click here

World’s Largest Aircraft Painting Company Rolls out the Red Carpet with Exclusive Runway Seating at VIP Chalet

Leading Edge Aviation Services (LEAS), the largest aircraft painting company in the world, is continuing to celebrating its 20th Anniversary milestone with a customer appreciation event at the world-renowned Miramar Air Show in San Diego, CA. To mark the occasion, Leading Edge is rolling out the red carpet for the industry’s biggest VIPs at its exclusive Air Show chalet located right on the Miramar runway.

“Simply put, you won’t find a better view of the Miramar Air Show unless you’re flying in it,” said Mike Manclark, CEO, Leading Edge Aviation Services. “As one of the event’s longest-standing VIP supporters, we’ve got access to the very best seats in the house. It’s an honor to share them with the people, companies, and influencers who’ve made Leading Edge the de facto painting partner of choice for the world’s top airlines.”

Held from October 1-3, 2010 at MCAS Miramar in San Diego, CA, this year’s Miramar Air Show is themed “A Salute to Teamwork”, and features several exciting acts, including the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, the Canadian Snowbirds, fighter aircraft demos, tanks, assault demonstrations and the Red Bull helicopter just to name a few. With the best location available, Leading Edge will entertain guests from around the world, providing its customers with a private flight line chalet, as well as catered food and beverage service.
For more information, please visit www.leadingedgecorp.com/2010miramar

When airlines need their aircraft painted right, and painted fast – they choose Leading Edge. Over the years, we’ve racked up some impressive numbers:

1200
Number of aircraft we’ve painted for Continental and Northwest Airlines

14
Months it took to convert over 350 aircraft from Northwest aircraft to Delta colors

410
Employees it takes to run the largest aircraft painting company in the world

25
Number of days required to re-paint 65 aircraft for Air Wisconsin

21
Years that Leading Edge Aviation Services has been in operation

5000
Number of freshly painted aircraft to emerge from our hangars by 2009

Leading Edge Aviation Services (LEAS), the largest aircraft painting company in the world, announced today that it is joining the Miramar Air Show this October as one of the event’s longest-standing VIP supporters. Having secured chalets at the show since the early 80′s, LEAS has emerged as a regular fixture at the “World’s Best Military Air Show” and one of its longest-standing supporters in history.
“We work hard all year round to serve and support both commercial and military aircraft, so this is a real treat for us,” said Mike Manclark, CEO, LEAS. “This is the one time a year where we and our customers can sit back and actually enjoy aviation and marvel at some of the most technologically-advanced aircraft on the planet. The explosions, flybys and the demonstration of our military’s awesome power is nothing short of breath-taking. We’re proud to support our military at this world-class event, and look forward to continuing our mission to deliver the highest value to the aviation industry.”
Held from October 1-3, 2010 at MCAS Miramar in San Diego, CA, this year’s Miramar Air Show is themed “A Salute to Marine Aviation”, and features several exciting acts, including the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, fighter aircraft demos, tanks, assault demonstrations and the Red Bull helicopter just to name a few. With the best location available, Leading Edge will entertain guests from around the world, providing its customers with a private flight line chalet, as well as catered food and beverage service.
For more information, please visit www.leadingedgecorp.com/2010Miramar

PHOENIX, AZ. When it comes to networking, there’s no event better than MRO Americas. It’s the one time of year when we all come together to talk shop, reconnect with clients and, of course, have a little fun. This year, the desert backdrop of Phoenix played host to one of the more bustling events in recent years, as companies regained their optimism about the economy.

“There was a marked difference in the feel this year, as people gradually shifted from coming just to browse to coming to buy,” said Dave Patterson, Executive Vice President, Leading Edge Aviation Services. “When more people are talking about volcanic ash than they are about the economy, things are definitely looking up.”

Patterson adds that, despite the recession, last year was a good year for Leading Edge due in part to recent mergers. “For us, MRO is just as much about cultivating new business as it is about taking the time to engage with the customers you already have,” says Patterson. “MRO is the perfect opportunity to say thanks to all those people who contribute to your success.”
As in previous years, Leading Edge came up with an ambitious theme to draw in visitors to its booth and create a bit of a splash. This year, Leading Edge “Marshallers” roamed the convention floor “directing traffic” to its booth.

“We like to pay tribute to some of the more unsung heroes of the industry, then add our own little twist to it” adds Patterson. “Last year we tapped into the retro era with PSA-inspired flight attendants. This year it was marshallers. It’s being creative and having a little fun. To me, that’s what the show is all about.”

What was your favorite part about MRO this year?

Aircraft Interiors Program Offers New Savings

Imagine reducing heavy check out-of service days along with your check costs. At a time when margins are tight and profits are hard fought, the offer sounds extremely appealing. Fortunately, there are solutions. Did you know that Leading Edge now offers a comprehensive interiors program in tandem with its painting services? Launched earlier this year, this new service was designed to save customers time and money by optimizing downtime. “We’ve found that with the recession and a number of recent mergers, there’s never been a greater need for this kind of onestop shopping,” said Mike Manclark, CEO of Leading Edge Aviation Services. “Now you can transform your interior while our crews simultaneously transform the exterior. This will translate to significant reductions in out-of-service costs for the airlines.”

The new interior service includes cabin mods and change outs—carpets, fabrics, seatback covers, countertops, overheads, lavatories and more—to give airlines that added sense of polish and professionalism. “With this new service, an airline can have a completely rebranded aircraft in as little as six days, depending on the size of the aircraft,” added Manclark. “That’s inside and out.” At a time when everyone’s fighting for customers, it’s more important than ever to maintain the highest appearance of quality and to protect your image. If you can do all that while minimizing your downtime, reducing heavy check days and taking advantage of lower labor rates, that’s a real value-add for today’s airlines.

MRO Americas – Looking back on MRO

PHOENIX, AZ. When it comes to networking, there’s no event better than MRO Americas. It’s the one time of year when we all come together to talk shop, reconnect with clients and, of course, have a little fun. This year, the desert backdrop of Phoenix played host to one of the more bustling events in recent years, as companies regained their optimism about the economy…. click here to read the entire story.

Leading Edge Aviation Services is a Santa Ana, Calif.-based aviation services company that’s grown over the years as a result of simple mantra: always say yes. “We have built the company on the philosophy of always saying yes to every opportunity that comes up,” explained Mike Manclark, president and CEO. “Even if we don’t know exactly how to do what we’ve been asked, we figure it out, do it, and make sure to exceed all of the expectations that are in place.”

Leading Edge is the world’s . Manclark established the company, which specializes in commercial, private, and military aircraft painting,

“I always wanted to be an airline pilot, so when I was growing up, I came to the airport and started fueling jets for corporate aircraft on the weekends at a relatively young age,” he said. After graduating from high school, Manclark went to college, earning bachelor’s degrees in both aeronautical science and business.

“I was washing and detailing aircraft on weekends at that point,” he continued. “In the early 1980s, auto detailing emerged. People were already washing cars, obviously, but they weren’t really detailing them until that point. I was never interested in cars, so I go into detailing aircraft.”

Before long, Leading Edge took off, and the business began to boom. “The next thing I knew, I was taking care of airplanes for large oil companies, Frank Sinatra, Bob Hope, and almost every other celebrity in the Burbank area who had a private jet,” Manclark said.

McDonnell Douglas, which, at the time, was a major American aerospace manufacturer and defense contractor that produced a number of famous commercial and military aircraft, approached Manclark and his team (the staff consisted of roughly 10 individuals at the time) and asked them to do a KC110 heavy-check maintenance clean.

No one on Manclark’s team knew exactly that meant, but they knew what their answer would be: yes. “We didn’t know exactly what a KC110 was at the time, but we wanted to take advantage of the opportunity, so we said took the job, and I think that’s one of the reasons we’ve been so successful throughout the years. We have always said yes to everything we’ve been asked to do; after accepting a job, we figure it out and get it done,” Manclark explained.

Unsure of what to do, the team at Leading Edge decided to clean and detail everything. The McDonnell Douglas aircraft was a corporate plan—it was huge—but the team treated it like a leer jet.

“We didn’t know what we were supposed to clean, so we cleaned everything,” Manclark said. And it worked out in the end. The team at McDonnell Douglas called him over after they saw the plane and said it was cleaner than when it was originally built. It was a case of overachievement, and it paid off. When the company’s contract was up, they moved to South Carolina and insisted Leading Edge Aviation went with them, which is exactly how Manclark and his team got into that market.

The next step

Soon after, Leading Edge started taking on jobs stripping airplanes, removing paint for maintenance, and from there, its team began to take on paint jobs. One of the biggest breaks its team experienced came unexpectedly when Manclark received surprising news from one of the US’s biggest airlines.

“I was sitting in a hanger one day and wrote up a proposal to United Airlines to see if we could get any paint work from them, not expecting anything too big,” he explained. “Next thing I know I’m being called into a board room in San Francisco and asked to sign a nondisclosure agreement.”

Manclark was only 22 years old at the time of his big break. When he visited the United Airlines corporate offices, he was informed that Leading Edge was chosen to design the company’s new brand image. The biggest catch was that they wanted to release it just 11 days later, at The Superbowl. Up for the challenge, Manclark found a hanger to lease, put together a crew, and took on the job.

“They didn’t know who I was. I never misrepresented myself, but they just assumed I was a manager or something,” Manclark said. “I distinctly remember thinking about how they would feel if they were aware they had assigned such an important project to a 22 year old.”

Today, Leading Edge carries out its painting and fuel system support at four U.S. facilities, in Victorville, Calif.; Amarillo, Texas; Greenville, S.C., and Greenville, Miss. Through a partnership with Malaysia Airlines, the company also has a facility in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia,

Manclark might have felt a bit overwhelmed when he first saw the 747 aircraft being rolled into the hanger he was leasing, but everything worked out well in the end, and risks like this are exactly what have allowed Leading Edge to grow to where it is today. -Ashley McGown www.americanexecutive.com

Download This Article (PDF)

Independence Day. For many, it’s the official kickoff to summer. A sun-filled long weekend jam-packed with barbeques, fireworks and maybe even a blockbuster movie premiere or two.

But to us, the Fourth of July has always been about more than just waving the American flag and eating one too many hotdogs. It’s a time to remember and honor those who serve this country, and a chance to celebrate the proud military tradition that we’ve cultivated here in America.

At Leading Edge, we got our start washing and detailing fighter jets. When we were looking for that one big break to build our business, it was America’s armed forces who gave us that chance. And we’ve been grateful ever since.
Today, we are proud to support a variety of programs that give back to our troops. Whether it’s turkeys on Thanksgiving or toys for Christmas Day, we’re happy to do what we can to help improve the quality of life of those who do so much to ensure ours.

This year also marks the fifth anniversary of our support of the Injured Marine Semper Fi Fund. For those of you who are unfamiliar with the charity, it’s a wonderful organization that provides financial aid and quality of life solutions to Marines when they become injured in post 9/11 combat or training. The charity helps defray the expenses incurred during hospitalization, rehabilitation and recovery; helps with the purchase of specialized equipment, adaptive vehicles and home modifications; and provides education to the public about the special needs of our wounded service members and their families.

We all owe a lot to the men and women of our military. And at Leading Edge, we owe them even more. On this Fourth of July, we thank each and every service man and woman for their part in making America’s what it is today. A place of freedom, and a place of opportunity.