by admin on Dec 14, 2011, under Leading Edge Aviation News
From everyone at Leading Edge we want to wish a Merry Christmas to All and to All a Good Flight!
About Leading Edge Services
Headquartered in Costa Mesa, California, with facilities across the United States, Leading Edge Aviation Services, Inc. has one of the most advanced, commercial aircraft services companies in the world. Specializing in commercial and military aircraft painting, the company also provides a wide range of commercial services, including fuel system servicing, mod-center support, contract labor, line-turn maintenance, composite and sheet metal, long and short term aircraft storage, field audits, fleet assessments, interior deep cleaning, and strip and painting services to various branches of the United States Military. For more information, visit our web site.
by admin on Jun 6, 2011, under Uncategorized
For those of you who made it to the Regional Airline Association (RAA) conference, it was a pleasure to see you. As the last big conference before summer, it was the perfect opportunity to hear first-hand the challenges and opportunities faced by airlines as they come head-to-head with 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. Most recently our Victorville facility has added a new 747 Hangar giving us the largest commercial aircraft painting capacity in the country; we’re the only facility nationwide that can accommodate five wide bodies at a time! We’re also the only aircraft painting company in the world with an AS-9110 certification program.
We’re thrilled you could make time to see us at RAA, and thank you for your continued business and support. Click here to view a few of our favorite moments, or take a look to see what you missed.
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 summer. To find out more information, please contact us at your convenience. As always, we’re here to help.
by admin on May 4, 2011, under Uncategorized
Mike Manclark, CEO, Leading Edge Aviation Services
Leading Edge Aviation Services, the world’s largest commercial aircraft painting company, announced that it’s CEO, Mike Manclark is a semi-finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year 2011 Award. According to Ernst & Young LLP, the awards program recognizes entrepreneurs who demonstrate excellence and extraordinary success in such areas as innovation, financial performance, and personal commitment to their businesses and communities. Manclark was selected as a semi-finalist by a panel of independent judges. Award winners will be announced at a special gala event on June 11 at the Hyatt Regency in Huntington Beach.
Manclark started the company over 20 years ago as a small aircraft detailing business at John Wayne Airport. Since then, he’s grown the company into the largest commercial aircraft painting company in the world with over 1300 employees from coast-to-coast that service over 600 aircraft a year. Today, no company paints more aircraft for more airlines than Leading Edge.
“Orange County has always been a hotbed of entrepreneurial spirit, so to be recognized amongst the area’s many successes is a real honor,” said Manclark. “This is a great place to live, work, and do business, and we’re thrilled to be a part of it. We thank the judges for their consideration, and look forward to participating in the awards gala this summer.”
The Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year awards program celebrates its 25th anniversary this year. The program has expanded to recognize business leaders in over 140 cities and over 50 countries throughout the world.
Regional award winners are eligible for consideration for the Ernst & Young LLP Entrepreneur Of The Year national program. Award winners in several national categories, as well as the overall national Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year award winner, will be announced at the annual awards gala in Palm Springs, California on November 12, 2011. The awards are the culminating event of the Ernst & Young Strategic Growth Forum, the nation’s most prestigious gathering of high-growth, market-leading companies, and is held from November 9-13, 2011.
About Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year® Awards Program
Ernst & Young’s Entrepreneur Of The Year® is the world’s most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs. The award makes a difference through the unique way it encourages entrepreneurial activity among those with potential and recognizes the contribution of people who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement. As the first and only truly global award of its kind, Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year® celebrates those who are building and leading successful, growing and dynamic businesses, recognizing them through regional, national and global awards programs in more than 135 cities in 50 countries.
Ernst & Young refers to the global organization of member firms of Ernst & Young Global Limited, each of which is a separate legal entity. Ernst & Young LLP is a client-serving member firm of Ernst & Young Global Limited located in the U.S.
by admin on Jan 18, 2011, under Uncategorized
If there’s one thing I’ve learned in business, it’s that you have to spend money to make money. At Leading Edge, we’ve spent the past 20 years investing in new infrastructure, state-of-the-art equipment, increasing our capacity nationwide, and building long-term partnerships with the world’s top airlines.
Two decades later, as the industry enters a new era of consolidation; that strategy is paying off. Like us, our partners know that realizing the true value of a merger means not just revamping their name, but the entire look of their aircraft. And nobody has painted more aircraft for more airlines than Leading Edge.
In the past few years, we’ve shown the world that we’ve got what it takes to respond to even the most challenging projects and demanding timelines.
Case in point – in 2010 we completed a staggering 350 aircraft in just 14 months for the new Northwest/Delta merger. That’s 350 on top of the hundreds more we paint each year for other airlines, the military, and special one-off projects like the F/A-18 Hornet flown by the U.S. Navy’s Blue Angels, now housed at the San Diego Air & Space Museum.
So how are we making all this happen? It’s been a steady combination of efficiency and growth. In Amarillo, we’re adding 100 new positions to beef up capacity, we just opened a remodeled hangar that handles even bigger aircraft, and we’re opening a new regional headquarters to keep things on track.
In California, we added over 100 positions to our Victorville facility which now operates around the clock, 365 days a year. And to attract and keep talent, we’re working with the city to launch a new home-buyer’s program to get employees into new homes faster than ever before.
Down south in Mississippi, we’ve inked a long-term deal to lease a new hanger and have purchased a new commercial building located across the street from the future site of a new federal building. The new building will have a restaurant, bar and a number of amenities to service the company’s growing workforce in the Greenville community.
And for those customers who are better serviced at their own hangars, we launched a highly-skilled away-team or “A-Team” that brings our world-class painting service right to their door.
As a result of these investments, Leading Edge 2009 and 2010 have been the biggest years yet for Leading Edge. Volume is up. Revenues are up. But most importantly, spirits are up as Leading Edge continues to raise the industry bar in terms of performance, service and excellence.
The truth is, no aircraft painting company has ever enjoyed the capacity and flexibility and reliability provided by Leading Edge.
As we move into 2011, it is with great pleasure that use this capacity to help customers like United and Continental ease the transition of their newly-formed partnership. We’ve been working with the airlines for nearly ten years. And over the next 30 months, we’ll see more than 350 aircraft emerging from our hangars with United’s new livery. On behalf of everyone at Leading Edge, we thank United and Continental for their continued business, and look forward to working with them in the months and years ahead.
Sincerely,
Mike Manclark.
About Leading Edge Aviation Services
Headquartered in Santa Ana, Calif., with facilities across the United States, Leading Edge Aviation Services, Inc. is one of the most advanced, commercial aircraft services companies in the world. Specializing in commercial, private, and military aircraft painting, the company also provides a wide range of commercial services, including complete interior refurbishments fuel system servicing, mod-center support, contract labor, line-turn maintenance, composite and sheet metal, long and short term aircraft storage, field audits, fleet assessments, interior deep cleaning, and strip and painting services to various branches of the United States Military. For more information, click here.
by admin on Jan 12, 2011, under Uncategorized
Over the past few years, few stories have captured headlines quite like mergers and acquisitions, and 2010 is no exception. This year, United and Continental made history when they merged to become the biggest force in commercial aviation, both at home and around the world.
The massive merger displaced Delta’s position as number one, a title it held for just two years when it teamed up with Northwest Airlines to leapfrog past American Airlines and United.
Now, in a case of déjà-vous, United and No. 4 Continental banded together to usurp Delta-Northwest, reclaiming the throne as industry leader in terms of size. The new carrier will take United’s name, but will sport a paint scheme that looks much like Continental’s pre-merger design.
The deal closed on Oct. 1, but it will still be quite a while before the two carriers really begin to function as a single carrier. For now, United and Continental continue to fly under their own brand and operating certificates, while companies like Leading Edge begin the long-term process of transforming hundreds of aircraft with a unified paint scheme.
So how long will the new United Airlines be able to hold the top spot? No one knows for sure. But in an era ripe with consolidation, only time will tell.
About Leading Edge Aviation Services
Headquartered in Santa Ana, CA with facilities across the United States, Leading Edge Aviation Services, Inc. is one of the most advanced, commercial aircraft services companies in the world. Specializing in commercial, private, and military aircraft painting, the company also provides a wide range of commercial services, including fuel system, mod-center support, contract labor, line-turn maintenance, composite and sheet metal, long and short-term aircraft storage, field audits, fleet assessments, interior deep cleaning, and strip and painting services to various branches of the United States Military. For more information, click here
