Professional Aircraft Management – Priester Aviation’s Approach

Rich Ropp, President of Priester Aviation discusses Professional Aircraft Management – the services it includes and their potential value to the aircraft’s owner. The discussion includes:

• Defining Professional Aircraft Management.
• The various services available through Professional Aircraft Management and their potential value to the owner.
• Does aircraft management make sense for any aircraft size?
• The kinds of Fees associated with Aircraft Management services.
• What are the questions a potential aircraft owner should ask any firm they are considering?
• Does a management company’s location relative to the operator’s home base matter?

About Rich Ropp

Rich Ropp serves as President and comes to Priester with 30+ years of industry experience in aircraft management and aviation sales. Ropp opened the base location in his native St. Louis for Jet Linx Aviation. In addition to serving as the company’s Base President of St. Louis, he was responsible for leading its growth as Vice President of Business Development and Aircraft Management Sales. Ropp also served as National Sales Director at Jet Aviation, where he was the single point of contact for major clients and flight departments to the global platform of services. His experience includes driving aircraft management and jet card membership, as well as developing and executing strategic plans, and building up teams.

Over the past several years, he was instated as President for the Greater St. Louis Business Aviation Association (GSLBAA) and as a Board of Directors Member for Wings of Hope in Chesterfield, Missouri. He was a member of NBAA’s Schedulers and Dispatchers Committee for six years and involved with organizations such as Special Olympics and the Children’s Miracle Network. He is an active member of Calvary Church and served as a small group leader, greeter, and Sunday school teacher in the children’s ministry. Additionally, he was a coach for a fourth-grade girls’ basketball team through CYC. He always finds time for family, is a daily runner, loves to cook, prefers to be outdoors whenever possible, and absolutely loves to travel.

About Priester Aviation

Celebrating its 77th anniversary, Priester Aviation is among the world’s elite private aircraft operators, specializing in aircraft management and private travel solutions. Founded by George Priester in 1945, Priester started as a flight training school that eventually evolved into the private aviation services company that it is today. It was a simple proposition at first, to provide a platform to educate and demonstrate the practices of a progressing industry that would eventually integrate itself into the lives of on-the-go business and leisure travelers alike.

Today, Priester is positioned as one of the most experienced private aviation companies with a fleet of advanced business jets that are strategically located throughout the world, allowing clients maximum flexibility and value. Priester Aviation holds the highest safety accreditations including the ARGUS Platinum rating, Wyvern approval, IS-BAO Stage III and Air Charter Safety Foundation certifications.