FAITH OF THE FATHER
However, the elder Stanberry did more than engineering. Having served as a pilot skills to serve in a new way by starting a mission in Honduras. He ferried doctors, dentists, and nurses to bring medical care to those in need. Eventually the mission constructed a nondenominational school in the capital city of Tegucigalpa—a school that still exists. “I’m very proud of what he accomplished,” says Stanberry. “I went on several of those mission trips with my dad, an early age.”
Later in high school, the father’s faith student became active in The Fellowship of Christian Athletes (FCA). “My dad and I of the Dallas Cowboys, Tom Landry, to speak at our FCA banquets. What an absolute gentleman Coach Landry was, and how pro football has changed. If they could all be the gentlemen he was, we’d all be better off.”
Next, Stanberry attended Louisiana State University (LSU) in Baton Rouge. “I started have too much fun, so I switched over to business and got a degree in marketing,” he laughs. After graduation, Stanberry spent a number of years working for what
SERIAL ENTREPRENEUR
An entrepreneurial spark ignited when Stanberry and a church friend went into business together. Their new company Soon the dynamic duo had government contracts from around the state. Both men and cars to travel to job sites wasn’t the idea to buy an Enstrom helicopter and
The Enstrom got so much publicity that the partners bought a Hughes 300 incorporated as Metro Aviation in 1982, the name taken from the base home of the new company, Baton Rouge Metropolitan Airport. Shortly thereafter, Stanberry purchased several aircraft to transport checks needing processing for
a bank. However, before beginning the new service, his prospective bank client was sold to new owners who didn’t think much of “helicopter banking.” It was a painful lesson, says Stanberry. “I got stuck with three aircraft, but no contract and no business. This was the early ‘80s and interest rates at that time were lesson: Always get it in writing.”
Stanberry quickly sold one of the Hughes, their entire corporate belongings into a with Stanberry and a pilot transporting the Hughes out to California, where he had a medical interior kit installed. That newly equipped aircraft would become part of perhaps the most synergistically creative venture in helicopter history.
LIFE EYE 12
In 1983, Stanberry made a deal with a Shreveport hospital and a TV station across the street from it. (The original document was on a cocktail napkin—in writing!) The hospital agreed for Metro Aviation to operate its new HEMS service, cover the Hughes’s missions. The station branded their newscast as Channel 12 Eyewitness News, so Stanberry christened
his helicopter Life Eye 12. There was only one logistical problem with this inspired venture: Once the patient was onboard, there was no room for the videographer. Therefore, the TV employee remained at the landing scene for a ride back, while for broadcast.
This joint electronic newsgathering/HEMS operation worked great for six months until the hospital needed to increase Metro Aviation was ready to grow with operations just progressively moved on down the road,” says Stanberry.
FINDING OPPORTUNITIES
to get into the completion business. The aircraft had come with a beautiful cabinet in the back bulkhead with sliding
Plexiglass doors. However, the cabinet had been designed with the aircraft level; the contents. Furthermore, transported patients kept complaining of back pain. Metro Aviation discovered the culprit was a hidden stretcher restraint.
Geltz, believed they could design better interiors, and thus began their foray into completions. By the ‘90s they were doing that the OEM began calling them “MBB South.” Today, Metro Aviation’s completion business continues to grow, and it all started by turning little problems into big opportunities. It’s something Stanberry loves to do, be it for cabinets or industries. “Everybody I knew told me I was insane for getting into the helicopter business during the early 1980s recession, but I’ve always had a theory that industries in hard times always have opportunities,” he says. “I love it when someone says ‘you can’t do that,’ because there’s always a way to do
LEADERSHIP
things out over the years, including how to manage employees. “I’m not the smartest person in the world but I have a knack professional people with integrity that don’t mind doing the job,” says Stanberry. “The trick is to hire those people and pretty much leave them alone. If you continually question everything they do, then you’re taking away their entrepreneurship and creativity. They feel like they’re in a box and they are afraid that if they get out of the box that they’ll get stomped on. Instead, turn them loose and let them be
Stanberry not only values hard work, but also communication. “I love it when people claim they tried to call me but couldn’t reach me, because I know that person is a liar,” he says with conviction. “Everybody’s got my cell phone number. I’ve always got my phone, and I always take my calls.” He also insists that when people call Metro Aviation that a person answer the phone, not a machine. It’s just good service.
Teamwork is equally valued, and Stanberry illustrates this with another anecdote. “I’m
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