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David Mast Marks 25 Years as CEO and President of Precision Aviation Group


In the world of high-speed turnover in


the executive suites of many


companies, large or small, David Mast stands out as a model of sustained leadership amid accelerated strategic growth. June 2021 marked his 25th year as the CEO and president of Precision Aviation Group Inc., headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, with award- winning aviation support operations on three continents. Mast’s colleagues, partners, employees, and friends recently threw a surprise party for him called “A Celebration of Leadership.”


David Mast’s CEO success story for two and one-half decades started small. In 1996 when he first took charge, revenues were just $250,000. Back then, PAG had 14 employees. Today, PAG has 402 personnel and projected revenues for 2021 are $260 million. One might ask: How does a CEO transform a company by 1,000 times its previous size? To quote another aviation CEO who served on PAG’s Board for 12 years: “It’s not as easy as David Mast makes it look!”


A graduate of Georgia Tech with a degree in industrial management, Mast’s early career included experiences in sales, finance, and operations management with companies such as AT&T and First Financial Management Corp. His journey with PAG began as inventory manager,


then sales manager,


advancing to vice president – Sales & Marketing, and then a promotion on his merits and contributions to president 25 years ago. By 1999, just three years into his CEO tenure, PAG was named to the “INC. 500” as one of the fastest-growing companies in America.


In 1996, Mast took the risk and “bet on himself and the people of PAG” that he could grow the business far more aggressively. When the company “leapt forward” to $14 million revenues, Mast recants the story of creating a five-year roadmap: “How shall we build


to


$50 million or more in less than 60 months?” Indeed, that’s exactly what happened.


To keep building the business, Mast knew he needed a bigger gas tank and more fuel for the PAG engine. He adroitly negotiated with not just one, but three successive private equity investor groups, in roughly five-year series each, to vault PAG forward. Some of Mast’s strongest admirers are those huge institutional


shareholders who


consider PAG to be a “home-run” investment. With his current round of capitalization, Mast is intent on taking PAG to record-high growth and value creation. He has laser focus on advancing the brand, the business, the careers of his people, and of course the shareholder value of PAG.


David Mast is often quoted in the press as an expert voice in


the


industry. “We want to be a better company every day,” he said. “That’s in terms of employer of choice; that’s in terms of efficiency, being good stewards, and a growing, successful business. And part of that philosophy is really focusing on how do we better serve our customers.”


Quoting a former board member of PAG, “David Mast is known as a brilliant, fair, sometimes tough-minded leader, and a highly accomplished business-builder. He is also known as a great boss by those who know him well. It is tangibly evident in the positive spirit and superior performance of the PAG organization. Mast has fostered a long-term high performance culture.”


30 July/Aug 2021


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