Serendipity
Looking back, the former cotton mill worker finds himself blessed, because he never foresaw himself as a VP in aerospace. “It’s not something I consciously thought about. It sounds cheesy, but I just concentrated on doing the right thing over and over again. That’s just kind of that,” he concludes humbly. “I think my career chose me. If things hadn’t happened the way they did, if my instructor at technical school hadn’t told me about the job openings at Fort Rucker, things wouldn’t have unfolded the way that they did.”
A key to that serendipitous unfolding has been Tyler maintaining an almost spiritual outlook. “I’ve always tried to go the extra mile — and go that extra mile with a good attitude. Whether it’s an employee or customer needing something, I always try to go that extra mile.” He also believes that coworkers sharpen each other. “I’ve been sharpened by some very good people in this business, and I hope that after 38 years, I’ve sharpened a couple myself.” Tyler carefully selects those he works with. “The first thing I look for,” he says, “is I absolutely want people with integrity, people you can trust. I also want someone with a great attitude; someone with a bad attitude can bring everyone down.” When Tyler once hired the wrong person to sharpen, it came back to cut him. “I thought I could reform him. I learned that when someone shows you who they are, you need to believe them. Now, when someone gives me a real reason to dismiss them, I don’t dilly around with it,” he says with hard-learned experience.
Despite that setback, Tyler has had more than his share of success. He says, “At the end of the day, when all is said and done, I think my greatest accomplishment will be the relationships I built. I’ve gotten to know so many different people with something to offer. They’ve all sharpened and shaped me. People are what it’s all about.” In fact, one of the things he enjoys most about being vice president is that his responsibilities have him interact with more customers and potential customers; you know—people. “I get involved more in sales now, which requires talking to people. I love doing that and building those
20 Sep/Oct 2019
relationships,” he happily says. “You know, I absolutely love it. I work 10 to 12 hours a day and I can’t get enough of work.”
Mission Ready and Capable
That’s a good thing because it looks like more work is heading Precision Aircraft Service’s way. “One of the issues that’s facing our industry is government- mandated ADS-B (automatic dependent surveillance-broadcast). Those systems are going to be critical for the next several months. Changing avionics and upgrades is a big opportunity for installs.” These new opportunities do not delete the service company’s traditional work. “Helicopters
don’t break only Monday through Friday, 8:00-5:00. They go 24/7. So we strive to be available 24/7; I think that’s very unique in the Part 145 repair station world. Our customers have my cell phone number and the accountable manager’s cell number. All of us here come from the operator world; we’ve been out in the field and understand aircraft need to be off the ground and in the air. If we have to get out in the field to help them, we hit the road and go to them. We want them to be mission-ready and capable,” says the self-described “servant leader” who built his career on being mission-ready and capable, but also relatable.
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