General Manager

General Manager

Location: Santa Monica, California. On-site.
Reports to: Co-Founder (based in Colorado)
Compensation: $125K base + up to 40% performance-based bonus (linearly scaled off operating profit; uncapped upside above target). On-target total comp ~$200K. Equity available in the right circumstances.
Start date: Immediate

---

About the Client

The company is a veteran-owned general aviation maintenance business. It launched in 2025 with a greenfield hangar in Southern California and made its first acquisition in early 2026, taking over a well-established GA maintenance shop in Colorado Springs with a long local operating history. The company has an active acquisition pipeline and expects to add at least one additional location by the end of 2026. The core business is piston and turboprop aircraft maintenance, repair, and upgrades. The Colorado Springs location has a unique special-mission systems integration capability, installing advanced sensor payloads and integrating holistic aircraft systems in platforms ranging from small turboprops through light and medium jets. The company also operates a special-operations aircraft fleet composed of piston and turboprop aircraft, doing contracted work for both government and civilian entities. They are bootstrapped, growing fast, and building a business they intend to operate for a long time.

About the Role

The Colorado Springs shop the company acquired brings a strong local reputation and a real customer base to work with. The task is to take full P&L ownership of the location, grow it materially through both civilian GA and government/subcontracting special-mission integration work, and become the operator around whom the rest of the roll-up is built. This is a Location GM seat with a clear path to Regional and Corporate leadership as the business scales. They are actively pursuing additional acquisitions, and the right person here will be positioned to take on more.

Responsibilities

P&L

• Full accountability for revenue, gross margin, and operating profit at the Colorado Springs location
• Weekly and monthly financial management: cash, receivables, working capital, vendor terms
• Pricing discipline across GA maintenance, avionics upgrades, and government subcontract work

Operations

• Day-to-day management of the shop: technicians, avionics engineers, scheduling, quality control, and customer intake
• FAA compliance and accountable-manager-adjacent program administration
• Safety and airworthiness culture; the standard for how the shop works on customer aircraft
• Customer service: being the face of the business to drive reputation, retention, and growth

Business Development

• Grow the civilian GA customer base: direct customers, partner referrals, and repeat business
• Pursue government and prime-contractor subcontracting opportunities for the company's special-mission integration capabilities
• Identify and vet local partnerships, sub-tier vendors, and expansion opportunities

Team

• Hire and develop middle management under the accountable manager
• Recruit and retain A&P mechanics, avionics technicians, and apprentices in a competitive labor market
• Set standards, run performance conversations, and make the hard calls when needed

Requirements

Must-Haves

We are looking for someone who fits one of two paths:

• A recently transitioned military officer with aviation exposure (maintenance experience preferred; pilot-with-maintenance-adjacency works). Comfortable stepping into a P&L for the first time and hungry to earn scope.
• A recent graduate of a top-50 MBA program looking for real P&L ownership. Likely with pre-MBA operations, consulting, or banking reps. Aviation background is a strong plus; deep passion for aviation is a must.

Either way, you should be:

• Comfortable with a significant performance-based incentive structure. Bonus is uncapped and tied directly to what you deliver
• An operator, not a consultant. You'll be on the shop floor, in the customer conversation, and in the financials the same week
• Bootstrapped-company-appropriate: builder mindset, comfortable making decisions with imperfect information, allergic to bureaucracy
• Willing to live in or relocate to Colorado Springs (we're helpful on relo, this seat is on-site)
• Someone whose work ethic and character we and our customers will be proud of

Nice-to-Haves

• Prior FBO, MRO, or aviation-services P&L experience
• A&P certification, FAA experience, or a pilot certificate
• Prior government contracting exposure (FAR/DFARS, prime-sub relationships)
• Experience with post-acquisition integration or turnaround work (the company is on a roll-up path)

What We're Not Looking For

• Career strategy consultants who want to keep advising instead of running
• Candidates seeking corporate-scale infrastructure, guaranteed hours, or a low-variability comp package. This is a founder-adjacent seat and it will feel like one

This role reports directly to one of the co-founders. Sitreps Talent is running the search on the company's behalf. Sitreps is the leading community of veterans in business in the U.S., and we are ready to move quickly for the right person.