COO Lisa Arinwine Keeps the Legacy of F & E Aircraft Maintenance Flying High

By DONNA BALANCIA

Lisa Arinwine is the COO of F and E Aircraft Maintenance, which she has piloted since the company founder, her husband Everett Arinwine, passed away in 2010. Today, business is flying high.

Everett founded and built F and E Aircraft Maintenance up from a small aircraft line maintenance company in 1994 into a renowned multi-million dollar corporation. After Everett’s untimely death, the LA-based company carried on as a preferred provider of aircraft line maintenance services at Los Angeles International Airport.

F and E Aircraft Maintenance has a long list of clients and customers whose aircraft have been under the careful eye of the company for many years. The company is proud of its elite classifications as a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certified FAR 145 and EASA Repair Station, Woman Owned Small Business (WOSB) and Minority Business Enterprise (MBE).

In addition to leading an important aviation company, Lisa Arinwine’s mission is to guide young people. She is the founder of Girls In Flight For Tomorrow Foundation. The GIFT Foundation lights a spark in young women and encourages and helps them to strive for and attain positions within the aerospace and aviation industries.

A diverse crew at F and E – Arinwine photo

Lisa Arinwine sat down for an interview with SCANN.news to inspire and to give an update.

DB: Lisa, what has been the secret to building such a successful company?

LA: Customers have many choices, so we are grateful to our customers for entrusting F and E to service such valuable aircraft assets. At F and E, it’s not just about gaining new customers, but we actually look forward to showing off our expertise and quality performance. We don’t just gain new customers, we create partnerships that that evolve into meaningful relationships or what we call “our friends in aviation.”

DB: How do you procure new business? Does word of mouth play a role today?

LA: Absolutely, word of mouth plays a major role. We’ve been in business for over 25 years so our name is recognizable and aviation is a small world so they’ve heard of us, our background, who we are, our capabilities, our unique story and most important, our staying power!

DB: What would Everett say about how the company has grown?

LA: Everett would be so proud of our accomplishments, our ability to obtain the new certifications and our ability to keep things moving in the direction that he envisioned for F and E.

LA: Everett always said that he wanted to “amaze the customer”

DB: What is the best way to retain customers today?

LA: Transparency, accountability and constant communication.

DB: It’s great that you are inspiring young women to get into aviation careers. Tell us about the GIFT Foundation.

LA: I founded the GIFT foundation because I saw a void that needed to be filled. There were too many women — and minorities in general — missing from the professional, mechanical and upper-level management and ownership sector of aviation. Being a Black woman in aviation and seeing the lack of women and diversity in aviation, I wanted to use my voice to share, educate and empower others about the myriad of career opportunities and the possibilities in this field. The next time someone asks ‘What do you want to be when you grow up?’ we can hear more girls and women with answers such as “I want to be an aircraft maintenance technician” or “I want to be a pilot” and even: “I want to own an Aircraft Repair Station!”

DB: Does your HR department have any special hiring initiatives in place?

LA: In the past, we had close relationships with various community colleges that provide the A&P Certification; however, as we matured a company, we decided to seek more mature applicants and now we focus on military airforce veterans and that seems to be a better fit.

DB: How has Covid impacted business and what are precautions people in aviation can take?

LA: Covid-19 has changed the direction of aviation for years to come. There has been a great impact on the aviation community and it has taken out some large carriers. We’re forging a path forward by doing our part and working hard to make the transition as seamless as possible for everyone within our reach affected by this global disaster.

As a company, we have pledged to lend a hand by not wasting any opportunity to help our aviation friends affected by this world-wide emergency. The world is in active combat against Covid-19, realizing it will be a long time before folks will begin to feel safe socially and because of this.

The rise and demand for cargo and supplies to ship globally continues to grow at a dramatic pace, resulting in increased maintenance schedules and we’re glad to be here to help. We’re certainly optimistic that our economy will rebound as we embrace recovery and a new normal.