As the Technical Support Specialist for COO, I am often asked, "Where should I take my plane for annuals, maintenance, etc." Obviously I cannot vouch for every maintenance facility in the country, so I need your help. Tell me where you have, or have had, your work done. Give me pros, cons and any other details that I can share with other members in need of guidance.
In the near future we hope to compile a list of preferred maintenance facilities for our members. We want this list to contain facilities that are reputable and care about their customers, so we have to do our homework. Any and all input would be greatly appreciated.
You may post your experiences here, or feel free to e-mail me or give me a call.
If you are in Michigan I highly recommend Koehler Aviation in Cadillac (CAD) Wexford County airport. He is a cessna guy and he is very good to everyone I've talked to. He has done my last 7 annuals and is now rebuilding my 172 after a tornado trashed it in Oct. Steve
In East Texas, David Bogan Aviation on Cherokee County Airport (KJSO). This man had deep, deep, Cessna experience and is as fair and honest as anyone I have ever encountered in the maintenance field. I am the Chief of Police in Jacksonville and am very wary of recommending anyone for anything, but not David. He is good and can be trusted.
I own a small aircraft maintenance facility in SW Washington State. I mostly work on 100 series Cessnas and fabric covered Pipers. It's just me and another A&P mechanic working out of a 40' X 60' hangar. The real advantage to useing me is I can advice you from a pilots perspective. I am a highly experienced pilot with over 15,000 hrs. Mostly as a bush pilot in Alaska.
I also offer pre-buy inpections and pilot ferry services. Particularly between Alaska and the lower 48.
definition from FAR 1.1:
"with respect to maintenance time records, means the time from the moment the aircraft leaves the surface of the earth until it touches it at the next point of landing".
I live in the Dallas/Fort Worth area where there are numerous A&P facilities, including several Cessna Service Centers, but last year I flew out to Jackson, Tennessee, where Paul New at Tennessee Aircraft Services performed my annual and completed a Service Bulletin (now an AD) on the seats.
I was very impressed with Paul's operation. They are very friendly (as opposed to some of the local facilities) and did excellent work for a very reasonable price. I was also allowed to help out on the annual maintenance.
Needless to say, I'm already on the schedule for another annual this year.
