Meghan Brock, Vice President & General Manager – Trace Aviation
PAG COMPONENT SERVICES
When Meghan Brock graduated with a BA in Anthropology from Millsaps College, she had little interest in going into business and decided to teach English in China for a year. It was 2005, and the year before her father, Mike Pigott and his company Trace Aviation, had just been approved for an FAA Repair Station license.
Mike had grown up around aviation and was a pilot and A&P mechanic. He had a comprehensive view concerning what operators and mechanics need to return grounded aircraft to the air. He liked working on Beechcraft King Air and had installed landing gear from various providers. His vision to create a King Air Landing Gear Exchange Program specific to the aircraft’s serial number would prove to be a wide success.
“For many years, we also performed landing gear removal and installations. Each King Air is different, and our technicians learned firsthand what could be done to improve the landing gear overhaul process for everyone involved. By shipping everything mechanics need per serial number, the install would be fast and precise, saving operators time and money,” said Meghan.
By the time she returned home from China in 2006, Trace Aviation was beginning to get busy, and Mike asked her to help in the office.
“He reminded me that he had paid for my college, and I had no other plans at the time. So, I jumped in wherever I could help with business accounts, parts ordering, logbook research, and invoicing.
“I took on the human resources role as the business grew, hiring more technicians and upgrading our software and systems. I also was more involved with our products and providing customer support. We answer the phone with an interested, friendly voice to create a direct connection with the caller.
“Support from Trace Aviation is immediate, compared to parts vendors that only can be reached by navigating phone prompts. That’s not the level of service you get from us. If a customer wants to speak to a technician, sales, or operations, we make sure they get the answers they need. We answer questions from mechanics in the field and have Facetimed to help with installations.
Meghan continued, “It is not uncommon for us to be told that our landing gear is preferred. When customers comment that their overhauled gear looked better than new, or they won’t buy gear from anyone but us, we take pride in knowing that we can make our relationship a lifelong journey. In fact, some have been with us from the start, and many become repeat customers.”
When asked what the future holds for operators, Meghan replied, “As aircraft and landing gear age, we see more components needing repairs that will become more expensive to keep in service. Trace Aviation will continue to develop in-house repair capabilities to save operators time and money as needs arise. Our customers rely on us to address the variables they may not see coming. We teach the Trace Aviation legacy of quality and support to new employees and technicians, showing them what it all means, every day.”
─ The PAG Insider
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