S³/Kachemak Bay Flying Service (KBFS) Emphasizes Quality Aviation Maintenance

KBFS, wholly owned Subsidiary of S³, is increasingly focused on improving the quality of products and services it delivers at Draughon-Miller Airport in Temple, TX.  As part of its Part 145 Repair Station operations, KBFS offers insured and certificated products and services that separate the subsidiary from many of its less experienced competitors in the Central Texas area. During 2018, the twentieth year that the repair station purchased by KBFS in 2013 has operated at the Temple airport, S³ is making additional resources available to expand KBFS’ offerings and renew our focus on general aviation customer satisfaction. The article below highlights the importance KBFS assigns to safety, insured professional services, and its many customers.

KBFS employee Hector Rubio performs maintenance on C-172

Unless we are really fortunate and just have money to burn, most of us shop for the best value when we are looking for goods and services – for our home, our car, or even our airplane. Unfortunately, the least expensive option is not always the best value or even a safe deal.  As aircraft owners, we may be easily tempted by independent A&P Mechanics who will complete our annual inspections and unscheduled maintenance for what seems like a bargain.  The danger in this temptation is that even though the A&P might be a good mechanic, we need to know if he has the proper information, relevant training and experience, financial stability and frequently FAA audited oversight that provides regulated assurances and safety for the repair work.

Several items need to be considered when we are selecting someone or some facility to perform maintenance on our aircraft.

1. First, we need to ask if the mechanic has access to the appropriate manufacturer maintenance manuals necessary to conduct the requested work. For our aircraft to be airworthy, the FAA requires that all maintenance inspections and repairs be accomplished in accordance with the aircraft manufacturers’ published maintenance procedures. And believe it or not, these procedures can change often in response to modernization and safety issues.  If the mechanic doesn’t have a subscription to the manuals and periodic updates for the aircraft, then how can we know for certain that the maintenance was completed properly and if the aircraft is safe?

2. Second, we also might want to ask about our mechanic’s training and experience level as well as the service credentials of the business? What type of aircraft maintenance experience do they have?  Many aircraft mechanics entering today’s civil aviation work force are trained in the military, which in itself is a very good thing.  However, many of these mechanics have only worked military aircraft with turbine engines, and if they are prior Army, they will have worked predominantly rotary wing aircraft.  They will have very little if any experience maintaining light piston powered aircraft operated by most general aviation owners.  We should also look at the credentials of the maintenance facility that employs these aircraft mechanics. Does the shop have years of experience in repairing general aviation aircraft and is it an FAA certificated operation that is subject to frequent FAA inspections and written procedural requirements?

3. Third, besides checking out the maintenance shop for experience and certifications, most of us want to take our aircraft to a substantial business that has low debt, is financially stable, and can guarantees its work – i.e., make things right if we are not satisfied with the quality of work. If we have a mechanic or startup maintenance operation doing our inspections and repairs, does the selected business have the financial stability and insurance to back their work if something goes wrong?  A reputable aircraft maintenance facility, especially one that is Part 145 certified by the FAA, will have many years of experience conducting maintenance under FAA oversight, which verifies both the company’s stability in the general aviation market and its success in delivering quality maintenance.  Certified maintenance facilities will also maintain the proper insurance coverage to protect its facility, business operations, and aircraft in its possession for inspections and repairs.  More importantly, the coverage also includes product liability insurance to protect the business’ customers in the rare instance that something goes wrong with the maintenance.

Kachemak Bay Flying Service (KBFS) is an FAA approved 14 CFR Part 145 Repair Station that exceeds all of these requirements.  We maintain a subscription for all maintenance manuals for aircraft we maintain and always conduct maintenance in accordance with manufacturer procedures and FAA rules.  When we add a new aircraft to our list of provided services, we send our maintenance staff to the manufacturer’s school and update our maintenance manual subscription to include the new model.  KBFS has been conducting maintenance activity in the same facility as Summit Aviation and KBFS for over 15 years.  We are not a startup organization.  We are the wholly owned subsidiary of System Studies and Simulation (S³), an aviation support company that has been around for more than 27 years and provides service solutions to government and commercial customers at more than 40 sites world-wide.  Our Director of Maintenance has over 40 years of experience in aircraft maintenance with over 20 years maintaining light piston powered airplanes and helicopters.  All of our mechanics and avionics personnel have service experience on rotary wing and fixed wing aircraft.  We maintain insurance with limits well in excess of the minimum required to protect Temple Airport facilities and include product liability insurance above broker recommended coverage.

KBFS owns its own aircraft and several S³ employees own general aviation airplanes. Because of our long history of flying and fixing aircraft, we take this business seriously and want the very best for our customers.  Our Part 145 maintenance at Temple Airport is not a hobby – we enjoy providing quality service to our neighbors.  If you are not using KBFS as your maintenance provider, we hope you will give us a try.  And if you already come to us for service, please tell how we can improve our services and provide you the best quality possible. Please contact us at 254-773-9902 or 254-771-0077 to schedule your maintenance needs.