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Professional

Doug Kitani is the Erickson Inc. Chief Executive Officer and Director, after having served as Chief Executive Officer and Director of IAP Worldwide Services, a global defense services company specializing in logistics, expeditionary infrastructure, facilities engineering, and power systems. His prior experience includes leading portfolio strategies and corporate development for DynCorp International. Mr. Kitani is known for his expertise in mergers and acquisitions and quality improvement, having spent many years working in the private equity investment field.

Personal

Mr. Kitani earned his MBA in Finance and Strategy from Emory University and graduated from the United States Military Academy at West Point. He served as a U.S. Army helicopter pilot (qualified in the UH-1, OH-58, and UH-60 while completing 11 years of active and reserve duty), is a member of the AOPA, and is a supporter of the Green Beret Foundation. 

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As Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, Mr. Wideman oversees the preparation and approval of all financial reports, the management of cash flow and forecasting, as well as all financial accounting. His background includes wide-ranging experiences in Corporate Financial Management, Financial Planning & Analysis, Investor Relations, Corporate Treasury, Financial Risk Management, and Fixed-Income asset management for companies in the consumer products, apparel/footwear, software, and government contracting industry groups. Most recently, Wideman served as Vice President of Finance and Corporate Treasurer for FLIR Systems in Wilsonville, Oregon, which designs, develops, and manufactures thermal imaging and sensing devices for government and commercial enterprises. 

Personal

Mr. Wideman holds a B.S. in Finance & Economics from Tuskegee University in Tuskegee, AL as well as an MBA from the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia.

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Melissa Berube, General Counsel and Senior Vice President of People, responsibilities include contract negotiation and management, corporate governance and compliance, and litigation management. Her background includes significant experience in mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance, public and private offerings of debt and equity, and extensive contract negotiation experience. 

Personal

Ms. Berube is a graduate of the University of Portland and earned her law degree at the University of Washington in Seattle. She is a member of the Oregon Hispanic Bar Association, the Hispanic National Bar Association, Team Red Lizard, a local running club, and a volunteer gala committee member of Incight, a local non-profit group dedicated to promoting higher education and career opportunities for persons with disabilities.

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Brittany Wise, the Senior Vice President of Sales, Marketing, and Business Development with more than 15 years’ experience in the aviation industry and missions around the world, is responsible for all civilian focused air operations including Erickson’s global infrastructure and firefighting activities. Ms. Wise previously served as Erickson’s Senior Director of Commercial Sales focused on sales, business development, and operation roles supporting multiple helicopter operators and platforms.

Personal

Ms. Wise graduated from Southern Oregon University with a degree in Business Management and is currently working toward completion of her MBA at University of Washington.

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Chris Schuldt, as Senior Vice President of Operations, is responsible for Erickson’s Aviation Operations Center of Excellence tasked with managing flight operations, field maintenance, and program management activities for Erickson’s operating fleet. Mr. Schuldt has been with the company for more than 10 years, serving in numerous corporate and field-based roles, as well as the President of Evergreen Helicopters where he led operations and business development teams in Erickson’s civil and defense business units. Most recently Chris served as Chief of Staff to our CEO.

Personal

Mr. Schuldt earned a Bachelor of Science in Business Management at Linfield College and an MBA at University of California Los Angeles, with a concentration in Finance.

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Jeff Mecklenburg joined Erickson in October of 1997. His background includes experience in production, certification, engineering, and quality. He is currently responsible for the AeroSystems Operations that include: Aircraft Repair and Modification, Component Repair and Overhaul, Manufacturing, Composite Main Rotor Blade Manufacturing, Engineering, Program Management, and Facilities Maintenance. Jeff has been with the company for over 20 years and has held multiple supervision and management positions. Most recently, Jeff has served as the Senior Director of Production and Plant Operations.

Personal

Mr. Mecklenburg graduated from the University of North Dakota with a Bachelor of Science degree in Aviation Maintenance Management and holds multiple FAA Certifications.

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Mark Cooper joined Erickson in March 2014 in a business development role for MRO and Flight Operations. In September of 2015, Mark assumed the role of Senior Director for Business Operations for Erickson’s Defense & National Security (DNS) business unit. Mr. Cooper has direct responsibility for DNS contracts and contract performance worldwide.  

Prior to joining Erickson, Mr. Cooper served as the Director of Project Support for DynCorp International’s business area team. Before entering the private sector in 2012, Mr. Cooper served in various roles within the U.S. Government over a 33-year career. He started as a U.S. Army Aviation Warrant Officer, where he accumulated just over 4,000 hours of rotary-wing flight time, of which 1000 hours were under Night Vision Devices. After retiring from military service, Mark joined the U.S. Department of State’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs (INL).

Personal

Mr. Cooper earned his Bachelor of Science degree in Management and Leadership from the Ken Blanchard School of Business at Grand Canyon University in Phoenix, Arizona. 

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As the Vice President of Business Capture, Scott Zurschmit leads capture management for the company, to include the development of overall capture strategies, proposal win strategies, technical/ management strategies, and pricing strategies. Mr. Zurschmit builds on 12 years’ experience in Business Development, Business Intelligence, Capture Management, and Sales at DynCorp International and Erickson, including success in all phases of the Sales Cycle, Customer Management, Customer Experience, and a distinguished military career.

Personal

Mr. Zurschmit balances his work-life time with his wife, children, and pets, as well as attending community events and enjoying outdoor activities.

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Jon McLaughlin is the Senior Director of Corporate Development and Strategy and responsible for Erickson’s strategic planning and corporate development function. He leads Erickson’s M&A and strategic partnership efforts across the A&D value stream with an emphasis on new technologies. Prior to joining Erickson, Mr. McLaughlin was Director of Corporate Development and Special Projects at IAP, focusing on both internal and external growth initiatives. Earlier in his career, he was a founding member of a leading institutional asset management firm in New York City and worked in financial services in both London and New York.

Personal

Jon holds a B.A. in Economics from Columbia University and an MBA from the Kelley School of Business where he was a Consortium Fellow.

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35 years of aviation experience in diverse environments currently serving as Vice President of Aviation Center of Excellence responsible for program management across Erickson Aviation operations. Safety systems background with FAA inspector experience, retired military pilot, and grassroots knowledge in helicopters and fixed-wing including CFI, CFII, MEI in airplanes, and helicopters. Held positions from line pilot through Chief Pilot and Director of operations and currently serve as Captain and check airman in both platforms.  Aerial firefighting and construction from both the pilot and management vantage. 

Diverse background from military F-16, A-10, Pavehawk HH-60, Blackhawk, and Cobra helicopters through civilian flight experience in EC-155, BHT 214ST, S-64 among others. 

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Jeff Baxter is the Senior Director of Research and Development and responsible for new products to retrofit onto the existing fleet of aircraft, as well as the evaluation and incorporation of new technologies into our overall product offering. His experience includes a wide array of engineering disciplines, from spaceflight hardware design to autonomous flight controls, and has worked at a variety of aerospace companies including SpaceX, Columbia Helicopters, and Vans Aircraft.

Personal

Mr. Baxter is trained in Mechanical Engineering, with a BS from Brigham Young University and received his MBA from BYU while also leading a team to several world speed records with electric cars they designed. Before joining Erickson, he achieved success on several challenging projects, including building his own airplane which he regularly flies.