An aviation industry veteran who led NetJets and Gulfstream during his career has taken over from Jim Schuster as CEO of Hawker Beechcraft. Schuster announced his plan to retire in November. Boisture told The Wichita Eagle the current economic issues will fundamentally change the way business is done after the recovery and his job is to make sure the planemaker is ready. “There’s going to be a lot of change required to adapt to the levels of demand required in the marketplace and the way our products can be deployed in the marketplace in the future,” Boisture said.
Boisture told the Eagle he’s weathered many business cycles in aviation but this one isn’t like the others. “We’re navigating through pretty uncharted waters,” he said. “The credit markets are in very difficult shape; the propensity to loan and back risk-taking endeavors is virtually nil at this point. Frankly (it) may redefine what a good economy looks like on the other side.” Boisture was an Air Force fighter pilot before joining the private sector. He said he enjoys all facets of the industry. “I have a real passion for airplanes and for people that design them and fly them and service them and buy them,” Boisture said.
