Hawker Beechcraft has tapped industry veteran Bill Boisture, Jr. as its new chairman and CEO, succeeding Jim Schuster, who announced his pending retirement in November after eight years at the helm of the Wichita-based aircraft manufacturer.
Boisture’s business aviation career spans more than three decades and has included turns as president of fractional provider NetJets as well as aircraft manufacturers Gulfstream and Hawker predecessor British Aerospace Corporate Jets. He was also chairman and CEO of Butler Aviation, the forerunner of Signature Flight Support. Most recently, Boisture was the president of aircraft lessor Intrepid Aviation and served as a senior aerospace advisor at The Carlyle Group.

“Bill is the right person at exactly the right time,” said Sanjeev Mehra, managing director of Goldman Sachs and chairman of the board at Hawker Beechcraft. “His proven ability to drive customer satisfaction and value has never been more important than in this challenging economic environment.”

Boisture earned a degree in engineering management from the Air Force Academy and was honorably discharged from the service as a major after an 11-year career which saw him graduate from both the USAF and USN fighter weapons schools. An active pilot with 500 flight hours over the last two years, Boisture also holds a commercial instrument rating. “This is an outstanding opportunity,” said Boisture. “Hawker Beechcraft has the broadest product line-up in the industry, is a leader in advanced technology with its composite aircraft and is well positioned to succeed coming out of this downturn.”