LEADERSHIP TEAM

YOUR PERFORMANCE IMPROVEMENTS EXPERTS

Since the beginning of Blackhawk, our exceptionally knowledgeable leadership team is invested in providing world-class customer service and satisfaction. We are always available to answer any questions and quickly respond to requests for support.

Blackhawk Aerospace

SENIOR LEADERSHIP

Jim Allmon

President & CEO, Blackhawk Aerospace

A Blackhawk Aerospace founding partner, Jim Allmon created the Blackhawk Aerospace brand and concept of upgrading turboprop aircraft with new, higher horsepower Pratt & Whitney engines. Prior to founding Blackhawk Aerospace in 1999, he served as the president and CEO of Aurora Aviation in Waco, Texas, an FBO offering aircraft sales, avionics, MRO and flight training. He has also served as president and CEO of Allmon Aviation and TulsaJet, Inc. in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

A pilot himself, Allmon follows the mantra of “quality and safety above profits, always.” Allmon’s favorite part of the job is solving customer issues and flying with them in their planes to witness their excitement first hand as they experience the power of a Blackhawk. He enjoys keeping an open door to any employee or customer, willing to roll up his sleeves and find solutions as quickly as possible.

Outside of Blackhawk Aerospace, together with his wife, Blackhawk EVP Lynnette Allmon, Allmon founded the Freedom Ball, an annual fundraising event for aviation scholarships that honors our veterans and active duty soldiers.

Full Bio

Micky Bitcon

Chief Financial Officer, Blackhawk Aerospace

Micky Bitcon’s experience in aerospace finance and accounting spans more than two decades and includes strategic planning, financial planning and analysis, financial reporting, capital budgeting, management reporting policies, and procedures and process improvements. She joined Blackhawk in 2010 to develop internal and external financial reporting packages as well as strategic planning modeling tools. Bitcon was promoted to CFO in 2011, where she oversees all financial aspects of the company and ensures the internal team has accurate and timely financial data to make well-informed decisions.

Prior to Blackhawk, Bitcon served 13 years at Hawker Beechcraft Corporation, most recently as director of finance. She is a CPA and holds a bachelor’s degree in accounting and an executive master’s degree from Wichita State University.

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DONNIE HOLDER

Chief Information Officer, Blackhawk Aerospace

Donnie Holder has been with Blackhawk since its inception and has held several positions in various departments and performed duties ranging from marketing strategy and graphic design to IT administration and programming. Having a foot in both marketing and IT departments was beneficial for Donnie because so much of marketing relies on technology.

Prior to working at Blackhawk, Donnie was a network consultant for many diverse enterprises in the Central Texas area from construction to universities to corporate offices. Blackhawk was one of Donnie’s clients and he was drawn to the wide range of activities Blackhawk offers and the opportunity to for diverse day-to-day operations. Holder has implemented and maintains the integration of the Blackhawk companies for seamless interaction across all platforms. He sees every interaction as an opportunity to show the best of Blackhawk and never misses an opportunity to do that.

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Deborah Waters

Senior HR & Safety Manager

blackhawk UPGRADES & AIRCRAFT SALES

SENIOR LEADERSHIP

Edwin Black

Senior VP, Sales & Marketing, Blackhawk Aerospace Upgrades

Edwin Black joined Blackhawk in 2007, coming to the company after 9 years at Raisbeck Engineering where he’d most recently served as director of marketing and sales. A private pilot, Black’s passion for aviation product improvement is personal. After helping Raisbeck build a 50% King Air penetration with their upgrade kits, he joined Blackhawk out of interest in seeing further speed, safety, and value for the King Air. He enjoys the thrill of seeing customers experience the best performance possible from their aircraft and makes it a point to stay in touch with all his customers.

Black received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Utah and is a licensed sky diver.

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Steve Cook

Senior VP, Engineering, Blachkawk Aerospace Upgrades

An Air Force Academy Graduate, Cook flew in the Air Force as a T38 instructor prior to starting at L3 in Waco. Cook worked at L3 for 28 years with experience primarily in the flight test department as a flight test engineer and Test Director. He also has experience working in mechanical installation design, stress analysis of aircraft structural loads, and was a Chairman of the Weight Control Board within L3 to advise Program Management on how to meet weight requirements for interiors. Cook’s diverse engineering background allowed him to be a multidisciplined engineer which led him to be a better flight test engineer and test director.

Cook saw an opportunity with Blackhawk to be more involved in multiple aspects of engineering, facing bigger and more diverse challenges and looks forward to the chance to work with everyone to find a solution and see the impact of that result. Cook is the Senior Vice President of Engineering and manages engineering projects, STC development, performs flight testing, and provides input for future projects. Cook is motivated to be thorough when finding a solution so that there are no surprises in the end, for Blackhawk or for the customer.

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Blackhawk Aerospace Solutions

SENIOR LEADERSHIP

Pete Franks

President, Blackhawk Aerospace Solutions

Dr. Pete Franks is the President of Blackhawk Aerospace Solutions, provides dynamic leadership for a forward-thinking small business that offers small business opportunities to large businesses and government organizations to accomplish engine, propeller, and landing gear upgrades and MRO management of components.  Dr. Franks served 23 years in the U.S. Army as an aviator, retiring as a Lieutenant Colonel.  He served as a maintenance company commander during Desert Shield/Storm and a battalion commander during OIF 1.  His terminal assignment was two years in the Pentagon as the Director of Aviation Logistics for the G4.  He has worked within the defense industry for fifteen years as a Program Manager and Director of Software Systems that developed some of Army Aviation’s most critical software in the Aviation Data Warehouse and ULLS-A; and as the Modification and Obsolescence Manager for L-3 Technology on the Army C-12/RC-12/UC-35 LCCS program.   He earned his Doctorate through Capella University in Business Administration with a focus on Strategy and Innovation.  In addition, his dissertation focused on the utilization of analytics in the defense industry.  He has been with Blackhawk Aerospace since September 2015 at the President of Blackhawk Aerospace Solutions.  He enjoys being able to offer cost affordable options for extending the service life of military aircraft that removes obsolescence, making them safer and provides better performance for the aviators and service members who use those aircraft. 

Full Bio

Blackhawk Aerospace Technologies

SENIOR LEADERSHIP

Mark Wilken

President, Blackhawk Aerospace Technologies

Mark Wilken joined Blackhawk Aerospace Technologies in 2021 as the company acquired Columbia Avionics and Aircraft Services. Prior to joining the team, he was the vice president of avionics and operational logistics at Elliott Aviation. While at Elliott Aviation, Wilken was instrumental in leading the development of more than 50 STCs for installing the latest avionics systems on Beechcraft aircraft including the King Air, Beechjet, Premier, and Hawker. He also lead MRO marketing and sales for the Garmin G1000 for King Air model aircraft, maturing the company into the largest MRO Garmin dealer in the world.

Wilken began his professional career at Elliott Aviation in 1990 as an aviation technician after receiving his bachelor’s degree in advanced technical studies, aviation management from Southern Illinois University. He held several positions at Elliott with increased responsibility in developing and growing avionics and modifications projects.

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Conrad Theisen

Vice President Sales & Marketing, Blackhawk Aerospace Technologies

Conrad Theisen joined the Blackhawk team in 2021 to expand strategic opportunities within the avionics marketplace. He moved into this newly created position when Blackhawk purchased Columbia Avionics later the same year. With new engine STCs now requiring close collaboration with avionics OEMs such as Garmin or Collins Aerospace, he helps bridge the gap within Blackhawk.

Theisen brings 25 years of avionics expertise and experience working with OEMs from his former position, director of avionics sales at Elliott Aviation. During his tenure with Elliott, Thiesen was responsible for G1000 King Air retrofit programs and the Collins Aerospace Modernization upgrade on the King Air series aircraft. He reports directly to the Blackhawk Aerospace Executive Committee as he pursues avionics opportunities within general aviation and the government/military market.

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Shad Sones

General Manager, Blackhawk Aerospace Technologies

Shad Sones is one of the most recent acquisitions of Blackhawk Aerospace. Located in Columbia, Missouri, Shad has over 24 years of avionics experience. He has had the opportunity to do major retrofit of newly designed avionics technology from major vendors like Garmin, Universal, Rockwell Collins, Honeywell and more. In his role as General Manager, he continues to provide customer service, manage operations, events, and schedule maintenance. Graduating from Alexandria Technical College in 1997, with a degree in Avionics, he started his career in the avionics field. Shad also holds a commercial pilot license with an instrument rating, Citation Type rating and more than 1,200 hours in single and multi-engine aircraft.

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WE’RE BETTER TOGETHER

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