Team

Desser Aerospace Leadership

Jeff Johnston

President & CEO

Jeff joined Desser Aerospace as President and CEO in April 2015. He is responsible for the overall strategy, execution, and profitability of the business and is located at the company headquarters in Montebello California. He is a member of the Desser Aerospace Board of Directors.

Jeff has over 40 years of experience in the aerospace industry across multiple functional disciplines. Prior to joining Desser, Jeff held senior leadership positions in tier one and tier two aerospace companies including Zodiac Aerospace, Honeywell, Boeing, and General Dynamics. He has extensive global experience including holding Board positions with foreign joint venture companies.

Jeff is a native of Los Angeles and holds a B.S. degree in Mechanical Engineering and an MBA from The Drucker Center at Claremont Graduate University. Jeff also earned a certificate in International Business from Thunderbird School of Global Management and is a certified Lean and Six Sigma blackbelt.

Returning to Southern California in 2015 from Arizona and Texas, Jeff enjoys a number of activities with his family, including boating, fishing, skiing, and flying. He is active in his community and serves as a Board member and CFO for the Johnston Family Foundation, a non-profit 501c (3) organization dedicated to supporting medical research and higher education.

Adam Gallo

Chief Financial Officer

Adam joined Desser Holdings in August of 2020.  He is responsible for all financial aspects of Desser Holding businesses and is located at the company headquarters in Montebello California. Desser is a leading supplier of aftermarket OEM and PMA parts and provides MRO services with operations in the US, Australia, and Europe.

Adam has more than 25 years of senor financial experience in public and private equity aerospace manufacturing and aftermarket services where he has a significant track record in improving profitability while growing revenues and cashflow.  Prior to joining Desser, Adam held several CFO and international senior finance leadership roles in aerospace, industrial, and service industries including Allied Signal, Honeywell, Zodiac, BHP Billiton, and Accenture.

Adam holds a Bachelor and a Masters degree in Business Administration from Eller School of Business at the University of Arizona.  Adam also earned a certificate in International Business from Thunderbird School of Global Management and is Lean and Six Sigma certified.

Ken Faire

Vice President of Sales and Marketing

Ken joined Desser Aerospace in June 1997 and is located at the company headquarters in Montebello, CA. He is responsible for business, product, and key customer development and worldwide growth for the Desser Aerospace family of businesses.

Ken has over 40 years of sales and marketing experience in the aviation and aerospace industry. At Desser, Ken identifies complementary add-on acquisitions, and has integrated multiple repair stations and a PMA transparency division, where he served as President. Ken also developed a portfolio of new products for the aerospace and power sports marketplace. Prior to joining Desser, he was national sales manager for a global aerospace fluid conveyance firm.

Ken is a native of Southern California and holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Management from Pepperdine University. Ken has a commercial pilot rating and holds an A&P rating. He has successfully completed the AS9100D quality management system requirements. Ken is an active pilot and a speaker at A&P I/A renewal functions and is a member of many aerospace and industry specific flight and maintenance organizations.

Alec Azarian

Vice President of Operations

Alec joined Desser Aerospace in February 2018. Alec has more than 19 years of experience in the aerospace industry, primarily in general management and operations. Prior to his role as Vice President of Operations at Desser Aerospace, Alec served as Vice President and General Manager at Zodiac Aerospace. There, he led the design, engineering, certification, manufacturing, and aftermarket product support of Airbus A330/A380, and Bombardier CRJ200/700/900/Dash 8 integrated interior programs.

Alec holds a B.S. degree in Management Science and Information Systems from The Pennsylvania State University.

Marc Schmittenberg

Vice President of Engineering & Product Development

Marc joined Desser Aerospace in April 2016. Marc has more than 30 years of experience in the aerospace industry, primarily in engineering and product design & integration. Prior to joining Desser Aerospace, Marc served as the Manager of Helicopter Engine Design at Honeywell Aerospace. At Honeywell, Marc also led airframe/engine integration teams on the Sikorsky Blackhawk, Boeing Apache, Sikorsky Comanche, Bell ARH, Boeing 777, Boeing C-17, and Airbus A350 programs.

Marc holds a B.S. degree in Aerospace Engineering and an MBA from the W.P. Carey School of Business at Arizona State University. Marc is also a Certified Project Management Professional (PMP) by the Project Management Institute and a Six Sigma Greenbelt.