Jim Bass Has Passed Piper's Leadership On To Two Exceptionally Qualified Veterans

The GA industry got a bit of a shock a few weeks ago, albeit not totally unexpected, when Piper CEO Jim Bass stepped down to take on other challenges. Bass oversaw the rejuvenation of an industry legend and left them in really great shape with new owners and a much brighter future.

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With this revelation, Piper promoted two of its senior executives. Kevin J. Gould, Piper's Vice President of Operations, who became Piper's Chief Executive Officer, and John Becker, Piper's Vice President of Engineering, who took on the role of President of the Company.

Gould, an experienced senior executive with more than 20 years of leadership roles in engineering, manufacturing and general management, said that the strong foundation and exceptional accomplishments Piper has achieved under Bass' leadership place the company in an excellent position to grow and prosper.

"Under Jim's leadership during the last four years," Gould said, "Piper became a formidable company that was able to attract new, stable and financially strong owners committed to investing in Piper's new product initiatives and expanding the company's market share. With Jim's leadership, our accomplishments led to nearly eliminating the company's debt, significantly improving Piper's financial performance and creating a platform for future success."

Becker, a 20-year Piper veteran who has held key management positions within the company before becoming Vice President of Engineering, echoed Gould.

"We introduced the PiperJet," Becker said, "the first jet of its kind in Piper's history and one that our new owners cited as a key element in their decision to acquire Piper. In addition, we forged a new business alliance with Honda, which picked Piper because it valued our expertise above all other general aviation companies."

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