Cliff Johnson - D.O.M. Magazine Maintenance Manager of the Year Award Winner
D.O.M. magazine is pleased to announce that Cliff Johnson, a regional maintenance manager for Air Evac Lifeteam, is the recipient of D.O.M. magazine’s inaugural Maintenance Manager of the Year Award. D.O.M. magazine publisher Greg Napert and I traveled to West Plains, MO, to present the award to Johnson. Johnson will also receive a TechAngle electronic torque wrench thanks to the generous donation by Snap-on Industrial.
Air Evac Lifeteam is a membership-supported air medical service. It conducts its operations through 108 mutually-supporting air medical bases across 15 states. The company operates a fleet of more than 110 medically-equipped Bell 206 Long Ranger helicopters, along with Bell 407 helicopters. The company also offers fixed-wing air medical services from two bases in Missouri and Kentucky. Its current service area included operations in Arkansas, Iowa, Missouri, Oklahoma and Tennessee. In order to serve its membership of more than one million customers, the company relies on dedicated mechanics and managers. Johnson is responsible for managing a team of mechanics located in 28 of the company’s bases in Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and Tennessee.
Johnson’s nomination stood out not only because of his professionalism and knowledge, but because of the support of those working with him.
Don Thebeau, an area mechanic for Air Evac Lifeteam says, “I have known Cliff Johnson for more than 20 years. He has been a positive influence on me and my work. There is nothing that is beyond him and his expertise — if he doesn’t know how to fix something, he knows where to go to find the information that he needs. He also treats guidance for his people in the same way. He will never give erroneous information. If need be, he will jump right in and help to get the job done. Just working with him gives everyone the attitude that nothing is impossible — the impossible just might take a little longer to achieve. He is always more than willing to give anyone a hand, whether it be in his region or someone else’s. A man like Cliff is hard to come by, and working for him is a joy. He gets his people to do their jobs with help and admiration rather than by hollering and screaming, and is always giving people little ways to do things better and faster. He is one of the major reasons that I go to work with a smile on my face. He is always looking for ways to do things in a more efficient manner, and when he finds something that works, he shares it with everyone. Cliff being the person that he is makes all of us that work for him go out of our ways to get things done.”
John Branson, a base mechanic for Air Evac Lifeteam says, “He kind of reminds me of the character Buzz Lightyear from ‘Toy Story.’ To infinity and beyond – that’s Cliff. He could also be compared to the Energizer bunny, as Cliff does not have an off switch.
“Air Evac Lifeteam has provided me with many opportunities over the years, but it was Cliff that gave me a chance to prove myself as a base helicopter mechanic, and I could never thank him enough for this,” continues Branson. “Even with 20 years experience in aviation, I was a little apprehensive about being a helicopter base mechanic, but Cliff had faith in me, and for that I can never thank him enough. In addition to that, Cliff has quite a sense of humor and always has a good joke to share.
“Cliff would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it or come to help or give advice at three in the morning if you needed him. Cliff has a extreme amount of aviation knowledge second to none, and freely shares that with us to help with all aspects of our jobs. Cliff is sensitive to his mechanics’ needs when things come up and has always offered to help. Not only does Cliff help out beyond the call of duty in his region, he also unselfishly helps out company wide. With all that said, he will, without asking, open up the tool box and go to work on an aircraft to always make sure we cut our down time to as little as possible. Even when he has to do some of his manager duties such as discipline, it really hurts him in his soul to do this but we understand it’s his job — not personal, but business. He never puts us down and always tells us how much he appreciates our work.”
Johnson graduated from Southern Illinois University (SIU) at Carbondale-School of Technical Careers with a bachelor’s degree in aviation. He wanted to get a four-year degree instead of just getting an A&P after two years of school. He knew that a four-year college degree would open doors of opportunity for him in his future.
His parents were also a big influence in his education. “My dad got his master’s degree and was a superintendent at the school district. My mother was also working on a master’s degree and ended up earning her Ph.D.,” he shares. “They also encouraged me to get my degree. Having a degree has definitely helped in my advancement. When everything else was equal among an employer’s choices, it carried weight for me.”
After Johnson got his A&P, he decided to take advantage of a program SIU offered. He took an additional two semesters of upper-level course work specializing in helicopter maintenance.
Johnson’s first job was with PHI Inc (PHI). He was at PHI for two years. Eight months of that were spent offshore on a natural gas platform with a Bell Jet Ranger aircraft and the rest were at a field base in Cameron, LA. “I learned how to get done things done quickly and efficiently at Cameron,” he tells D.O.M. magazine. “Ninety-nine percent of all the work was done outside in the weather between 5 p.m. and 5 a.m.”
Johnson’s next job was with Air Midwest, a regional airline from Wichita, KS. The airline operated mostly Fairchild Metroliners when he started, but grew into Saab 340, Embraer Brasilia and British Aerospace Jetstream Super 31 aircraft. He attended several training schools while employed there, and was eventually promoted to lead mechanic.
After a layoff at Air Midwest, Johnson landed a job at FFV Aerospace, which was starting a regional airline repair station in Nashville, TN. He was one of the first mechanics hired and ended up being a lead mechanic for the company. The job provided many learning opportunities in Nashville and also with projects outside of the U.S.
In 1994, Johnson went to work for Ameriflight in Cincinnati, OH. He was part of a four-mechanic team that fixed problems on about a dozen Fairchild Metroliner and Beechcraft 99 aircraft while cargo was being unloaded, sorted and reloaded overnight.
In late 1994, Johnson returned to helicopters when he was hired by St. Louis Helicopter to maintain its LifeFlight program helicopter, an air medical Bell Long Ranger based in Evansville, IN. In 1997, LifeFlight chose Air Methods to support them with a Bell 407. He was excited to get back into helicopter maintenance. He shares that his interaction with the medical personnel had a profound impact on him personally.
“They were very inquisitive,” he shares. “I guess by nature medical people are like that — they like to learn about everything. If you had the time to talk to them, they loved to listen. They were really interested in what I was doing. I was also interested in what they were doing. I saw some things that really affected them, and it gave me a greater appreciation for my job. I don’t know that I would do what they do. Just like my work had good days and bad, so did theirs. And their days somehow became very important to me. Many times when I came to work after a flight was completed, I could tell those folks had experienced something I did not want to know about. I learned to be patient and understanding with them and to do anything I could to make them feel better about their daily routines. I concentrated on making them feel better about the aircraft and letting them know that the aircraft was being maintained to the highest standards. They wouldn’t have to worry about that.”
In 2001, Peet Lindma, the director of maintenance at Air Evac Lifeteam and with whom Johnson had worked at PHI, asked if Johnson was interested for working at the company’s St. Louis base as a regional mechanic. A few weeks later, Johnson was in West Plains with a truck full of parts to take to St. Louis. He has been with the company for 11 years — eight of which were as a regional mechanic and the past three years as a regional maintenance manager. Johnson says he owes his success to those he works with. “I have very good mechanics at all my bases and am tremendously proud of what we have been able to achieve together,” he says.
How would Johnson characterize his management style? “When it comes to managing people, I would say that I have developed my management style based on what I saw worked and didn’t work for other people,” he shares. “For instance, when one person makes a mistake, the tendency is to punish everyone — to make new rules and regulations that affect everyone. I don’t believe in that so much. It’s one thing if it is a safety issue. But if one person is causing the problems, you need to address the person, because there are good mechanics doing a good job, and I don’t believe in pointing the finger at them as well. I like to deal with problems individually as much as possible.
“I’m not a desktop manager,” he continues. “I like to be involved. If I see people having problems, I like to get right in there and help out. I’m not an ‘assignment manager’ who just assigns jobs and forgets about it. I like to keep in touch with the guys that are working on projects, and if they are having problems, I encourage them to call me and let me help them out.”
“It is a balancing act,” continues Johnson. “I want to give the mechanics the chance to learn on their own and expand their knowledge. But at some point, we do have to keep the helicopters flying for their missions. I will give the mechanics room and let them work out problems out on their own. But if I see them hit a wall, I jump in and help them out.”
“My ability to lead is also dependant on the support I get from my own directors,” he stresses. “They set the expectations for what they want and I drive to meet those expectations. The goals are usually high, and I do my best to exceed them. I have a great support group around me and above me here at Air Evac. It’s nice knowing they believe in you and can provide all the resources to get the job done right.”
What advice would Johnson give to someone just starting out in aviation maintenance? “You have to be flexible,” he says. “There will be change. If you think you are going to walk into a job and be there for the rest of your life, that is probably not going to happen. Be prepared for change and never stop learning. I am still learning. I have had my A&P for a long time, but I still strive to keep learning.”