Jack Risko is President and CEO of Windstar Capital Advisors LLC, a firm specializing in managing, advising and investing in both growth companies and companies facing restructuring issues. He is also Chairman and CEO of AeroTrade Holdings LLC, a firm specializing in the sales, trading, and leasing of CFM56 and JT8D aircraft engines.

In 2001, Windstar Capital LLC and Jack Risko were selected as the winning bidder for AeroThrust Corporation by Saab AB of Sweden, because of our operational track record within aerospace as evidenced by the impressive turnaround of National Airmotive Corporation (NAC). Our track record of understanding the complexities of the aircraft engine arena and our accomplishments at NAC and AeroThrust are detailed below, as is the rationale for the creation of AeroTrade. We have twice bought unprofitable companies, turned them around, and increased sales 3-4x.

Accomplishments at NAC

Prior to our acquisition, NAC was an unprofitable company that specialized in mature aircraft engine product lines. Within 30 days of our closing the deal to purchase the company in 1995, NAC was mistakenly accused of being in violation of US Department of Defense quality regulations. This effectively halted the delivery of one third of NAC’s sales, which were subject to a government contract. That event caused a grave liquidity crisis as well as simultaneous DoD and DoJ investigations.

I became CEO shortly after these troubles arose. My team and I were able to resolve matters successfully by taking the following actions: Operational restructuring, ISO 9001 certification within six months, consultation with banks and major vendors, as well as ongoing dialogue with DoD and DoJ. This simultaneous multi-pronged focus on operations and customers allowed NAC to clear its name, triple sales from $53MM to $180MM, make an acquisition and restore profitability, all at the same time.

My team’s talents in the area of sales, operations and strategic planning paid off quickly. We did a $70M in sales acquisition from American Airlines and a successful IPO on NASDAQ within 24 months of assuming control. Shortly thereafter, NAC was sold to Rolls Royce.

Accomplishments at AeroThrust

NAC’s accomplishments drew the attention of Saab AB’s investment bankers. Saab’s subsidiary, AeroThrust Corporation was, in 2001, similar to NAC, unprofitable and bleeding. We closed the deal to buy the company on 11/1/01, which was a historically bad time in aviation. Over the next five years, we made great strides.

We tripled sales from $35MM to over $100MM by adding FedEx, SAS, Webjet, Spanair, Sriwijaya, Shandong, WestJet, and US Government contracts to our key accounts. We added approximately $20 million in net worth to the balance sheet, despite making heavy investments into R&D and product line expansion. In early 2008 we divided our high-margin leasing business and our low-margin Maintenance, Repair, and Overhaul (MRO) operations into separate companies, and set out to finance them separately, including doing an AIM offering in London. WR Hambrecht valued the company at the time at approximately $120MM.

The Oil Spike and the genesis of AeroTrade

In 2009-2010, in step with the global economic crisis, AeroThrust encountered the result of fleet changes at customers due to the oil price spike. 80% of our business was in the fuel-inefficient JT8D engine. After oil peaked at $147 a barrel, 80% of our market essentially vanished over the next two years, since airlines worldwide chose not to overhaul engines, but burn green time. Fleets of Alitalia, Iberia, SAS, and many others were either grounded or sold. Like KKR’s MRO company Aveos and many other MRO companies, we decided to exit the MRO business in 2010-2011, and to focus on the profitable leasing business we started in 2007. That became the genesis of AeroTrade.

Other Information

Mr. Risko has also participated as an early investor and/or CEO or COO in a number of e-commerce and technology firms including iSolve, software.com, POGO Jet, ForMyCause.com and a number of other firms. In addition to start-ups, Mr. Risko also has extensive experience at the back end of the company life-cycle, and has advised companies in Chapter 11 and Chapter 7 situations.

Prior to these activities, Mr. Risko was a banker. He was an investment banker in M&A at Morgan Stanley and a commercial banker at Citibank in New York, serving the coal and steel industries. During his career in finance, Mr. Risko also headed US corporate finance for a major Canadian investment bank. Mr. Risko has a BA from Yale and an MBA from Harvard.

Contact: jrisko@windstarcapital.com