Mike Gerdes

Mike began his career in aviation in 2004 working at Silverhawk’s front desk while also learning how to fly.

In 2006, he helped launch a local flight school as a Certified Flight Instructor before returning to Silverhawk as a charter pilot in 2007. In 2008, Mike became a King Air and Citation Captain and company flight instructor, later adding accounting duties as the company Controller. He became Chief Pilot in 2010 and was promoted to Director of Operations/CFO and a Check Airman in 2011.

Mike became President and co-owner of Silverhawk in 2015. His vision for Silverhawk is to elevate each customer’s experience by offering great flexibility, extensive experience, and remarkable service. Mike enjoys snorkeling, scuba diving, biking, and spending time with his wife Jen, daughter Bree, and son Cam.

John Geary

John started flying in 2007 when he earned his Private Pilot’s Certificate in Bakersfield, California. He then attended Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University to receive his Bachelor’s Degree in Aeronautical Science. After a couple of years as a flight instructor at Embry-Riddle, he went to work at an international flight school where he trained European pilots to EASA standards.

With over 2,000 hours of instruction time, John decided he was ready for his next adventure. He left the Sunshine State and moved to McCook, NE to become an air ambulance pilot, flying the King Air 90. John eventually earned the title of training captain and became the base lead pilot at McCook. After almost two years with Lifeteam, he joined Silverhawk in January 2015. Since then, he has been involved as the training officer, the Chief Pilot, and now the Director of Operations. When he isn’t sitting behind a desk or flying, he enjoys spending time outdoors and traveling with his wife Kelsey.

Dave Stanley

Dave Stanley joined Silverhawk Aviation in October of 2017 as the Director of Sales & Marketing. He is responsible for business development and marketing, including managing sales processes, customer relationship management, branding, advertising, social media, sponsorship, and web development efforts.  With more than 20 years of marketing experience, he is obsessed with analytics and optimizing sales and marketing processes to deliver positive measurable results.

Before working at Silverhawk, he was the VP of Sales and Marketing at HobbyTown Unlimited. During that time, he was responsible for providing a clear vision of the HobbyTown brand while overseeing all national and local marketing efforts for an omnichannel, multi-unit, retail franchise operation.

Dave currently resides in beautiful Hickman, Nebraska, and shares a home with his wife of 20 years Diana, son Benjamin, and two Boston Terriers, Pete and Daisy. In his spare time, he enjoys BBQ, movies, and is an avid motorcycle enthusiast.

Jackie Newman

Jackie began working for the Silverhawk group of businesses in 1997 as an accounting assistant for the security guard, investigation, and aviation companies. Surviving several acquisitions and mergers, she worked her way up to the position of Portfolio Account Manager for ABM Security. During that time, Jackie also did the payroll and assisted with various accounting functions on a part-time basis for Silverhawk Aviation.

In 2016, Jackie finally hung up her security hat and joined Silverhawk Aviation full-time as the Director of Finance. In her new role, Jackie is responsible for overseeing the finance, human resources, and IT functions. She has a Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Accounting from Doane College.

Jackie enjoys reading, playing video games, and the Boston Red Sox. She also loves spending time with her husband Brent as they chauffeur their two children, Zoe and Dane, to and from school and sports activities.