AVION SOLUTIONS - Key Persons
Balazs always hoped for a career in aviation; however, he did not pursue it through the traditional path of military service. He migrated to the United States from Hungary in 1997 as an engineer and worked for more than a decade in research and development for a heavy vehicle company. At home he enjoyed flying 737s on actual routes on his flight simulator, accumulating over 300 hours, which taught him about navigational instruments, instrument landing system approaches, and airport diagrams. When the opportunity came to join Avion Solutions as a systems engineer on the OH-58 (Kiowa Warrior) cockpit upgrade program supporting AED, he was ready.
After supporting the OH-58 program for three years, he was given the opportunity to transition to the Apache Program Office, a much larger branch, where he was responsible for all operational flight software on the attack helicopters. "I purposefully looked for ways to move out of my comfort zone, which I believe is one of the most valuable ways to grow, and Avion has given me those opportunities," explains Balazs.
Balazs currently supports the Future Long Range Assault Aircraft (FLRAA) program office at PEO Aviation. "I like to work on challenging programs that bring new capabilities to the Army. It's great to contribute to something that will serve our troops for decades to come."
Through his long career at our company, Balazs says, "Avion has allowed me to become well-versed in avionics, airworthiness qualification, systems engineering, software engineering, and generally all things connected to military aviation. I love learning about technical areas that are new to me and Avion has certainly given me plenty of opportunities to do just that."
Job Titles:
- TECHNICAL LEAD, MARC STUDY
Teamwork. Visionary. Family-Oriented. These are the phrases used to define what Avion Solutions has meant to Barron Hill. With technical expertise acquired from his service in the US Army, Barron is a strong leader for the MARC Study projects, including the Black Hawk, Grey Eagle and Shadow Eagle.
Barron brings a collaborative leadership style, stating that success is shared amongst his teammates. "The best thing about working at Avion Solutions is everyone has a ‘let's do this together' attitude that helps to make the company grow and has helped me personally to grow. Avion allows creativity and encourages employees to go above and beyond."
Outside of work Barron is an active member of the community, serving as volunteer Chaplain with the Madison Police Department among other things.
Job Titles:
- Chief Growth Officer
- Member of the Leadership Team
- VICE PRESIDENT
Brian Wylie, Vice President and Chief Growth Officer, joined Avion Solutions in 2009 as a Senior Analyst. Over the years, he has served in many different roles at Avion from direct technical support to Program Manager for multiple contracts supporting U.S. Army Aviation, including the Aviation Engineering Directorate (AED) Propulsion and Special Operation Aircraft Divisions. Before assuming his current role, Brian led execution of Avion's primary technical services contract as the Senior Program Manager for AMCOM EXPRESS.
Job Titles:
- CHAIRMAN of the BOARD of DIRECTORS
- Member of the Leadership Team
Job Titles:
- CFO
- Member of the Leadership Team
- VICE PRESIDENT
David French joined Avion Solutions in 2019 and is responsible for all financial activities of the company. Prior to joining Avion Solutions, he served as CFO for CFD Research Corporation, CFO for Agility Defense and Government Services, as well as Senior Vice President and CFO for Siemens Government Services. He brings over 30 years of financial experience across engineering, manufacturing, and logistics services firms in government and commercial markets.
Job Titles:
- SENIOR PROGRAM MANAGER, LOGISTICS
Duane Bowling's 20 years of Army service and supporting Army Aviation played a powerful role in his career with Avion Solutions. That experience, in addition to his successful journey with Avion, allowed him to obtain his current position as the Senior Logistics Project Manager, overseeing all of Avion's logistical contracts.
"The Army taught me to be a leader and when I got out, I had a skill set that Avion was looking for. It worked out for both of us and has helped me to transition into what I'm doing now," said Duane.
While Duane's Army experience certainly aided him in landing a job at Avion, it was not the military involvement that made him want to stay. "The Avion family, leadership integrity, and company's reputation say it all. That's why I'm still here," stated Duane. As an employee owner, these foundations are what Duane values most. "My dad always taught me that a man is only as good as his word, and I believe that Avion follows that philosophy as well."
Job Titles:
- CEO
- Member of the Leadership Team
- PRESIDENT
Evan Wagner, President and CEO, has been with Avion for more than twenty years, supporting U.S. Army Aviation customers and platforms in the areas of airworthiness, systems engineering, sustainment, aeromechanics, and propulsion. He led Avion as Vice President and Chief Operating Officer from 2014 to 2022, fostering Avion's maturation from subcontractor to prime contractor, and overseeing its expansion into new program offices and geographies.
Job Titles:
- CHIEF of STAFF
- Member of the Leadership Team
Ginny Wagner joined Avion Solutions in 2018 and became Chief of Staff in 2019. She brings more than 15 years of experience supporting Department of Defense and Intelligence Community customers in the areas of contracts, budgeting, and business process improvement. She also served as Executive Director for a multinational non-profit focused on orphan care and prevention and community health.
Job Titles:
- DIRECTOR of INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY
- DIRECTOR of IT
- Member of the Leadership Team
Job Titles:
- CHIEF ENGINEER
- Member of the Leadership Team
Kevin Rotenberger joined Avion in 2018 and is responsible for advancing the engineering and technology capability within Avion Solutions. Prior to joining Avion, Kevin spent 30+ years providing innovative solutions and airworthiness certification to Army Aviation in many capacities in the US Army Aviation Engineering Directorate. He spent five years as the chief of the Cargo and Future Vertical Lift (FVL) Divisions in AED, four years as chief of the Structures and Materials Division and 10 years as the Associate Director for Technology in AED.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Leadership Team
- DIRECTOR of CONTRACTS and HUMAN RESOURCES
Job Titles:
- INTERACTIVE MULTIMEDIA MANAGER
Creative at heart, Meng's pursuit of his artistic passion in graphics and animation led him to a career with Avion Solutions, where he has led the graphic design team for the past eight years. One of his favorite projects was creating 3D interactive models of helicopter mechanical parts.
Meng enjoys the collaborative, professional environment at Avion. "Everybody I have come across has helped me. They not only helped me during work hours, they also supported me outside of the workplace," stated Meng. "My supervisors, both in the past and currently, have helped guide me and have supported me to become a better project manager."
A self-described "workaholic" who is naturally driven to go above and beyond, as an employee-owner, Meng also values knowing that his contributions make the company stronger and better.
Job Titles:
- FIXED WING OPERATOR / ANALYST
Ryan Webb has worked with Avion for the past four years, first as part of the UAS MARC Team for RQ-7Bvs Shadow, then as an Operator/Analyst for the Fixed Wing Project Office. His most rewarding project to date has been writing a new chapter for the C-12Y manual, which aimed to incorporate the Garmin G1000 avionics system upgrade.
After writing the new chapter, Ryan and a colleague from Avion had the opportunity to travel to the Kentucky Army National Guard to get feedback from the aviators who were using the manual, and the response was overwhelmingly positive. "I was proud and humbled by the fact that something I had written was good enough that the pilots were happy with it- that it was an improvement from the previous manual, and they learned from it."
The dedication and innovation of employee owners is the foundation Avion has built, and Ryan commends Avion's emphasis on innovation, achieved through employee feedback and a culture that encourages communication. "Avion wants to know how to improve the company from the people who work in the company- that is where the innovative side comes from, a vast difference from any other company culture I have been a part of."
Outside of work, Ryan enjoys playing slow-pitch softball, hunting, fishing, spray-paint art, and teaching Tae Kwon Do to his children and other kids in the community. He is a pilot and Captain in the Civil Air Patrol and he is an avid fan of his wife's baking, just like the rest of us who have sampled the green-tin cookies at Avion HQ!
Job Titles:
- DIRECTOR of BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT
- Member of the Leadership Team
- in 2023 As the Director of Business Development
- Joins Avion Solutions As Director of Business Development
Steve Sizemore joined Avion Solutions in 2023 as the Director of Business Development. In this position he is responsible for developing and executing the overall business development strategy and managing key relationships across Avion's client and industry partnerships. He works closely with the President and Chief Growth Officer, as well as collaborating with corporate leadership across all divisions to drive strategic growth objectives.
Job Titles:
- SYSTEM ADMINISTRATOR
- Member of the LGBTQ
For the past five years, Tiffany has supported Avion through her dedicated work in the IT Department. She is also an active member of the Employee Engagement committee, putting forth the effort that makes Avion's culture unique.
"Everyone works hard to get their jobs done and is respectful of other employees," Tiffany said. "More importantly, and I know it sounds cheesy, but it feels like family here. I recently had a loss in my family, and the number of employees here that checked in on me and sent their condolences was so kind. I've never had that kind of support at previous jobs before."
Tiffany is also a member of the LGBTQ+ community and enjoys being involved in any Pride-related events, in Huntsville or out of town! Outside of work, she loves karaoke, drag bingo, concerts, reading, and having movie nights.