Management Team

Nicolas Finazzo founded AerSale in 2008 and has served as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer since inception. He also serves as Division President - TechOps, which focuses on the Company’s growing MRO and Engineered Solutions products. From 1997 to 2008, Mr. Finazzo was Co-Founder and Chief Executive Officer of AeroTurbine, Inc., a leading private non-OEM affiliated aftermarket supplier of aircraft and engine products and MRO service provider. Mr. Finazzo together with his business partner, Robert Nichols, successfully grew this Company to become a premium integrated global aviation supplier and sold it to Cerberus in 2006, where it was merged into AerCap Holdings (NYSE: AER). Mr. Finazzo worked for AerCap for several years to integrate the operations and successfully transitioned his responsibilities to a successor management team.

In 1997, Mr. Finazzo was Vice President & General Counsel of AeroThrust, Inc., an MRO service provider for commercial jet aircraft engines. From 1991 to 1997, Mr. Finazzo was Vice President & General Counsel of International Air Leases, Inc., an integrated aircraft leasing company. From 1987 to 1991, Mr. Finazzo was Vice President of Contracts for Greenwich Air Services, a commercial jet engine MRO service provider. From 1981 to 1987, Mr. Finazzo was the founder and President of Southern Express Airways, Inc., a commuter airline operating in the United States as part of the Air Florida commuter network.

Mr. Finazzo has a J.D. degree from the University of Miami School of Law and a B.S. degree in Political Science from the University of Michigan. He is a member in good standing of the Florida Bar and holds an FAA Airframe and Powerplant license.

In 2019 Mr. Finazzo was honored to receive the Wright Brothers Memorial Award from the Greater Miami Aviation Association. The Wright Brothers Memorial award is presented to individuals who have demonstrated innovation, vision, perseverance, and have transformed their industry segment.

Martin Garmendia has served as Chief Financial Officer of AerSale since 2018. From 2015 to 2018, he was Senior Vice President of Finance and Corporate Controller for AerSale. From 2006 to 2015, Mr. Garmendia had various roles for NextEra Energy (NYSE: NEE) including Senior Director of Corporate Accounting for Florida Power & Light, a power utility company and Controller during the IPO of NextEra Energy Partners (NYSE: NEP). From 2003 to 2006, Mr. Garmendia had various roles for Bacardi USA, Inc., a spirits company, including Finance Manager of the Forecast Budget & Analysis Group. From 2000 to 2003, Mr. Garmendia was a Senior Auditor in the Assurance & Advisory Practice at Deloitte & Touche, LLP, a multinational professional services network and accounting firm. Mr. Garmendia is a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Florida.

Charles McDonald has over 30 years of industry experience including MRO aviation services, aircraft maintenance, and airline flight operations.

Starting his aviation career as an Aircraft Mechanic with AMR Eagle, Charles advanced to Director of Aircraft Maintenance before joining British Aerospace Regional Aircraft, where he held director-level positions in technical support, customer support, and in-service business development. Proving his ability to transform complex issues into operational successes, he attained senior management positions including Vice President of Maintenance and Engineering and ultimately COO for TransMeridian Airlines, followed by COO for World Airways.

Charles was most recently CEO for Global Aviation Holdings Inc., the largest commercial provider of charter air transportation for the U.S. Military and a major provider of commercial global passenger and cargo air transportation services. He also owned New River Aviation, an aviation consultancy group providing realistic solutions for a wide array of business concepts to private individuals, financial institutions, private equity, and capital investment firms.

Charles served in the U.S. Army—earning an Army Achievement Medal, graduated from the Spartan College of Aeronautics in Tulsa, Oklahoma, and is an FAA Certificated A/P Mechanic.

Basil Barimo has served as the Division President. MRO Services for AerSale since December 2019. From January 2019 to December 2019, he was the Chief Executive Officer for AerSale. From 2017 to January 2019, Mr. Barimo was Chief Operating Officer of AerSale. From 2010 to 2017, Mr. Barimo was Executive Vice President of Repair for the NORDAM Group, an aerospace components MRO service provider. From 2003 to 2009, Mr. Barimo was the Vice President of Operations and Safety for Air Transport Association of America, a U.S. trade association and lobbying group. From 2002 to 2003, Mr. Barimo was the Vice President of Operations for Avborne, Inc., a supplier of mid-life aircraft, engines and used serviceable material, and MRO service provider. From 1989 to 2002, Mr. Barimo was the Senior Director of Maintenance Quality Assurance for US Airways, Inc., a commercial airline.

Mr. Wright has served as Division President, Aircraft & Engine Management since December 2019. From January 2019 to December 2019, he was the President of AerSale. From June 2017 to January 2019, Mr. Wright was Chief Commercial Officer of AerSale. From 2010 to 2017, he was Senior Vice President of Aircraft Leasing for AerSale. From 2006 to 2010, he was Vice President of Fleet for Macquarie AirFinance, a global aircraft leasing company. From 2001 to 2006, Mr. Wright was Director of Corporate Finance for GATX Capital Corp., working in multiple business units including rail/locomotive, IT equipment and aviation finance. From 1990 to 1998, Mr. Wright was a Consulting Engineer for Lin & Associates, Inc., a specialized structural engineering company.

Mr. Jones has served as President of AerSale’s Materials Group since 2019. From 1999 through 2019, he was President and Chief Executive Officer of Qwest Air Parts, a supplier and distributor of commercial aviation parts that was acquired by AerSale in 2019. From 1983 to 1998, Mr. Jones was Vice President of Acquisitions for GE Capital Aviation Services, a commercial aviation financing and leasing company.

Iso Nezaj is a veteran aviation executive with demonstrated leadership ability. In addition to his strong technical and business qualifications, he has an impressive track record of more than 25 years of hands-on experience in strategic planning, business development, project and product management, and system engineering. Mr. Nezaj has served as Chief Technical Officer of AerSale as well as Division President, Engineered Solutions from 2017. Prior to that, he held various leadership roles across Technical Services at AerSale since 2010. Mr. Nezaj joined AerSale after 18 years of aviation experience at Air One Maintenance & Engineering LLC, a US FAR Part 145 certified aircraft repair station and service provider, Commercial Jet Inc., a US FAR Part 145 certified aircraft repair station and service provider, Skytrak International Airlines, Inc., a US FAR Part 121 certified commercial airline, Aeron Equities, Inc., an aircraft leasing company, and Kiwi International Airlines, Inc., a US FAR Part 121 certified commercial airline.

Ben Tschirhart is a seasoned aviation professional with a proven track record of leading large scale and technically complex aerospace development programs across multiple sites, countries, and cultures. He started his career at MTU Aero Engines in Germany and joins AerSale with more than 20 years of experience in the aerospace industry. As Vice President, Engineering Solutions at ATS, a US FAR Part 145 certified repair station and service provider, Mr. Tschirhart was focused on IP generation and product development and sales for Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) certified aircraft products, integrated solutions, and engineering repair and offload services, including parts manufacturer approval (PMA) and supplemental type certificate (STC), as well as non-certificated products. Mr. Tschirhart’s previous roles at ATS include Sr. Director, Business Line Management and Sr. Director, Programs of Engineering Solutions. He also worked at Greenpoint Technologies (now part of Safran) and B/E Aerospace – Flight Structures (now Collins Aerospace) in the US and Lidl Stiftung & Co. KG in Germany before joining ATS.