Professional Pilot, October 2016

the thought of taking over His lifelong love of aviation started as a child when he and his father would build model airplanes together With an uncle in the US Air Force he contemplated a military career for himself His plans may have changed but his passion did not Jimmy took his first flight with his dad at age 13 soloed at 15 and obtained his private pilot license the day he turned 16 Although Jimmy earned a degree in physics and engineering he couldnt shake the flying bug So he went the CFI route for a couple years and then took a ramp job with SkyWest Airlines before getting the call for a pilot position with them in 2002 Advancing from flying turboprops to jets he stayed with the airline until 2008 It was at this time when his brother Tom approached him about taking over Centrex from their father Jimmy agreed but was clear on one thing he wanted to focus on aviation construction He states I realized Im very relationship related and it works in the aviation industry Even with his new role as director of business operations he has continued to fly the company planes and will be soon type rated in the Citation CJ2 His love of aviation is apparent when he talks about Centrex We fill an interesting middle gap We dont just do construction we bring more to the table Jimmy explains We want to be known as the premier west coast aviation general contractor Just as Jimmy followed his yearning to fly younger brother Tom pursued his fervor to build things Growing up on the job sites with his dad fostered this desire and guided him down his career path Initially majoring in aerospace engineering he soon moved to 44 PROFESSIONAL PILOT October 2016 Dir of Planning Steve Leasure banded together with his brothers in law to lead Centrex Previously he worked on the Boeing 787 Dreamliner as part of the hydraulics group a business degree The first thing he built was a software company While short lived it taught him valuable lessons that would carry over when he eventually joined Centrex In 2007 the senior Severson was contemplating retirement so Tom asked his father to teach him the trade Severson agreed and committed to 3 more years which turned into 9 before handing over control In 2008 Jimmy came on board followed shortly after by brother in law Steve I saw that it was less about construction and more about people Tom states The passion comes from the relationships we build and the pride in the work we do This concept of relationships with their clients is so important that there are times they will evaluate a job request and if it does not fit the Centrex style the request may be turned down As director of field operations Tom has his finger on the pulse of every project Centrex has going My role here is perfect for me Its hard work but I wouldnt trade it for the world The 3rd player on the Centrex dream team is Steve Leasure While not a pilot aviation runs deep in his veins nonetheless A native Oregonian Leasure earned his mechanical engineering degree with a focus in propulsion systems from Oregon State University in 2004 As luck would have it he was dating James Seversons daughter Heather and worked part time as a laborer for Centrex while in school After graduation Leasure took a job at Boeing and got in on the ground floor working on the 787 Dreamliner as part of the hydraulics group Now married and officially a member of the family the couple wanted to move back to the Portland area at the same time Severson was considering closing Centrex Leasure approached Severson about taking over the business unbeknownst to him that Jimmy and Tom had as well The 2 sons and a son in law were a perfect fit and Severson happily relinquished his position Now as director of planning Leasure declares I enjoy design and while at Boeing I got to work on design but I didnt get to see things built Here I get to see it from start to finish This concept of design build is what allows Centrex to develop relationships with their clients that they Jon Wenrich head of business development feels at home flying the Cessna P210N after years of piloting small aircraft around Alaska to assist under privileged children The latest addition to the Centrex flight department is this 2008 Cessna Citation CJ2 Its added range speed and comfort now allows the team to further expand their reach