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This is Chris Redgrave, the new voice for Zions Bank Speaking on Business.
I never thought about an airplane being a real beauty until I saw the Jetstream 32 that Jeff Obering and his staff had completely refurbished and painted mostly white with an orange trim. In fact, he had a buyer for the plane on location when I had the opportunity to tour his immaculate Cedar City hangar.
Jeff is the owner of Kolob Canyons Air Service, a company that provides full-service aircraft charter for the St. George and Cedar City communities. He has eight planes that are used for air charter, air cargo, firefighting/fire spotting, and air ambulance services that assist with emergency medical needs. His service also includes a medical staff. In fact, his name and service are becoming so well known in his community that medical personnel have started to approach him about the company.
Although all areas of Jeff's business are flourishing, the air charter portion of it occupies much of his current focus. The fantastic aspect of this growing part of the business is that it has all come through word of mouth, which equates to many satisfied customers. This can be partially attributed to the wonderful job Jeff's staff does of maintaining his jets. I'm sure it also ties into his extensive aviation background.
He told me he caught the flying bug at a young age and would daydream as he watched the jets overhead. He acually grew up in an automotive family with his dad thinking he would follow in the family footsteps, but Jeff started flying at the age of 17.
Jeff told me the aviation challenge never goes away and neither has his love and passion for flying. He's been able to make his passion a success by diversifying his small aviation business. Did I mention Kolob Canyons Air Service also offers aircraft management as well as a ground school with flight training?
The greatest source of job satisfaction for Jeff comes when he assists with fire spotting or uses his medical team to get much-needed emergency care that has saved lives. On occasion, he has provided charity service for people during an emergency evacuation. It's no wonder Jeff Obering and Kolob Canyons Air Service are involved in a specialty area where there is a need for privately owned and operated small jets.
For Zions Bank, I'm Chris Redgrave, speaking on business.
