North Country Aviation Services

Aviation is in William Ketcham’s blood.  A retired US Navy Gulf War veteran, for over 20 years Ketcham served as an aircraft mechanic and flight engineer at Naval air stations around the world.  After leaving the service, he returned home to the Southern Tier and became an aircraft mechanic at FirstAIR, the sole-provider aircraft repair facility at the Greater Binghamton Airport.   Over several years, Ketcham’s unique expertise and reputation for quality, federally certified repair on both commercial and private aircraft made FirstAIR one of the most respected companies in the field.  Ketcham was also responsible for the repair and certification of ground support equipment at the airport.   When the owner of the business decided to explore opportunities elsewhere, Ketcham saw an opportunity.   Working with the Binghamton SBDC’s Doug Boyce (himself a former Navy aviator), Ketcham developed a business plan and set of financial forecasts for his own company, North Country Aviation Services, that allowed him to arrive at a fair purchase price with the owner as well as to convince commercial lenders to help finance the purchase. The $135,000 package consisted of a conventional bank loan, an SBA-guaranteed loan, a revolving line of credit, and the client’s equity investment.   Says Ketcham, “Doug Boyce and the SBDC worked with me to develop a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.  I couldn’t have done it without them.”