Sabreliner president wants to continue rebuilding in Perryville

Editor's Note: The formal name of Sabreliner Aviation was corrected below and in this story's photo caption.

PERRYVILLE, Mo. -- In recognition of National Manufacturing Month, U.S. Rep. Jason Smith dropped by the Sabreliner Aviation facility in Perryville, Missouri, on Friday morning.

The 8th District Republican congressman from Salem, Missouri, spoke with various employees and management officials as he toured the facility. President Greg Fedele led the tour, offering details about the various services such as painting, repairs and interior work.

Fedele also took a moment to talk about the aviation company's future. Sabreliner employs slightly more than 100 people, with about 60 working at the Perryville location. The remaining employees work at the Ste. Genevieve location.

Fedele showed Smith a photo of an aerial view of the Perryville facility, with employee cars filling the parking lot. Unfortunately, he said, the lot is much emptier now.

Government spending cuts and a reduction of military action were cited as the primary reason for layoffs at the company last year. It came under new management just after the start of this year. Fedele said the company's new direction will be a little less military-focused and promote other strengths as it continues to rebuild.

"We employed about 400 or 500 people in our heyday, and that's what we'd like to see again," said Fedele.

He called Sabreliner a world-class facility, and attributed much of that to the efforts of the employees.

Perryville Mayor Ken Baer questioned whether the company would have a problem finding enough properly trained employees once it started hiring more people.

"For the medium-term," Fedele said. He did not expect that to be an issue initially because many former employees are traveling to the St. Louis area for work and would likely be happy to cut down on their commute.

Once they exhaust that initial worker pool, he said it could become more of an issue to find employees with needed skills. The company has considered working with area community colleges on the issue, and Perryville alderman Prince Hudson also suggested looking at high school level trade school classes and at the Perryville Area Higher Education Center.

Smith commented on the positive influences Sabreliner has on the district, pointing out Perry County has the lowest unemployment rate in the 8th District. He said he looked forward to making another visit after the company took on a few more projects.

"There's no reason why this facility can't grow and why it shouldn't grow," Smith said.

srinehart@semissourian.com

388-3641

Pertinent address:

1390 Highway H, Perryville, Mo.