Universal Avionics appoints new leadership roles
US-based aviation company Universal Avionics (UA) has appointed Christopher Whelche as Chief Financial Officer and Jean-Marie Bégis as Director of Product Management and Partnerships
Chris joins UA with over 16 years of experience in the aerospace industry, with extensive experience managing working capital, FP&A, and building efficient teams. He will take a strategic role in managing the financial growth of UA with a focus on creating synergy and leveraging best practices across the organization.
Chris joins UA from SolAero Technologies, a private equity backed company in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he was Vice-President of Finance. Prior to that, Chris was the Controller for Bendix King, a subsidiary of Honeywell. Chris is a graduate of Arizona State University with a BS in Accounting and an MBA from National American University.
Driving connectivity-related products
In this new role, Jean-Marie will initially drive connectivity-related product initiatives and contribute to UA’s innovation strategies.
Jean-Marie joins UA with more than 20 years of experience in business development and implementation of mission critical mobile communications, aircraft data link services, and aerospace systems. He is uniquely skilled in the management of complex international programs and delivery of ‘connected aircraft’ avionics, data link, and cockpit and cabin information systems and services. Prior to joining UA, Jean-Marie held director-level positions in engineering, and business and product development at SITA, CMC Electronics, and GE Aviation JV-Avionica, LLC.
In March, Wendy M Bartos joined UA as Director of Contracts.
Clara Bullock
Clara Bullock is a writer for ITIJ and AirMed&Rescue. Initially a freelance writer for publications ranging from gardening news to music magazines, she has made the transition to writing about the ins and outs of travel insurance and aeromedicine. In her spare time she reviews books on Instagram and eats pasta.