Advisory Board

Joseph Dini
Preston G. Gaddis II
Edward Gross
William J. Quinn, Jr.

Joseph Dini
Senior Vice President
Sovereign Bank

Joe Dini is currently Senior Vice President of Sovereign Bank and director of its aviation group. He holds an undergraduate degree in finance from Northeastern University and a graduate degree in management from Lesley University. He is currently a Trustee of Daniel Webster College and Chairman of the Finance Committee.

He started his career as a bank manager. He has been directly involved in the aviation finance and leasing industry for forty years. His expertise covers a wide range of corporate and commercial aircraft, but has most currently focused on General Aviation/ Business Aircraft financing. He has successfully closed aircraft financing transactions in excess of two and one half billion dollars.

He is experienced in marketing, pricing, documenting, administering and remarketing. In the early 1970’s he was responsible for management of leased transportation assets. From the mid 1970’s through mid 1980’s he was part owner of a well known and successful leasing and finance company. That company was sold to a Fortune 500 company and he became marketing manager of one of the largest lessors of corporate aircraft in the world. During that period he set up and managed the company’s entire transportation remarketing division, which included all types of aircraft.

During the mid 1980’s, Joe set up and became president of a new bank owned leasing company. During the late 1980’s, he owned an aircraft acquisition and marketing company and set up three large independent general aviation finance groups for major finance corporations. He was most recently, Vice President for Merrill Lynch Capital and currently Senior Vice President, leading Sovereign Bank’s aviation finance group.

Joe is an active pilot, a member of the National Business Aviation Association, Past President and Board Member of the National Aircraft Finance Association, a recognized author of aviation finance articles, and a speaker at a number of worldwide aviation finance related conferences.

Preston G. Gaddis II
Director
Crowe & Dunlevy

Preston G. Gaddis II (Gil) is an advisory director in the firm of Crowe & Dunlevy P.C., which he joined in 1965. Gil graduated from the University of Oklahoma, receiving a B.A. in 1960 and an L.L.B. degree in 1962. He also attended Georgetown University and received an LL.M. in 1965. Gil has spoken on various topics involving aircraft financing at numerous conferences over the past 25 years, including many conferences on registration, liens and security interests. Gil is also the author of various articles that have appeared in the AirFinance Journal and of the Aircraft Financing Chapter in Mathew Bender’s Commercial Finance Guide.

Edward Gross
Shareholder
Vedder Price

Edward K. Gross represents bank-affiliated and large independent equipment financing companies in all aspects of equipment finance, especially business aircraft financings. This representation includes documenting, structuring, negotiating, syndicating, and enforcing equipment finance transactions for more than 20 years. Many clients rely on Mr. Gross in syndication transactions, including large portfolio purchases, “one-off” sale and assignments, discounting, back-leveraging and participation transactions. He has prepared middle and capital markets lease, loan and syndication forms for some of the largest equipment finance companies in the industry. Mr. Gross has been involved in hundreds of such transactions totaling billions of dollars.

He counsels clients regarding the financing of all types of business aircraft, including large and small jets, turbo prop and smaller aircraft and helicopters. These transactions vary in structure, including managed and/or chartered aircraft, fractional and “pay card” arrangements, tax-motivated or synthetic structures and foreign registered aircraft used by businesses, governmental entities or high net-worth individual users. Mr. Gross has worked on financings, syndications and portfolio sales involving aircraft having an aggregate value of billions of dollars.

Mr. Gross is a prolific writer and commentator, having contributed numerous articles in the Journal of Equipment Lease Financing, Leader’s Equipment Leasing Newsletter and other related journals. He has also contributed to treatises, including Chapter 28, “Middle-Market Leasing and Syndication,” Equipment Leasing–Leveraged Leasing, Volume 2, Practicing Law Institute, 1999, Updated 2005 and co-authored Chapter 3A, “Equipment Finance Leasing Documents and Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code” Equipment Leasing–Leveraged Leasing, Volume 1, Practicing Law Institute, 2004; and Lecturer at numerous seminars, including, ALI-ABA Conference: "the New Uniform Commercial Code," 2004 and 2005; WebCredenza Article 2A Update Seminar 2005; Lessors Network Funding Conference, 2005 and 2006; the Strategic Research Institute: FAA Aircraft Registration, Lien & Security Interests Seminars in 2003 and 2004, and Cape Town Convention & Aircraft Protocol, 2006, ABA Aircraft Financing Subcommittee, Business Aircraft Financing, 2005, and the Equipment Leasing Association Legal Forum, 1990-1997, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2004 and 2005. The ELA formed a subcommittee to the ELA Legal Committee, Mr. Gross is the current chair of that Subcommittee.

Mr. Gross has been recognized by his peers as a Washington DC Super Lawyer (2007 edition) and is listed as one of The Best Lawyers in America (2008). Aircraft Finance

William J. Quinn, Jr.
Director Aircraft Sales & Acquisitions
Cerretani Aviation LLC

Bill is currently a Director of Aircraft Sales and Acquisitions for Cerretani Aviation in Boulder, Colorado. He has been actively involved in the business aviation industry for more than 37 years.

His aviation career began in the military with the United States Navy in 1966 where he served as an aircraft maintenance technician and aircrew member in a naval helicopter squadron. During his aviation career he worked for several aircraft manufacturers; founded a number of successful aviation businesses; and was Director of Aviation and Chief Pilot for a fortune 500 company.

He founded Aviation Management Systems, Inc. (AMS) in 1983 which is a highly disciplined aviation consulting firm that specializes in providing management, technical, operational, and asset-based consulting services to aircraft owners and operators as well as the aviation, financial, insurance and legal communities. He continues to serve in a consulting capacity to senior management and is also Chairman of the Board. He also serves on the board of SAI Valuations which is one of the largest business aircraft valuation companies.

Bill has served on the board of directors of the National Aircraft Finance Association (NAFA) and National Aircraft Resale Association (NARA). He chaired NARA’s Associate Member Advisory Council for three years and currently serves on the NARA Board as a member at large. He is also a member in good standing of the National Business Aviation Association, European Business Aviation Association, International Society of Transport Aircraft Traders, American Society of Appraisers, New England Helicopter Council, Business Aviation Professionals of New England and the Aircraft Owners & Pilots Association.

He is a frequent speaker at industry conferences and has written a number of articles on the value of aircraft as collateral and the relative impact that aging aircraft and regulatory changes have on the fair market value of aircraft.

Bill has been actively operating, evaluating, assessing, and appraising business aircraft since 1986. He holds an Airline Transport Pilot license for both fixed and rotary wing aircraft with type ratings in both business jets and helicopters. He is an Accredited Senior Appraiser with the American Society of Appraisers. During his career he has appraised or evaluated more than 2,000 aircraft valued at more than fifteen billion dollars. His operating experience ranges from turbo props to heavy business jets and helicopters. He has more than 5000 hours of flying experience, including international operations in the Far East and Europe. Bill’s operational experience, combined with a strong background in business, sales, and marketing, provide him with a distinct and unique understanding of the value of business aircraft and business aviation.