ATLANTA, April 19, 2007 (PRIME NEWSWIRE) -- Tony Charaf, senior vice president of Delta TechOps, this week received the prestigious Nuts and Bolts Award from the Air Transport Association's (ATA) Engineering, Maintenance and Materials Committee, honoring his contributions to the aviation maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) industry during a lifetime of service. Charaf, the 41st airline recipient of the ATA award, accepted the honor on behalf of all TechOps employees during a dinner held at the industry's annual MRO conference in Atlanta.
In his acceptance speech, Charaf said, "I am personally so moved by this award but not because it is for me. This award is for all of Delta TechOps because of the dedication and sacrifice of our 6,500 maintenance professionals who have just gone through the most difficult time in the history of our company. To them, and to their families, all of whom were deeply affected by the events of the past couple of years, I say thank you. It was a challenge, certainly, but the fiber of the people of Delta TechOps never faltered, and now we can all celebrate together as we help reinvent this great company. I accept this award on behalf of all the Delta TechOps employees who are without peer in this industry."
Added Joe Kolshak, Delta's executive vice president - Operations: "Under Tony Charaf's visionary leadership and during one of the most difficult periods in industry history, Delta TechOps has consistently been recognized for its commitment to going well beyond 'business as usual.' Even with the challenges of bankruptcy at Delta, Tony set ambitious goals for improving safety, increasing revenue and expanding our business through insourcing, and even more importantly, he then set up a roadmap to make it all happen."
Charaf joined Delta in 1996 and holds a bachelor's degree in Engineering and a master's degree in Management, both from Northrup University.
Delta TechOps is the largest airline MRO in North America, earning more than $312 million in revenue in 2006. In addition to providing maintenance and engineering support for Delta's fleet of 440 aircraft, Delta TechOps serves more than 100 aviation and airline customers from around the world, specializing in high-skill work such as engines, components, and hangar and line maintenance. Delta TechOps employs more than 6,500 maintenance professionals and is one of the most experienced MRO providers in the world with more than seven decades of aviation expertise.
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