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West Point grad named Erickson CEO Doug Kitani Thursday Aug 31, 2017 at 5:30 PM Aug 31, 2017 at 5:30 PM Greg Stiles Mail Tribune @GregMTBusiness Global helicopter operator Erickson signaled it expects to see a lot more Defense Department contracts coming its way when it named a new chief executive officer Thursday. Doug Kitani is a West Point graduate who has worked in the defense contractor and aerospace industry for the past 14 years. For the past three years, he was CEO at IAP Worldwide Services. IAP is a global defense services firm specializing in logistics, expeditionary infrastructure, facilities engineering and power systems. That's a nice fit as Erickson pushes into refurbishing heavy-lift Navy and Marine helicopters to complement its firefighting, logging and infrastructure capabilities. “As an accomplished aerospace and defense CEO with vast government services experience, Doug brings a unique skill set to Erickson and we feel confident he will be able to leverage Erickson’s unique capabilities into new markets while continuing to support and grow our existing relationships,” Erickson Chairman Jim Continenza said in a statement. In 2015, Executive Mosaic, which provides executive leadership training and networking, included Kitani in its Wash100 list — described as "influential leaders in the government contracting industry." In announcing the hiring, Erickson — whose manufacturing is based in Jackson County — also cited Kitani's expertise in mergers, acquisitions and quality improvement. Prior to running IAP World Services, he led the strategy and acquisitions arm of DynCorp, for equity investor Cerberus Capital Management. Between 2006 and 2009, Kitani was co-founder and general partner for Calder Capital Partners, a private equity firm backed by Allied Capital and Goldman Sachs. Before that, he held general management positions at Honeywell International and General Electric. "I am excited to be a part of building the business and expanding our market position in the days ahead,” Kitani said in a statement. Kitani earned his MBA in finance and strategy from Emory University and graduated from the U.S. Military Academy before becoming an Army helicopter pilot, qualified to fly Bell UH-1 Iroquois, OH-58 Kiowa Warrior, and Sikorsky UH-60 Black Hawk choppers.  — Reach reporter Greg Stiles at 541-776-4463 or [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter at www.twitter.com/GregMTBusiness, and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/greg.stiles.31.