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According to a 2021 report from the University of Nebraska at Omaha Aviation Institute, although women have made major gains in the aviation industry, they still represent less than 10% of leadership positions.
Threshold Aviation Group (TAG), based at the Chino Airport, is an outlier of this statistic. Several of the most important leadership positions in the company are held by women.
Lisa DiLullo is the President of Threshold Aviation Group. She started her aviation career working for an aviation insurance company. In 1990, she and her husband Mark started TAG. Over the past thirty years TAG has grown into one of the largest Southern California based, full-service aviation services providers. TAG currently employs 115 people. Lisa manages all of the day-to-day operations.
Nicole DiLullo, following high school graduation, wanted to work at the family business. “My Dad didn’t initially want me to come work for the company, he wanted me to explore other opportunities that he believed were less stressful, however my mind was made up. While my dad was on an extended trip, I took advantage of his absence and interviewed with Tom Bressan, COO and earned a position as Assistant FBO Manager. The process required that I complete orientation and all other hiring protocols. Much to my dad’s surprise, when he returned to the office, I was employed at Threshold.”
Nicole continued her education and earned her Bachelor’s degree from Liberty University, VA. Nicole is now the Director of FBO Operations at TAG and oversees the Human Resource and Accounting Departments. Her duties include the sales and marketing of FBO services and she has developed a prosperous freight handling division.
Kayla DiLullo graduated college in May 2022, with a Master’s degree in Legal Studies specialized in Business Law from the University of San Diego School of Law. “After I graduated from my undergraduate program at Cal State San Marcos, I told my dad that I wanted to be a business owner like him and I was willing to put in the effort to achieve that goal. After discussions with my father, he encouraged me to go back to school and get my law degree.”
Just before Kayla graduated, an opportunity to buy and sell aircraft presented itself. Kayla and Mark formed CieloBlu and entered into an agreement with Tecnam Aircraft to be the exclusive distributor in California and Arizona. Kayla is the President and Managing Director of TAG’s recently launched “new aircraft sales division,” CieloBlu.
In addition, TAG offers a variety of other services to the aviation community including:
- Part 135 Charter and Part 91 Flight Operations
- Aircraft Management Services, Flight Crew, & Aircraft Storage
- Maintenance & Repair Organization (“MRO”) inspections and repairs for Business Jets
- Aircraft teardown and End-of-Life services
TAG was recently recognized by the FAA as a company that defies industry standards having women in many leadership roles. Many other divisions of the company are let by women as well, such as the maintenance and accounting departments.
When asked what it is like to work with family, the three women were candid, explaining that sometimes working with family has its unique challenges, but that it also has great benefits. Each agreed that they do separate and apart tasks that lend themselves to cohesive operations without conflict.
“I am very proud of the success of the business my husband, Mark and I have built,” said Lisa. “Having our children involved makes it even more rewarding. Having grown up around aviation their entire lives, it comes as no surprise that both Nicole and Kayla chose this industry. We are extremely proud of both of them and are excited to see how this next generation grows TAG.”
