Coltala has hired Phil Bathurst, previously CEO of Aspire MRO, to lead its aerospace business.
Coltala Holdings spent more than seven years searching for the ideal aerospace business—one that combines MRO and consulting services—before acquiring Aeroparts Group in February 2025 and launching Coltala Aerospace.
Now, a year later, the Dallas-based private equity firm is taking its next step by appointing MRO industry veteran Phil Bathurst to lead its aerospace business, which serves commercial, rotor wing and military markets.
Edward Crawford, Coltala Holdings co-founder and co-CEO, see significant opportunities in the aftermarket. “There are a lot of supply and demand imbalances,” Crawford says. “But culturally, we love the people, we love the mission, we love protecting the war fighter.”
A U.S. Navy veteran, Crawford emphasizes the importance of finding a leader who aligns with Coltala’s values. It was looking for someone “who cares about the people, who can execute, cares about the details the business and operations, and really wants to build something great,” says Crawford, who found that in Bathurst. “He’s built a true culture, and we’re excited to work with him to do it again,” he adds.
Bathurst brings a lot of experience to the role, most recently serving as CEO of Aspire MRO, a Fortress Investment Group-backed MRO that provides Boeing 777 passenger-to-freighter conversions. Under his leadership, Aspire MRO grew from 30 to 500 employees to support five lines of conversions in three years.
Coltala Aerospace includes Evans Composites, supply chain and engineering services support company ACD Consulting, and manufacturer and kit builder APM. The division sees opportunity for both organic growth and acquisitions, although Crawford says “organic is our focus.”
Evans exemplifies the potential for organic growth potential, says Bathurst. It’s a “top-tier shop,” with “all the right equipment,” including two autoclaves—but he sees room for improvement. “We can at least double in size just right out of the g ate with the space we have by adding people and bringing in additional contracts,” Bathurst says.
Bathurst also sees significant demand for engineering services, particularly among smaller MROs that lack in-house engineering teams. “We’ll contract with the company, but we don’t necessarily put someone onsite 100% of the time,” which saves companies money, he explains. ACD, which recently has been providing a substantial amount of landing gear service solutions, has “the potential to grow really fast,” he adds.
Further collaboration between Coltala Aerospace’s three portfolio companies offer additional opportunities for growth.
On the acquisition front, Coltala has a target profile in mind. “What we are looking for are founder-led companies that are doing well but haven’t gone to the next step,” Bathurst says.
Coltala Aerospace’s business mix is split between commercial and military aftermarket work, positioning the company to capitalize on both sectors.
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