Dallas, Texas-headquartered aviation advisory and brokerage firm Mente Group has appointed business aircraft sales professional David Hayes as southeast MD. Based in Orlando, Florida, Hayes comes to the Mente Group from Textron, where he led national sales teams for Textron Specialized Vehicles, TRU Simulation + Training and Textron Aviation, where he was regional sales director for Citation jets.

During his two decade aviation career he has also been a flight instructor group leader for FlightSafety International, a first officer for Delta connection Comair Airlines and captain and PIC on a Falcon 900EX for a private company.

“David's direct aircraft sales experience, familiarity with pilot and safety training and firsthand knowledge of business jet operations will clearly benefit Mente Group's clientele interested in buying and selling private aircraft,” says Brian Proctor, company president and CEO. “He is skilled in sales, product marketing, management, leadership, team development and proficient in sales tools.”