Mark Schwichtenberg
Published in Midwest Flyer Magazine October/November 2023 Digital Issue
One of the newest members of the Minnesota Aviation Trades Association (MATA) Board of Directors is Mark Schwichtenberg, the Line Manager at St. Cloud Aviation in St. Cloud, Minnesota.
Mark says that as a kid, he remembers going to his grandpa’s house and being obsessed with books he had on the shelf about all the different types of aircraft. After high school, Mark decided to go to St. Cloud State University for Aviation, not truly knowing what the aviation industry was all about.
“I had never been in a small plane, but it intrigued me. I will never forget the first time a college friend of mine took me up in a Cessna 152. That was all it took, and I was all in,” Mark said.
Mark started flight training at Wright Aero, receiving his Private Pilot Certificate in 2011. Shortly after starting flight training, he was hired by St. Cloud Aviation working on the line and became supervisor less than 2 years later.
“I also joined the Aero Club and became its Operations Officer,” Mark said. “I joined the St. Cloud State University (SCSU) flight team, as well, and in 2013, I was elected team captain. Although I was in the second to the last class to go through the aviation program at SCSU before it was cut, we were a tight group that would do anything to help each other succeed.”
After graduating from St. Cloud State University in 2013, he continued to work at St. Cloud Aviation until a peer talked to him about working for the airlines. He had seen the general aviation world and thought it would be good to gain some knowledge and experience in the airline side of the industry. So, in September 2015, Mark started working for Sun Country Airlines in crew scheduling, and after only a year, he was promoted to supervisor, and did that for 3 years, until an opportunity arose, and he was promoted to Duty Manager in the System Operations Center (SOC).
“This position was a challenging step up, and it was very rewarding, and I gained a lot of knowledge working side-by-side with maintenance control, dispatch, crew scheduling and the charter department, making sure the entire operation was running smooth and as efficiently as possible,” said Mark.
Although Mark was working for Sun Country, he stayed in contact with Bill Mavencamp, owner of St. Cloud Aviation. In the fall of 2021, the company needed part-time help and someone to help with the fuel testing. Mark missed working outside and being around aircraft, so he started working part- time on the line.
“Very quickly, I remembered how fun it was to work the line, and after a few meetings with Bill, I made the very tough decision to return to St. Cloud Aviation as the line manager. It was where my passion was, and I had to follow that passion.”
