Ironbird Partners Podcast

Sep 9, 2025

Kimberly Herrell – Built to Lead, Built to Last

Owning a jet doesn’t guarantee availability. Doug Gollan shares how jet cards and backup coverage keep your travel plans protected.

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Episode Highlights

What happens when your private jet client knows more than your sales team?

In this episode, Dan Harris speaks with Kimberly Herrell, CEO of Schubach Aviation, about what it takes to stay relevant in a market where clients are getting smarter, younger, and more values-driven. From building trust with first-time charter clients to keeping high-frequency fliers loyal, Kimberly shares real-world lessons from decades of running one of California’s most respected boutique charter companies.

She opens up about inheriting a legacy, modernizing the brand, and the unique pressures of operating in a city like San Diego — where tech, lifestyle, and luxury expectations are always in the air.

Inside this episode:

✦ Why Schubach focuses on loyalty over scale

✦ How younger clients are reshaping private aviation expectations

✦ What first-time flyers actually want — and how to earn their trust

✦ The hidden risks of brokering trips with unknown operators

✦ How Kimberly navigated legacy, succession, and brand evolution

✦ Why "boutique" doesn’t mean small — it means intentional

If you care about reputation, retention, and delivering luxury that lasts — this conversation will hit home.

🔧 Sponsored by:

Charter Flight Support — Backstop coverage when mechanicals delay your mission. charterflightsupport.com

Video Valet — Inflight entertainment with no Wi-Fi required. Mention Iron Bird and receive a complimentary iPad setup. videovalet.io

✈️ The Iron Bird Podcast brings together the voices shaping private aviation today — for the clients, owners, and operators who care about doing it right.

Catch all episodes at: flyironbird.com

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Jet To is proudly powered by Ironbird Partners, LLC: Ironbird Partners LLC (the Air Charter Broker) is acting as an “Authorized Agent” for the Charterer (client) and does not own, or operate, any of the aircraft represented. Inquiries and contracts are for transportation services with only FAR Part 135 Direct Air Carriers or their foreign Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) equivalent that operate and exercise full operational control over those flights at all times. Ironbird Partners, LLC is an Air Charter Broker and not a direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier. All air service shall be provided by a properly licensed direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier.

© Ironbird. All rights reserved.

Jet To is proudly powered by Ironbird Partners, LLC: Ironbird Partners LLC (the Air Charter Broker) is acting as an “Authorized Agent” for the Charterer (client) and does not own, or operate, any of the aircraft represented. Inquiries and contracts are for transportation services with only FAR Part 135 Direct Air Carriers or their foreign Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) equivalent that operate and exercise full operational control over those flights at all times. Ironbird Partners, LLC is an Air Charter Broker and not a direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier. All air service shall be provided by a properly licensed direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier.

© Ironbird. All rights reserved.

Jet To is proudly powered by Ironbird Partners, LLC: Ironbird Partners LLC (the Air Charter Broker) is acting as an “Authorized Agent” for the Charterer (client) and does not own, or operate, any of the aircraft represented. Inquiries and contracts are for transportation services with only FAR Part 135 Direct Air Carriers or their foreign Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) equivalent that operate and exercise full operational control over those flights at all times. Ironbird Partners, LLC is an Air Charter Broker and not a direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier. All air service shall be provided by a properly licensed direct air carrier or direct foreign air carrier.

© Ironbird. All rights reserved.