R
ick Hoefling has loved airplanes
all his life. While growing up in
Elizabeth, N.J., he took a ride in a
prop plane down the Hudson River that
openedhis eyes to themagic of flying; later,
he studied engineering at Rutgers Univer-
sity, hoping to “do somethingwith planes.”
Today, as managing director of operations
control at UnitedAirlines’ Newark Liberty
International Airport hub, Hoefling consid-
ers himself fortunate.
“
I lovemy job. I can’t believe they payme
to do what I do,” he says. “I knowmy team
feels the same. It takes a unique person
to want to take each challenge and deal
with it before it becomes a problem for
our customers.”
Hoefling’s boss describes him as a
quarterback who ensures that United
employees, federal agencies, vendors
and partners from the Port Authority of
New York & New Jersey come together in
orchestratedharmony. Thatorganizationis
vital for keeping things running smoothly
at Newark, one of the world’s busiest air-
ports, where more than 800 of United’s
arrivals and departures come and go daily.
The oldest commercial airport serv-
ing New York/New Jersey, Newark can
present a variety of challenges. “We have
two main runways that are so close we
can’t have simultaneous use a lot of the
time,” Hoefling says. “When our weather
deteriorates, our airport capacity drops
significantly, which iswhywe’ve invested in
sophisticated weather radar and the right
people to interpret that data sowe cankeep
our flights moving around the weather.”
Hoefling has had many years to figure
out how to unravel such complexities.
Stefan Mayden, managing director of
ramp service, hired him in 1985 to work on
the ramp. Hoefling has worked in various
capacities at the airport ever since. “From
anoperations perspective, there’s probably
nobody who knows more about Newark
than Rick does,” Mayden says. “He’s very
engaged and obviously dedicated. If you
ask anyonewho the guy to go to inNewark
is, they’ll tell you Rick Hoefling.”
May 22, 2013, marks the 25th anniversary
of the opening of Newark’s Terminal C.
Hoefling has seen a lot of changes in those
years. “The airline hadassumedoperations
and employees from two other airlines,
creating a disconnected, patchwork opera-
tion,” he says. “Today, the airline operates in
all three terminalswith operations tightly
linked. Before, wewere just there. Now, we
are
Newark.”
Beyond simply growing, United has
invested in the airport itself, building facili-
ties to overcome operational challenges.
“
We built a sophisticated, professional
operations tower with cutting-edge
technology, where we have about 40
people—operations, line maintenance
control, cargo, etc.—all centrally located
so we can discuss operations face to face.
If everyone is separate, it’s much more
difficult to address issues as quickly as we
do,” Hoefling says, adding that the airline
has invested in a system called Sensis
Aerobahn to provide “the kind of real-time
airport surveillance data we needed.”
But facilities are only one factor in his
team’s success. “We educate employees to
balance our business needswith the needs
of our customers,” Hoefling says. “It’s not
just about flying metal from point A to
point B. In the end, the more we develop
the capabilities of thehub tomake the best
decision, the be er we are at running an
outstanding operation.”
And as the hub grew, Hoefling grew
along with it. “Themost rewarding part of
my job is tackling problemswith the entire
team,” he says. “When I started, I was the
kind of person who would fix problems
comehell or highwater. But I learned I can’t
fix it all by myself. We have a lot of people
who are very wise. Fixing problems and
delivering an exceptional product takes
everyone’s talents and everyone’s input.”
AnswerMan
Whether upgrading facilities or dealing with the unexpected,
Rick Hoefling thrives on solving the trickiest problems
BY A. AVERYL RE
12
MAY 2013
•
HEMISPHERESMAGAZINE.COM
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