M1 Support Services

M1 Support Services is an American military contracting company. It is one of the largest defense companies in the world.

Name

The M1 in M1 Support Services stands for "mission first." ^[1]

History

M1 was founded in 2003 and was awarded its first government contract in 2004. Cofounder Kathleen Hildreth has worked for competitor DynCorp from 1991 to 2003. ^[2] Before working at DynCorp Hildreth was a helicopter pilot in the US Army. ^[1]

In 2016 M1 was awarded a major $414.8 million contract to support the USAF's 80th Flying Training Wing. ^[2]

In 2024 Cerberus Capital Management acquired a controlling stake in the company. ^{[3] [4]}

By 2025 M1 Support Services was one of the largest defense companies in the world with US$900m in total revenue, all from defense contracts. ^[5]

Facilities

In 2025 the company opened a new office building in Enterprise, Alabama, they were already one of the largest employers in the Wiregrass region. ^[6]

See also

• Top 100 Contractors of the U.S. federal government

References

1. HUNTER, GLENN. "How Ex-Army Helicopter Pilot Kathleen Hildreth Co‑Founded a Billion-Dollar, Denton-Based Defense Contractor". dallasinnovates.com. Dallas Innovates. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
2. Ingle, John. "AF selects M1 Support Services for Sheppard's new aircraft maintenance contractor". timesrecordnews.com. Times Record News. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
3. Wakeman, Nick. "Cerberus buys aviation support firm, brings in new CEO". washingtontechnology.com. Washington Technology. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
4. COOPER, NAOMI. "Cerberus Buys Majority Stake in MRO Services Provider M1". govconwire.com. GovCon Wire. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
5. "Top 100 for 2025". defensenews.com. Defense News. Retrieved 5 September 2025.
6. Lambert, Jacklynn. "M1 opens off-site headquarters in Enterprise". wtvy.com. WTVY. Retrieved 5 September 2025.