“Air Mail Pilot.” It’s not a title we see any longer. But it once described aviators with a single mission … to fly the mail. They were oddball pilots indeed. Looking back and hearing from those who actually did it might help give us some perspective about new ways on the horizon for flying the mail.
What happens when a C-130’s #3 propeller gearbox explodes at flight level 270? It ain’t pretty. Listen to the cockpit voice recording of the incident, and hear Evan Smith–who was in the left seat on that day in 1988–tell the tale.
BBC reporter Poonam Taneja tried to forget about aviation when her father was killed in a crash while delivering a plane from Scotland to Canada in 1999. 17 years later she wanted to learn more about what he did, and understand his passion for it. The result is a thoughtful short documentary that recently aired on BBC Radio 4.
“Professional Air Race Pilot” is a rather unique job title. Thom Richard always knew he wanted it. In this conversation, you’ll hear how he worked his way up through flying and wrenching to eventually racing (and winning) at the Reno Air Races and the Air Race One World Cup.
Bryan and Aidan check in with their thoughts on the aviation job market, talk with Marty about aerial firefighting jobs, and hear about Marty’s time at AirVenture Oshkosh this past summer.
Pilots, oddball pilots especially, tend to pride themselves on being self-reliant. Sometimes though, you owe everything to the kindness and professionalism of strangers. This second episode of Oddball Pilot Radio features some riveting audio content from the archives. Listen in as a real-life aviation radio drama unfolds over the Atlantic …
EAA’s AirVenture Oshkosh is not only the biggest aviation event in the United States (and the most fun), it’s also a great place for oddball pilots to network and find potential employers. Marty Blaker spent his time there this year doing some recon on your behalf. Here’s what he discovered.
Aidan and Bryan kick off the new Oddball Pilot podcast with their thoughts about career paths for unconventional pilots, and where future episodes of Oddball Pilot Radio will take you.
Marty had been intrigued by the Pilatus Porter PC-6 STOL for years, but had never actually seen one in person. But when he walked through the gates at AirVenture 2015 in Oshkosh a few days ago, there it was. Inspired, he couldn’t help doing some research. If you’ve ever dreamed of flying a PC-6, this overview will point you in the right direction.
We’ve been wanting to explore aerial firefighting for a long while. After all, it’s one of the most oddball flying jobs out there! Marty gets the ball rolling with this overview of some of the opportunities, and what it takes to get in the door.
