What’s next? Aidan checks in from the hangar in Nome, Alaska.
We get a lot of questions. In this first Q&A session, we tackle: becoming a commercial pilot later in life, getting a job abroad, humanitarian aid flying, and more. Listen in …
If you’ve seen Plane Xtreme on The Weather Channel you’ve met legendary ferry pilot Steve Hall. After a long battle with cancer, Steve took his last flight on December 15th. In this audio recording, Aidan and Alex Haynes reflect on Steve’s unique contributions to aviation.
Fire season always brings lucrative work to air services in Alaska. When Ross Nixon headed to McGrath for his first season flying fire contracts, he had no idea how much he’d like the job … or what music had to do with it.
When John Corcoran finally took a vacation after 10 years of flying in Alaska, he discovered a whole world of interesting flying jobs. Shortly thereafter he found a gig working for a South African company flying a Let L-410 on humanitarian aid contracts in central Africa. Last summer, John sat down with Aidan in Nome to chat about his experiences, and to offer his advice about how to get a job flying in Africa.
A lot of people get into aviation because they don’t want a “real” job. In his latest Dispatch, Aidan ponders the meaning of “work,” and realizes that he’s happiest in the sort of flying jobs many pilots would run from. There’s some great food for thought here, as well as some inspiring photos from his time working in Nepal and Western Alaska.
A chance encounter with a bush pilot in 1973 sent a low-time 19-year-old pilot from Texas north to Kotzebue, Alaska. He flew the bush for 16 years before returning south to fly for a major airline. If you’ve spent much time in Alaska you may have seen CloudDancer’s books about his adventures. If not, you’ll want to read them after getting to know Cloudy in this great interview!
Plane Xtreme is a new reality show on The Weather Channel that “chronicles the adventures of an elite group of pilots who deliver small aircraft to points across the globe.” Aidan (who participated in the filming and is in next week’s episode) watched the first two shows and was pleasantly surprised by what he saw. Here’s his review.
A quick update from Anchorage, where Aidan met up with one of our Oddball Pilot Network members. Here’s what’s coming.
