What does it take to start an airline? Aidan found out in 2011 while helping train the pilots of Goma Air, a new small air taxi operator in Western Nepal. Before he returned to the U.S., he interviewed Goma Air’s Managing Director, Manoj Karki. This is our first exploration into the business side of oddball flying.
After Aidan delivered a Caravan to Safarilink at Wilson Airport in Nairobi, Kenya last summer, he sat down with pilot Shahid Rasuel to learn a bit more about what they do (fly tourists to dirt strips at safari camps in Kenya and northern Tanzania, and to paved strips at beach resorts on the Kenyan coast). There’s a good elephant story in here too.
Ben Rowe’s parents founded Bering Air in 1979, and over the years he worked his way up from painting the hangar floor to being Chief Pilot. In this interview you’ll hear about the history of aviation in Nome, what it’s like to work for the company, what it’s like to live in Nome, and more!
If you live near Seattle, join us next Wednesday night at KBFI to see Aidan’s photos of Nepal and hear his stories about flying there.
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.
Our look at Island Air Express in Southeast Alaska continues with a quick tour of their Klawock base, and an in-depth walkthrough of a Garrett-powered Cessna Caravan with Chelton avionics.
There aren’t many operators looking for pilots with turbine and amphib experience, who also have polished instrument skills. Island Air Express in Southeast Alaska is one of them. Last Spring, Aidan met up with Chief Pilot Pat Goodrich in Ketchikan to hear more about what he does and what he looks for in the pilots he hires. If you like floats, turbines, and IFR, this short interview is well worth a listen.
When John Gowey was a kid, he watched floatplanes from Kenmore Air fly over his house. Today, he’s the Chief Pilot. If you’ve ever thought about flying floats for a living, don’t miss this interview. You’ll learn about this unique oddball flying path, and how to get started.
The first video Aidan ever shot for Oddball Pilot was this look at Era Alaska’s operations in Barrow. Take a look around, climb inside a Cessna 208 Caravan, and see what an Alaskan air taxi base is really like.
How does a kid from Nepal with a dream of one day becoming a pilot turn that dream into reality? Listen in as Goma Air Captain and Director of Operations A.D. Sherpa tells his story … and explains why he left an airline job flying the ATR 72 in India to start a new airline with two Cessna Caravans in Western Nepal.
