Here’s a pretty cool avgeek story, if you ask me.
Continue reading: Cool: Airbaltic’s CEO Becomes A220 Captain
Share your questions, experiences, and thoughts below.
So cool. Air Baltic is my favorite regional airline in Europe. From the roomy A220s to the cool regional onboard meal options to the great transfer experience in Riga, it's top-notch all the way.
Riga is also well worth a long layover! Awesome city in a less traveled corner of Europe.
Oh man, this story became way less cool when it was mentioned that he is actually a pilot. I thought this was a CEO who never flew decided to learn to become a pilot, that would have been super cool
Nice story, no doubt.
Just one thing, I hope he really stops being a CEO and becomes 100% pilot and captain when he steps into the cockpit. Meaning FOs are not intimidated - and for example, will have no problem deciding to go around and "waste fuel" in front of the CEO.
I've had fantastic experiences on AirBaltic, which were highly unmemorable. I mean that in a good way. It's a very reliable little airline and they actually operate a lot of routes, so it's a great way to bounce around Europe/Eastern Europe. Riga is also a fantastic city to do an extended layover in.
Air Baltic could very well be my favourite airline to fly with. Excellent product (especially now that they're A220-only) and usually very nice fares. And I think they actually perform very well financially.
They are always my choice for Baltics and usually also for Finland (I rarely fly further to the east, but if I would, I wouldn't look any further).
@Samo they have been doing fine the last couple of years but they received a monster bailout around 2011. It was a major scandal in Latvia that such a small airline at the time could lose over 170 million euros in 2 years and how massively the old CEO was paid for running the airline while owing a part of it. Receive something in the region of 142 million euro rescue and has been doing fine since. Lets see how this year goes.
Starlux Airlines' Chairman and CEO is a A320/321- rated captain. When he ran EVA AIR previously, he was a 777-rated captain
Following Dennis note, Starlux's CEO Chang Kuo-wei actually fly Starlux's first A321neo from Hamburg to its new home himself. China Eastern's Chairman is also a 350-rated pilot who flew for China Eastern and before that, China Southern.
this is the way it should be. those passionate about aviation becoming CO'S, not greedy former rental car company CO'S running big airline companies
Current ELAL CEO is a former air force pilot and was a pilot for ELAL with its 747 fleet.