Passion, Jet Fuel, and Some Fuzzy Slippers

One of my favorite mugs in my kitchen cabinet states “I love the Smell of Jet Fuel in the Morning.” For anyone who has worked on the ramp in aviation, you know the phrase. This quote is all about passion.

Last week aviation enthusiasts from all over the United States converged on San Diego at the annual NBAA Schedulers and Dispatchers Conference. Unusually rainy weather and a public holiday did not stop several thousand aviation professionals from discussing their services that spanned executive jet management, catering, sedan transport, and of course flight support.

For those of you that attended you got to see some interesting marketing tactics that included fuzzy bear slippers, an angry bird game, and a promotion to win a trip to Rome. If you are interested in the trip to Rome, please visit our Facebook page at www.facebook.com/EuroJet. We have one more week left in the promotion!

The great thing about Schedulers and Dispatchers is that it eliminates the massive presence and overwhelming nature of the Annual NBAA Convention. It is much more condensed, focused, and you cannot move a few feet without running into someone that you know or worked with at some point.

While standing and talking to people in the Euro Jet booth and walking the convention floor, I was struck by the multi faceted nature of aviation. With every flight, there are so many moving parts of different vendors that work to make everything go flawlessly. All those key players that make it happen were exhibiting in this one space.

It seems like those who have breathed too much jet fuel over the years, also enjoy a good time. The hottest party of the week was Rockwell Collins, who had a band that could perfectly imitate a slew of 80s hits. The Conference was then capped off by an event on the USSS Midway Aircraft carrier in the San Diego Harbor. This included an open bar, up close view of vintage fighter jets and Top Gun music playing all around.

Not too shabby.

I have had the word passion spinning in my head all week. Schedulers and Dispatchers demonstrates that aviation is not just a job. It is also a career and passion for so many. Most of us do not work 9-5 and have weekends off. This industry is 24-7 and the term “anytime of the day” was heard many times over in our meetings.

I often joked that if I ever left aviation and went to another industry I would go work in a bank or as a toll booth worker. Fortunately I never left aviation and am still lucky enough to work in such an industry that loves a little jet fuel and can still appreciate a good 80s tune!

And now we look forward to Business Airport World Expo in France next month, where we can experience this passion once again except on a European scale. Instead of iced tea and hot dogs as a late afternoon snack, should I look forward to fine wine and frog legs?