Airnet - Craig Washka Flying Magazine Article

I can't overstate how much of an impact Craig had on mine and so many pilot's lives and careers, including many on this website. Craig is built differently.

How can you tell if the gear is down and locked?

Still remember meeting him at the NIFA NerdCon in LCK in, I think, 2007, and then the next year at my Airnet interview just weeks before they announced the start of their big shrink. What a character and a great guy.
 
I can't overstate how much of an impact Craig had on mine and so many pilot's lives and careers, including many on this website. Craig is built differently.

Sounds like a great person and role model.
 
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I can't overstate how much of an impact Craig had on mine and so many pilot's lives and careers, including many on this website. Craig is built differently.

I needed this today.
 

View: https://youtu.be/5ngSeg21zcM?si=iqXPFyTdNxY8N3pr

It’s been discussed but idk why the re-poster labeled it as 1990s. I believe it dates to circa 05-07 but there are guys on here who would know. 3:00 has Washka.

every couple years I like to go back and watch this for the nostalgia, several of my instructors went to work here and loved it. always hoped I’d make it there, but they unfortunately went under before I became competitive
simpler times…
 
There are a lot of inside jokes in that video, I think it was made sometime in 06. I owe so much of my career to that place and Craig giving me a shot there.
 
I had a tour setup at the Dupage facility in 2008, they canceled it a month later due to the big shrink.
 
I never worked for AirNet but I fueled a lot of their airplanes in my days of being a ramper at CLT. Made friends with a few of the pilots and they were all great people. Even got to ride in the extra seat out of Philly back to CLT a few times. Always thought it would be a great place to work.
 
He interviewed me the day Airnet announced furloughs for the first time in company history. He called me a few days later to offer me the job and he tried to explain what the whole thing meant. I learned a lot from my interview with him.
 
I was going through the get to know each other phase starting a trip a while back and when I told the youngin FO that I flew checks after college he responded with "Checks? I have to google how to write those."

I’m pretty much a check writing dude. My weird way of providing an “air gap” in the way I do things so Skynet doesn’t get too out of control.

That being said, with the advent of “points” credit cards, I’ve slowly (very) switched over to just paying for everything the card, which I pay off every month. I’m down to writing zero checks.

The other day I had to write one, though, to cover the copay from a dentist appointment. Actually found a good one, and they run their practice, more or less, as catch and release, so you just get a bill in the mail for any copay due.

It was for $10. First check I’ve written in forever. I’ve got a roll of forever stamps, so not sure of the exact postage, but I think it made up a sizable percentage of the total cost.

But on topic, check run was the first stop in the pipeline after CFI when I was a youngin’. Late 80’s, there were tons of small operators, as well as the bigger ones like Airnet. The pipeline was so well established at my local field that there really wasn’t much of an interview process. The person in front of you simply handed the job off to the next person with a phone call to their boss when they moved up the pipeline. 1,200 TT was the magic number.

Recession of 90 blew that whole program up. Where you were was where you were when the music stopped, and then things got ugly.
 
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I was going through the get to know each other phase starting a trip a while back and when I told the youngin FO that I flew checks after college he responded with "Checks? I have to google how to write those."
I've had similar interactions. Also, what you didn't want to just fly for the pax carriers? *Stares into the void.
 
I’m pretty much a check writing dude. My weird way of providing an “air gap” in the way I do things so Skynet doesn’t get too out of control.

That being said, with the advent of “points” credit cards, I’ve slowly (very) switched over to just paying for everything the card, which I pay off every month. I’m down to writing zero checks.

The other day I had to write one, though, to cover the copay from a dentist appointment. Actually found a good one, and they run their practice, more or less, as catch and release, so you just get a bill in the mail for any copay due.

It was for $10. First check I’ve written in forever. I’ve got a roll of forever stamps, so not sure of the exact postage, but I think it made up a sizable percentage of the total cost.

But on topic, check run was the first stop in the pipeline after CFI when I was a youngin’. Late 80’s, there were tons of small operators, as well as the bigger ones like Airnet. The pipeline was so well established at my local field that there really wasn’t much of an interview process. The person in front of you simply handed the job off to the next person with a phone call to their boss when they moved up the pipeline. 1,200 TT was the magic number.

Recession of 90 blew that whole program up. Where you were was where you were when the music stopped, and then things got ugly.
Funny you mention that as I don't really write checks anymore either. That being said I'm having my attic insulation replaced today and instead of paying their credit card fee I'm planning on writing them one for the bill.

I started flying in 1998 and working at the FBO the following year at MKC. Airnet was in the same building as the school was and then had 310s and Learjet's based there. It was never top of mind back then to work for them but later when I got more familiar with the check flying business they rose to the top of the heap. By the time I finished my undergraduate degree and had 1300 TT they called first, that was in the fall of 2005. I transferred to BHM in the winter of 06 and had a Caravan only run so I didn't get checked out on the 310s which was a bummer as they were retired that summer. Somewhere in my parent's house is a picture of teenage me in front of a Tomahawk that I soloed in with a beat up Airnet 310 behind it.

At MKC we had several smaller 135s based there, one of which Safewing would hire you to fly VFR in their Lances with 500TT. Central Air Southwest is also there and has somehow managed to survive the end of the check flying days and still flies Aero Commanders.

Recession of 1990 was nasty, I know I've mentioned it before here but my dad got caught in that one. From 89-92 he went through three bankrupt airlines.

I've had similar interactions. Also, what you didn't want to just fly for the pax carriers? *Stares into the void.
Haha, yeah I bet. People are funny aren't they?

Fun thing about being here is I can't go but a few weeks without running into someone from the Starcheck days. I just rode with guillotine the other day in the parking lot van here in Denver. In upgrade class last year there was a guy that started at USCheck, and still remembered the same people.
 
Funny you mention that as I don't really write checks anymore either. That being said I'm having my attic insulation replaced today and instead of paying their credit card fee I'm planning on writing them one for the bill.

I started flying in 1998 and working at the FBO the following year at MKC. Airnet was in the same building as the school was and then had 310s and Learjet's based there. It was never top of mind back then to work for them but later when I got more familiar with the check flying business they rose to the top of the heap. By the time I finished my undergraduate degree and had 1300 TT they called first, that was in the fall of 2005. I transferred to BHM in the winter of 06 and had a Caravan only run so I didn't get checked out on the 310s which was a bummer as they were retired that summer. Somewhere in my parent's house is a picture of teenage me in front of a Tomahawk that I soloed in with a beat up Airnet 310 behind it.

At MKC we had several smaller 135s based there, one of which Safewing would hire you to fly VFR in their Lances with 500TT. Central Air Southwest is also there and has somehow managed to survive the end of the check flying days and still flies Aero Commanders.

Recession of 1990 was nasty, I know I've mentioned it before here but my dad got caught in that one. From 89-92 he went through three bankrupt airlines.


Haha, yeah I bet. People are funny aren't they?

Fun thing about being here is I can't go but a few weeks without running into someone from the Starcheck days. I just rode with guillotine the other day in the parking lot van here in Denver. In upgrade class last year there was a guy that started at USCheck, and still remembered the same people.
You should’ve checked with Guillotine to see if his charts were up to date. :bounce::bounce:
 
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