Aviation TV Show debut January 5th

Greeting SuperCub.org faithful. I am a Cub driver and have taken on a new project that I need some help with. I am co-hosting an HD aviation themed TV show that debuts this Saturday on Discovery's Velocity Channel. It is a 30 minute magazine style show that features everything from ultra lights to modern fighters (yes and Cubs too).

I am not here seeking viewers (though I hope you do tune in). What I am seeking is informed feedback and ideas for the show. The show is not targeted specifically at pilots (too small of a demographic) but I think it will fail if it does not pass the smell test with this critical core group. This forum has a vast amount of knowledge and expertise and does some amazing flying. I hope to capture some of that spirit and mindset and bring it to the show.

To find our show you can go to our home page at www.flightline.tv and use the channel finder to locate Velocity on your cable system or satellite provider.

We are on weekly and are actively shooting and producing pieces and features as the season progresses. I would like to do some flying up in Alaska and am looking for ideas and opportunities there. We also are looking for sponsors interested in reaching out to 43 million US households on a weekly basis and to a good number of pilots and aviation consumers. Ideas there are welcome as we are operating on shoestring at present.

Aviation and what we love to do is not in a healthy state right now. I hope that our show can help attract and interest more people to what we do and the freedoms it offers us. It may sound a little sappy but I think something needs to be in the marketplace that shows general aviation in a positive and fun light.

I look forward to hearing from you. Pilots tend to offer their opinions quite frequently and without a lot of prodding........

Paul Jackson

Cool, I added to my Tivo. Looks like the first airing is 3:00 AM Saturday Jan 5.

Paul Jackson said:

I think something needs to be in the marketplace that shows general aviation in a positive and fun light.

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I looked at your bio which I will post for other readers... good to know you have the credentials.

Paul started down the path to becoming a pilot while a student at St. Cloud State University. Aviation had always been a passion of his and he pursued the career as a professional pilot with vigor. He achieved his initial pilot ratings and built a base of flight time while at St. Cloud and moved to positions as an instructor and freight pilot after graduation. His airline career began in 1988 at Great Lakes Airlines where he progressed to Captain at the Regional Airline by the age of twenty three. After a brief stint at America West and upgrade to the Boeing 737, Paul was hired at the start up airline Morris Air as a Captain on the Boeing 737-300 at the age of twenty seven. Today, Paul is a senior Captain with a major airline. To date he has accumulated over 19,000 hours of flight time (that is over two years in the air!). He also still has a passion for aviation that extends beyond his job as an airline Captain. He has flown everything from pre-World War II era aircraft to modern combat ready jets. He has served as a factory demonstration pilot at the world’s largest air show in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, is an experienced float plane pilot, and has competed in aerobatic competitions. Paul holds the highest FAA rating as an Air Transport Pilot, is a certified flight instructor, and also is rated for float plane operations. Paul is excited to share his passion for all things flying and connect the audience to the excitement and exhilaration of flying. His goal is to take the audience along as he enters the cockpits of some of the world’s most unique and interesting aircraft.

Doing a segment on Kenmore Air in Seattle might be interesting. Great folks there.

The Kenmore Air piece is on my radar. I know the guys out there through aircraft sales (though its been a while) and they run a class operation. We are trying to work a DC-2 piece with the Museum of Flight into a trip out there and would like to add one more feature to make the trip worth while. I hear they have some guys building some sort of jet contraption in Everett that may be interesting. I also want to get to Vancouver and cover some of that culture and flying. Too many ideas not enough budget and time!

Thanks for reposting my bio. I am not trying to come off as a know it all on the show and hope that my smirk is enough to show I am humble when flying with the Snowbirds or in the Just SuperStol (that was a riot to fly). I do believe that aviation needs less screaming newscasters or set up reality shows and more pilots on the air talking about the reality of what is going on and not fake drama or hyperbole. I am on this forum and several others to try to keep it that way and get some feedback from the other side of the camera.

We are always looking for advertisers and operating on a shoestring at this point let me know if you have any ideas here. They are always appreciated.

Paul Jackson said:

... Aviation and what we love to do is not in a healthy state right now. I hope that our show can help attract and interest more people to what we do and the freedoms it offers us. It may sound a little sappy but I think something needs to be in the marketplace that shows general aviation in a positive and fun light. ...

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I would encourage any effort on your show to prioritize "grassroots and affordable aviation" over the "rich man boys with their toys and jets" stories.

Thanks Bugs. Our first show is an example of how I think we are trying to balance that out. We have a "Fly Fishing" story about a group of non-ski pilots who land on lakes and fish. Turned out great and grassroots is the theme as the star is a Cherokee 140. In the same show we feature a TBM Avenger that is owned by a great guy out of Chicago. He is featured and gets a big talking part as he is so down to earth and really excited to own and operate the aircraft. He went out of his way to get us a private shoot and has been a true historic aviation steward. We also have a PC-12NG feature that I think has some great visuals and opens the door and lets you see what it can do.

There are some rich guys and we do feature military jets also (Blues, Snowbirds, F22, and working on a F16 Guard piece). We try to bring some air show to the screen as well to broaden the view. One of my favorites is a piece we shot on Auto Gyro Club Flying. It was a hoot and the guy we flew with kept telling us about the great deal he got on his helmet at a garage sale. Balance is the focus. Please let me know if it tips too far in your opinion.

Three generations of my family were pilots, beginning before the Second World War. My son is chief pilot of major corporation who can't keep his hands off our float-equipped Bushmaster when he comes home. What's lost to the general public is the Spirit of flying, that it's not a rich man's preserve, that it's open to everyone, some having to sacrifice more than others to get there. (One can't fly and think of ownership if, as in my case, he golfs, curls, drinks seriously and smokes, is a clothes horse etc. One chooses.)

As I sit here amidst memories and mementos, with a 2 1/2 X 4 foot print of Barrie A. Clarke's magnificent Spitfire over my left shoulder, photos of family in winter flying suits next to Fleet Finches, bombers overseas, my father in flying jacket in Stalag Luft III, the J3s, PA18s, 180s and 185s, Beeches, Westwinds and Falcon 50s, I think of---in your context---of a popular Canadian program around trying to keep a a flying operation going in the Far North. It's authentic. Real people showing what they do and how they feel about what they do.

Your show is aviation-themed. All I can offer is Flying magazine is aviation-themed. It slid right out from under most of us years ago.To me it's sort of a catalogue. A show featuring my religion of flying would be of soul, all about people around the pleasure and pursuit and business of flying. Like Dallas. The thing was oil but the thing behind the thing that's the thing was people.

Paul's father is also a nice guy. He is a Marine who survived, I think, all of the Marine Corps amphibious landings during WWII in the Pacific. I had the pleasure of meeting him two years ago at OSH and accompany him and other veterans to Washington to view the WWII Memorial.

Paul Jackson said:

Thanks Bugs. Our first show is an example of how I think we are trying to balance that out. We have a "Fly Fishing" story ...

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Right on... I don't think any aviation enthusiast will ever object to warbirds or antiques either. There are a lot of neat things going on in experimental aviation also. Here are some other ideas, check out oddballpilot.com for some inspiration on "non airline" jobs that new commercial pilots can achieve. Consider behind the scenes work for movies that involve aviation. For example the movie Flyboys they built several full scale flying Nieuport biplanes. Unique general aviation destinations are always interesting. Airplane engines, old to new are fascinating. One pet peeve with TV shows, let us hear the motors without music overlays!

Oh how we dance on the edge. I just had a call with a major sponsor and they are looking to have features as well as ads. I am reticent to go too far in that direction but they are paying the bills. The challenge is to keep the soul of the show and depict a cross section of aviation with the common theme being flight and the passion for it.

The piece on the Honor Flight that Southwest Airlines flew from OSH to BWI is on this year and it was a great experience. That was indeed my still alive and kicking 87 year old Dad that went on the flight. A little off our sweet spot but we got enough flying visuals in there and Honor Flights are great stories to tell. He made five amphibious assaults in the Pacific as a Marine Rifleman (Iwo, Saipan, Tinian, Roi Namur, Marshalls) and complained about having to hang with all the Swabies on the trip as it was a Navy group that we tagged along with.

I hear the comment about Flying and I agree though Martha and her tales of being a Fed have made me renew again this year. Print is a tough go right now and they are scrambling for revenues.

Every piece we shoot we try to fly in or within the story. It is our hook and gets us the visual pop we need to keep the large enthusiast and air show attendee coming back. The rub of the show is it's like an air show. You host a show and if your lucky 30,000 show up and of those only about 1,000 are pilots. If you market at the show to just to pilots you can't make a business model work. We are aiming at the 30,000 and trying to get the 1,000 to enjoy and accept the show. Without that buy from the core group I don't believe the masses will hang around.

The outfit down in South Florida that still flies DC-3's for hire. They are also hooked up with the foundation that operates the Eastern colors DC-6. They also have the oldest DC-3 on the books in restoration right now. Its actually a DST sleeper, predecessor to the DC-3.

There's a guy on this website who has on his Cub the original N-Number issued to his family's Curtiss Jenny by the Dept. of Commerce in the 20's. Its been an active N-number on a number of aircraft thru the years, all within the same family.

Family friend here in Atlanta has the Stearman 6L Cloudboy that was used as the prototype sent to the Army Air Corp for testing, from which all later PT Stearman derive from. They all trace back to this one unique aircraft.

I hate to drop their names so feel free to contact me email or PM.

Living/Flying Museums:
Old Rhinebeck Aerodrome in Rhinebeck, NY Oldest registered aircraft in US still flying, a 1909 Bleriot.
WAAAM in Hood River, OR Largest collection of flying OX-5's (and Anzani's I think)
Fantasy of Flight in Lakeland
Antique Airfield in Ottumwa, IA
The Red Bull hangar in Germany
Candler Field Museum at Peachstate Airport in Atlanta, GA

Cool Airports:
Flabob
Lee Bottom
???

Do a piece highlighting the true warriors of aviation entertainment, airshow performers past, present and future.

If you are looking for cool airfields out here in addition to Flabob, how about Santa Paula, Frazier Lake, McMinnville? It's too bad The Flying Lady isn't open anymore at South County.

Paul I would suggest a trip to Cubcrafters during one show. They are the other big aircraft manufacturer in Washington State. Dakota Cub co. helps a lot of us with advice, parts and kits all centered around the cub and you might check out their site. The takeoff and landing competition in Valdez Alaska should consume one whole show with hopped up cubs taking off and landing in 20-30' maybe and the drama of competition can be worked in.
If you do ultralights I would suggest Quicksilver brand with about 20,000 built and probably 20,000 built and I believe the best safety record of any aircraft. You can help dispel the 20/20 S--- that was spewed out a few years ago.
I was thinking about your marketing problem of working in drama while making it real. Maybe you can figure a way to incorporate alternate "wink wink" segments that lets pilots know your not insulting their intelligence and yet provides some action every ten minutes or so. Something like "oh my god were stalling" and then a close shave recovery and then back on the ground an explaination of what actually happened. You could even have a character "close shave guy" or some such. A bit like the "drunken pilot" that steals the cub at the airshow.
Even if not everyone watching is a pilot I would bet the vast majority will be interested people, ex pilots, R/C pilots, airport bums that just go to buy the hamburger, etc. so don't be surprised if presented properly you might elevate the audience a bit.
I wouldn't worry to much about looking to much like reality TV if that's what it takes. I enjoyed the "Tweto" Alaska series even though it was somewhat contrived. They pulled it off by not insulting our intelligence to much but walking up to the line and only occasionally crossing it.
How about an audience contest for Boeing simulator time? No liability problems and no pre-qualifications needed.
There, a bunch of dumb ideas...
I don't envy you working out the correct formula for your business.

One more thing if you haven't checked out this site in detail. Look up cloud dancer. He has books of stuff and I bet there is something there you can use. If you can catch him that is...

Thanks. I didn't know the numbers on my TV went that high.

I think he is looking for 'family' programing, not Cloudy's 'trying to make a family' program;-)


One dream of many is the trip north to Alaska. When you get to Alaska, you quickly find that aviation is the life blood. Airstrips in back yards, planes using the highway to take off, (in Alaska aircraft have the right of way fyi), towns with no way to get food or fuel other than flying it in....

Well, there are many folks that have forgone the cruise, expensive cars, big house, fancy boats so that they could save and buy a plane. Some buy cubs, some buy taylorcrafts, some buy pacers or cherokees. Many of them want to some day fly it north.

A great episode would be a trip of one of these average Joe Plummer guys, taking a 3 week vacation and flying his/her bird north to see the country. Remember, many of these planes cost LESS than the family car. But they are safe and fun.

Yakutat Alaska, the beginning of the Warbird Museum, (the old original Yakutat WWII Hanger, it presently has one of the Normandy C-47's), also destination to fish...

There are endless episodes with the AVERAGE pilot, flying an inexpensive plane, (no glass cocpit, day vfr), that shows how much fun you can have for the same price as going to the bar every couple of nights...

Glad to see pilots trying to do a show about pilots.

One thing that popped into my mind when reading the post about the, state, of aviation is to remind people that they too can become a member. Most guys and gals had humble beginnings. No one was an instant expert, even the best of the best. People need to know that sucsess in aviation is the same as in life, passion and determination. If you tap the, I can do it too part, of people we may all benefit. People want instant reward today and aviation is not the place to get it. Having said that if people see the passion and FUN that is provided by being an aviator then they will respond. Remember the awe you got from watching TO FLY, or the joy of FLYER'S, raw power of HAIL COLUMBIA? The small screen equivilent of a wonderfull story told by a wonderfull aviation person will translate to all. A stunning image of the smallest glider being launched by a winch followed with a great story is as powerfull as a rocket launch, if done right. I am not a movie person so I don't have advice on how to accomplish this feat, but the guys that make awesome videos on this site would be able to help capture the awe and sensation of flight on a shoe string budjet. Best of luck with the endevour. Tapp the EAA, they make videos all the time.

As Pilots, most of us are flying on a tight budget. One look at almost all small airports you notice right off, hardly anyone is flying these days. The front row of our local airport has nothing in it but boats and campers. You can't blame the airport managers/owners they have to pay the bill somehow. We need a good show so we can boost interest in flying small airplanes. I could spend all day just going from hanger to hanger, talking with people and looking at there plane project's. Love talking to the older pilots that flew in the war and there storys, talk about some real Hero's. I had to work in Kodiak Alaska and visited a new float plane base called Andrew Airways.com they fly hunter's in and out as well as fishermen and alot of local people who live in the area. Great people

Great stuff. That's why I came here. When the mixture on my PA-12 was a mess I got several ideas on what it was from the collected group of Cub Drivers. I knew this would be just as good.

In no particular order. I ran across a DC-3/6 guy in Florida while I was doing a P-51 deal this summer. We had lunch and I got his info. Character with a capital C in both aircraft and people. He started it up for a run up and they had a bad mag. The boom was awe inspiring. On our bucket list for a piece when we head to Sun n Fun in April. They are still working airplanes (might not be the same guy as yours)

The museums are on the list. We have a Fantasy of Flight and the Ottumwa field in our library. Great stories on both. I want to get to Rhinebeck this summer but have to watch it as it is off the beaten path and that gets spendy (we like to shoot 2-3 features per trip for budget reasons). I also like the character airports as long as we can hit an event and work with a couple aircraft. We did the American Barnstormers Tour this summer and that was a hit.

Air show performers we have are Mike Wiscus, AeroShell, Blues, Snowbirds, and Horseman. I want to get with T-Birds this year and a couple of the piston formation teams. Time and budget.

We did a great piece on the Carbon Cub and Cub Crafters that all will enjoy. We also flew the Just SuperStol. I have a HeioCourier lined up and want to do some more Cub stuff in the bush.

Alaska is mecca for us and I kick myself for not selling more ads so I can fund a trip up there. We need a couple weeks and I would like to shoot multiple pieces from operators to individuals and capture some great stuff. I am trying to acquire a 210 photo ship to support the mission as I am using a T-6 right now and that does not leave the area. We did shoot a great float piece with Wipaire this fall that uses the Caravan and Turbo Beaver (Kinky Lucy the CA/US flag bird). I popped for a helicopter to shoot some great water action in the piece.

Military pieces are hard to come by for obvious reasons. We have the F-22 demo and the military teams above to go with a Apache bucket training piece which was interesting. I am trying to get a piece with the WI ANG out of Madison in their F-16's and blend in the MKE ANG unit with the tankers to show the complete mission and support. If anyone has a spare pen mine is out of ink from filling out forms.

This is our third season after a local then regional run and now the national show. We have failed at some things and succeeded at others along the way. We are getting better with our POV shooting and our ground based HD stuff has improved markedly. We are able to use better air to air techniques and with the national our access should go up to better and more interesting stories. It's hard to show up and say hey burn some gas so we can shoot it for regional TV.

Keep the ideas coming I am cutting and pasting and forwarding to our production team. Budgets and ad sales have to fund this endeavor so we are grinding there also.

PJJ

Hiya Paul -

Despite aktango58's disparagin' allusion :roll: that "CloudDancer's Alaskan Chronicles" material iz some sort'a avaition literary "soft-porn" (even the "racy" stuff iz all written in PG-13 format...);

and...given that supecub.org iz the BIRTHPLACE of "CloudDancer's Alaskan Chronicles"...

please feel free to contact me if there iz ennythin' Ah can do to help yer project. Alaska Wingmen, Flying Wild Alaska, and Ice Pilots N.W.T. have stirred alotta' aviation interest. Hopefully, ya'll can capitalize on that and catch summa' that wave.

If you are not familiar with the material, Vol. III, The Tragedies iz the "flip-side" of the Alaska flyin' biz. All the stories are available to be reviewed (partially, at least) in mah forum here and mah website iz www.clouddancer.org

Good LUCK! Ah'll be watching whenever Ah can!

CloudDancer

I bet Cloudy can help with some FAI area knowledge this next year also!

And no Cloudy, I am not saying nor 'cusing you of any thing.... just cautioning;-)


One other thought, we have heliski operators here in the spring, had two A-stars in the yard for a while, and they are another source of 'aviation supporting activities'. It can be spendy, but some of these skiers are just folks that have saved for a vacation...

A different type of flying.

If you contact the State of Alaska Economic Development folks, they might help you with ideas of available interest in filming up here. This state is very film friendly.

Seems like Valdez and the Alaska Airman's show would be a good stop also, considering for years that has been attended by guys with their family aircraft...

And to add to Bill's thoughts, one of our members saved for years to buy a plane, bought a tri-pacer I think, then took a dream trip to JC fly in and won the bushwheels...

Did it on the tight budget, loves giving up other stuff to fly with his wife. Those folks might be a great story on how people can get into aviation.

You may find some interesting material at http://www.oddballpilot.com
and a good directory of current Alaska commercial aviation can be found at. http://www.flyalaska.com

Paul,

Come to Tulsa. While we don't build new aircraft we are in many ways at the GA center of the world in that we have more in the way of GA support industry with engine rebuild shops (round and flat) and speciality support shops that anywhere I've been able to find plus we have major GA education facilities with Spartan, TCC and TT and not to forget the American Airlines Maintenance Base.

There is more to flying than fun, show the economic side of GA if you want to create interest and get sponsor opportunities.

Kirby

Spend some time in Reno in September at the National Championship Air Races!

Paul I had another thought. Just like cloudy wrote one of his books about the "dark" experiences and the losses, how about a segment "Pilot Error" illuminating and not condemning the losses as is typical in the media. Start it with an opening consisting of the main stream formula with clips from several news anchors in a row "and the pilot hadn't filed a flight plan" over and over and then explain how that is just an FAA check box on the press release forms. Show the death rates for some of our other activities, motorcycling, driving, skiing etc. Admit small aircraft flying is perhaps more dangerous than bowling but give the accidents some perspective (visibility ,buzzing and fuel starvation come to mind as the great preventable "pilot errors") unlike the rest of the media. Don't know if it can be done in a segment

That sounds great! I will have to see if we have a carrier for your program up here so I can check it out. It would be refreshing to watch something about aviation that isn't over-sensationalized. I get all the "flying into the unknown", "into the eye of the storm" and "could mean life or death" every time I catch a piece of "Mountain Men".

I received your sample DVD in the mail last week. The ski fly-in at the Log Cabin Airport has several shots of my Cub and one of my girlfriend and me. I’ll count it as 15 minutes.

My TV is set to record..