Submitted by morourke@cloud9... on Thu, 04/28/2011 - 10:50
Pilot John 'Handlebars' Corradi
The Featured Experience Provider segment is a chance for us and our customers to get to know more about the incredible individuals that provide our experiences. They are the true masters of their craft, having years of experience providing customers an opportunity to check something off their bucket list. They are entrepreneurs who, in many cases, left steady jobs at large corporations to pursue the American Dream, creating thousands of unforgettable memories for many along the way. Today we talk with one of our favorite Pilots, John Corradi, about his biplane operation, his best customer experiences, and working with Cloud 9 Living. When & why did you start your company?
I started my Air Tour ride hopping business with my 1942 Waco biplane because
of my association with the Flying Circus, in nearby Bealeton, Virginia. I started flying with the Circus in 1999, the same year I bought my biplane. The Flying Circus is the oldest continuously-running weekly air show venue in the United States; this will be our 41st year of putting on air shows every Sunday from May through October. Before and after every show, we ‘hop rides’, taking Circus patrons for short hops around the local area, buzzing the field and making it as exciting or as serene as they desire. What fun! And it pays for the gas!! It wasn’t long before I started thinking that I might enjoy giving flights in the Waco full time, and when I retired from United Airlines in 2002, I got my business license, had a friend create a website, and just like that, I was in the flying business!
What do you love about the experiences you offer?
John's Waco - "Miss Maggie"
Among biplane aficionados, a Waco is special. Wacos were, and still are, the Cadillac of biplanes – many were custom-built to the (wealthy) owner’s preferences. Howard Hughes had one, as did Clark Gable, and Charles Lindberg. Simply put, Wacos were made to look gorgeous. She flies like a dream, too. I’m very fortunate to live in such a scenic, beautiful area. Northern Virginia has rolling hills, pastures, fields with horses and cattle grazing, and of course the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Shenandoah Valley. My most popular flight is the hour-long Shenandoah Valley Biplane Ride for 2 (also available in the Washington DC and Baltimore regions) which is truly breathtakingly beautiful at any time of the year, and particularly in the fall, and especially at sunset. I’ve flown literally hundreds of them, and I still delight in every one, every time. By popular request, several years ago I polished up my old aerobatic routine from my Navy flying days, and found that the old girl (my Waco) flies stunningly beautiful loops and rolls! I try to fly my aerobatic maneuvers as smoothly as I possibly can…trying to make an art form of it. The Waco responds gracefully, and my customers seem to love it.
Describe your best customer experience
Part of the joy of owning a beautiful airplane is sharing it, and my biplane air tour business allows me to do that, on a daily basis. Doing about 200 flights a year, I’ve had some wonderful experiences; I’ve spread ashes of deceased pilots, I’ve had several guys propose to their girlfriends in the Waco, and come back to fly with me on their honeymoon! I’ve soared with Eagles...with the Blue Angels and World War Two aces, with astronauts and model airplane nuts; with old geezers and young kids, and of course with lots and lots of regular folks, and we all have one thing in common – a nostalgic love of aviation. We’ve been on TV and in the movies...on the cover of magazines, and in the newspapers, and there’s a video of us running in the Virginia Aviation Museum in Richmond. But one of the best things is that I’m blessed with a wife who loves it as much as I do. Maggie, my high-school sweetheart, will often come out to the airport to meet my customers, to take pictures and hang out with the families and guests of the folks I’m flying with.
What do you like about working with Cloud 9 Living? What other Cloud 9 Living experience would you most like to do?
Hooking up with Cloud 9 has brought some up-scale customers that I might not have had the opportunity to hook up with, and Lindsey and Acacia are delightful to work with. Ranking a close second behind flying upside-down in an open-cockpit biplane, driving a race car on the big tracks is an unbelievable adrenalin rush! So far I’ve done the Stock Car Racing at Dover, and I’m really looking forward to racing on the track at Richmond.
Thanks for sharing and for your valuable insight, John! We love working with you, are thrilled to have you on board as our Pilot, and look forward to many more years!