Last week, as you will know if you read my message earlier in this newsletter, Beni, Zyon and I represented Te Puna Wai o Waipapa – Hagley College at an afternoon tea with the Prime Minister.

In the car on the way to Burnside, Beni mentioned that he has to be out at the airport for his after school job and asked what time did I think it would finish. The conversation continued and you may think Beni worked out at the airport at a food store or something similar. The short version is that he doesn’t! He works for Sounds Air, a small airline (well the planes are small) that fly between Christchurch and Blenheim, and Christchurch and Wānaka. According to Zyon, Beni loves to talk about Sounds Air and I was a captive audience as I knew nothing about Sounds Air. What I know now is that Beni does the whole thing – checks people in, checks bags in, loads passengers, loads bags, drives a golf cart and makes boarding calls. A perk of the job is he sometimes flies with the team and gets staff travel where he can hop in for free. For those of you reading and wondering why you don’t work for Sounds Air, Beni didn’t just land this great job. He used our Careers team to get a CV up to scratch and on the recommendation of a member of the Aero Club, Beni dropped a flight bag of CV’s off all around the place at the airport. Six weeks later he was offered a job and it was on!

For those that attended Year 11 Prize Giving in 2020, you might remember Beni as the student who received an amazing flying scholarship from John Pauwels and it included a great looking flying jacket. This scholarship will help Beni get in to the Aviation Academy in 2023 which is his goal for next year. Beni also received the Ross McPherson scholarship to support his study.

I know lots of young kids dream of being a pilot and I was interested in Beni’s ‘how did this all start’ story. Beni told me he has always been interested in planes and when he was really young he got into the cockpit on an Emirates flight and then followed that up by using all his pocket money to go on a trial flight in Motueka. He flew a plane that day, as an 11 year old, and he knew then that was something that he loved. He signed up then and there for an aviation programme. The pocket money saving continued and he booked a proper flying lesson and his involvement out at the aero club meant he often went up in the back seat of flights. He still does this to this day, getting up flying, back seat or front seat, getting as much experience as he can.

I asked how his Mum felt about him flying when he was really young and he told me that his parents have been such a great source of support for him and Mum’s ok with it.

In 2023 Beni wants to attend the aviation academy and continue working for Sounds Air. A day at the Aviation Academy could involve a mix of ground theory and flying. The biggest challenge is getting a job after the Aviation Academy and, according to Beni, 28% of people with their pilots licence get a job within 5 years. After spending this time with Beni with his quiet confidence, motivation and ‘get up and go’ attitude, I back him to be in that 28% for sure.

So what is it about actually flying that Beni loves? He informs me he loves the challenge of it and the problem solving and the ability to overcome these challenges. It is a wonderful sense of achievement.

His advice to young people interested in aviation is to get down to your local Aero Club and learn as much as you can from the people down there. It is a great thing to be a part of. Beni is extremely grateful to his parents, John Pauwels and the members of the Aero Club for all their support of his career to date.

In five years time, when you are boarding an Air New Zealand flight somewhere and you see the pilots walk through the airport, take another look - it just might be Beni delivering you to your holiday destination.

All the best, Beni, for an awesome career in aviation.