Alaska executives are taking flight: entertain your business customers, or get from client to client with ease.

• Author: Larune, Harris

Jeff Helmericks, president of Colville Inc., has a direct pipeline to his oil industry clients and their job sites spread across Alaska: a Piper Twin Comanche airplane that he flies himself.

Colville, based in Prudhoe Bay and supplying everything from pipeline parts and Napa truck parts to waste disposal services, frequently needs to respond to customer needs quickly, and the state's highway system usually doesn't cut it.

"Flying a plane provides great flexibility in transportation, particularly up here where we don't have the road structure the rest of the country enjoys," says Helmericks, who earned his private pilot certificate in 1981, and works as a flight instructor on the side. "For example, our bank is based in Fairbanks, so the plane gives me easy access."

Growing Trend

A growing number of executives and professionals all over the country are discovering that general aviation flying-which includes all flying except the scheduled airlines and military--offers not just stress relief but road relief as well. Doing business afar doesn't have to mean long back-road drives and wasted hours at the airport. In Alaska in particular, the ability to get from Point A to Point B directly, while avoiding the sometimes-lengthy drive to Anchorage or Fairbanks, can be invaluable.

Helmericks--who also holds glider, commercial pilot, seaplane and airline transport ratings and is learning to fly helicopters--notes that while flying himself can be more economical in certain situations, that's beside the point.

"Many people miss the advantages of general aviation," he says. "It's not cheaper than flying commercially--driving a car isn't cheaper than riding the bus--but time is money. I can visit a customer with two or three of my guys in half the time that I could otherwise. That's important when it comes to billing problems, for example."

There are many business benefits to being your own pilot. According to the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA), a nonprofit, 407,000-member pilot advocacy group, only the private pilot can attend meetings in two or three cities in one day and be home in time for dinner or to tuck in the kids. And business people-pilots don't worry about who's onboard with them, since they typically fly alone or with colleagues.

Project Pilot

AOPA sponsors Project Pilot, an outreach initiative that actively courts frequent travelers such as busy executives, who have much to gain by becoming pilots. "In today's competitive business environment, the value of face-to-face human contact is undeniable," says Helmericks. "Customers feel special when you take the time and effort to fly to them personally."

The program's Web site, www.project pilot.org, offers authoritative, useful information for those who want to get started, along with a database of flight schools nationally. In fact, many schools offer steeply discounted introductory flights for as little as $49 for those who'd like to give it a try and see if flying is right for them. Would-be pilots can actually take the controls of an airplane during that flight, alongside a FAA-licensed instructor, of course.

There were 87,296 individuals enrolled as flight students in 2003, up 1.5 percent from the previous year. According to the FAA, 100,000 people take an...