We interviewed the CEO of Canada Air Virtual

My name is Rod J and I'm a 55-year-old retired Power Engineer living on the Canadian prairies. I have been a flight sim enthusiast for over 20+ years. I had always eyed starting a VA as a retirement project. I truly enjoy the people I've met and continue to work with. I've surrounded myself with some really great people who give life to this hobby and I'm truly grateful for their friendship and contributions.

Canada Air Virtual was founded on March 11, 2016 officially launching operations on December 23, 2016 after 10 months of beta testing behind the scenes. I base our operations on real world scenarios, but we are a fictional virtual airline so pilots have the freedom to fly any aircraft, airline, airline livery, route or charter flight at any time, exploring the whole world as we only exist in the fictional virtual world of flight simulation and are not tied to real world airline hubs, fleets or schedules.

Without question, Canada Air Virtual averages between 3,000 - 4,000 flights monthly with a very dedicated staff and crew base of about 200+ pilots but it’s not about the numbers it's the people who have built Canada Air Virtual alongside me who have made this virtual airline successful. We've attracted some amazing talent who are more than just virtual pilots. They bring real world skills to Canada Air Virtual and this experience is as much theirs as it is mine. I believe success also comes from the community of pilots we've attracted. It's the sense of community that I'm most proud of. If Canada Air Virtual is the reason for building that feeling of community in others, then I'd say that's successful.

The ongoing development of Canada Air Virtual and watching it grow from nothing into one of the busiest Canadian Virtual Airline in the world today!

It's always about the people. It's helping people find their passion, whether it's flying online, flying to see the world using one of our tours, or even being a builder behind the scenes. It's always about the people.

Of course. But I tend not to dwell on the negative.

We've had over 3,000 pilots come and go over the years for various reasons Unfortunately, I’ve learned over the years that pilots will come and go no matter what you do. We have of course used outlets such as social media and The Virtual Airline List in hopes of attracting pilots, but hands down the best recruitment tool we have is word of mouth from a happy pilot.

Canada Air Virtual’s fleet has a multitude of aircraft ranging from the Cessna 172 Skyhawk to the Airbus A380. Not all, but most have Canada Air Liveries.

Yes, we are proudly an official partner of VATSIM and IVAO. I believe it adds immersion and realism to a pilot’s flying experience. No, it is not a requirement for pilots to fly online, our pilots enjoy the freedom to fly online or offline in their own private world, as Canada Air Virtual does not want to force its pilots out of their comfort level.

We use our own custom built CAVacars.

Yes, Canada Air Virtual has a select few we use. Absolutely that why we have partnered with them.

Canada Air Virtual’s website is custom built. Our open-source virtual airline management is phpVMS.

We're just interested in building the community. I want people to come and feel safe to learn and make mistakes and have fun. We're not a bunch of stuck-up relics. And if our community wants more features and activities, we're always open to those conversations.