Well, I am a year in, and I really think that if you stick to your guns and truly believe what you are doing, you can create an amazing airline.
Answers are published as the CEO wrote them, spelling included.
About the CEO
Can you tell us a bit about yourself? For example; how old you are, what your background with flying in general is and what brought you to creating your own Virtual Airline.
I am Joshua Mendoza, Founder at Makai Air. I have had a passion for aviation since I could walk. I had a keen eye on the skies above me for most of my childhood, and this led me to flight simulation, and to the airport for flight training. I visited Hawaii in the summer of 2014, and wanted to join an island hopper airline, but was disappointed when I failed to find one based out of Hawaii. So I made this, and the rest is history.
How it started
When did you start your Virtual Airline?
I started Makai Air in July of 2014.
Success
Do you consider your Virtual Airline successful?
For me, my goal was to create an airline I thought was fun, but not demanding. With a small budget of $2, I started the airline and ran it for 6 months, eventually seeing people enjoyed it, I invested more time and money to make it even better, and I believe it is showing it.
Best moment
What is your most interesting experience with your Virtual Airline, what has happened that makes you think so?
I believe seeing people talking about it and complementing it. I was caught off-guard that other people shared the same ideals for a virtual airline.
Hard times
Did you have any bad experiences with your Virtual Airline?
Not anything in particular, but we have had our share of interesting PIREPs.
Pilots coming and going
What do you think of your Virtual Airline’s flow of new and leaving VA pilots? Is there something you do to attract more pilots? And why do you think some pilots leave your Virtual Airline?
Well, my idea of a virtual airline, is it shouldn’t be a job. I try to aim to this market of simmers, and I understand that you may not always get to fly for Makai Air. We have a few people who have never flown a flight, but I don’t mind. I care more about the user experience and providing fun routes and options for pilots to fly. I believe some pilots leave because of things out of their control, but sometimes I can even understand that you may just want to fly routes we don’t have. I encourage people to send in addition requests for airports and airplanes, and we try to honor as many of these requests as possible, because we have no real world counterpart that we need to follow.
Fleet and liveries
What types of planes does your Virtual Airline use and do you have all the custom liveries available for your VA?
We fly props to jets, and we have liveries for a few of our planes, but since our fleet is constantly expanding we can’t keep up with the repaints. We have repaints available for the 208, Q400, B737, and CRJ700. We also have special liveries for our 737s.
Online networks
Does your VA fly on a network? If so, what do you think about it? Do you feel it supplements the general flying experience, what do you think of the network in general and is it required for your pilots to fly on this network?
We don’t force flights on a network, but we encourage it. VATSIM and IVAO complement the piloting experience for some, and draws it from others, just preference for the pilot.
Flight tracking
Do you use any flight tracking software? If so, which one, and are you happy about the service it provides? Would you like to improve it for example?
smartCARS is our flight tracker, and in my opinion, it is the best option for airlines. They have a mobile app on the app store and allow you to track your flights from your phone and get status updates on it. It is great for our airline.
Developer offers
Do you make use of the offers some developers / distributors have for Virtual Airlines? Do you think these developers / distributors have good offers? And does it fit your Virtual Airline policy?
While we have partnerships with a few developers, we don’t really use the offers they provide, but if a pilot asks for an airline promo code, I will try to give it to him/her.
Website
Does your Virtual Airline have a custom made internet web page or do you use, for example, PHPVMS and equivalents? Are you happy about your VA’s web page?
We use a custom website, but we have the PHPVMS website backend. Our website is awesome, but granted it needs some improvements. Visit it at MakaiAir.com
The year ahead
And lastly, what are your expectations for your Virtual Airline in the coming twelve months?
Well, I am a year in, and I really think that if you stick to your guns and truly believe what you are doing, you can create an amazing airline.
The original questionnaire
This is the questionnaire as Joshua Mendoza sent it to us, in PDF.
