Captain James Louis Ferrari discovered his love of Flight at the very young age of nine. His father, an engineer, was tasked with designing guidance systems for aircraft, spacecraft, and rockets. The summer of 1964 required his father's presence at White Sands Missile Range in New Mexico. The family flew from their home in northern New Jersey to Texas and on to New Mexico. That first flight was magical! There was no doubt in his young mind on where to go with his life. After being invited to the flight deck of a brand new Boeing 707, the Captain said to a very wide-eyed boy that if he worked hard and stayed out of trouble, that one day he would be able to be in his seat.
The course was set, though a very hard and long road lay ahead. During this time, the space program and technological aviation advances were profound. Access to technological magazines through his dad and the excitement of a rapid-paced race to the moon landing provided ample motivation. It was a dramatic time in aviation and space technology.
The only answer to achieving his dream was to work and pay for private flight lessons which became the road to the eventual left seat of a brand new Boeing 787. He never forgot what that long ago Captain did to light his fire about the flight, and proceeded to invite as many youngsters as possible to his flight deck in the hopes of doing the same for them.
Jim plans to continue flying as a flight instructor after his airline career ended giving back to an industry that was so instrumental formative in his own life.
Type rated on the DC-3, SD-3, B-737, B-757, B-767, A-320, B-777, and B-787. Gold Seal Flight Instructor with over 33,000 flight hours.