Framlinghamian 2023-2024 Single page - web 144dpi - Flipbook - Page 234
SOF | HERE & THERE
joining Eastern Airways
and had continued as a
hobby. After a few months
of instructing freelance,
he rejoined a 昀氀ying school
at Norwich Airport where
he had worked previously,
but, sadly, it went out of
business at the end of 2023,
so he helped to set up a
new school at the airport.
This started operating in
September 2023, with
Simon keeping busy as
one of the co-founders,
senior instructor, and safety
manager, all the while
looking around for a new
airline job.
The three worst downturns
in aviation history had all
occurred since his time
at airline pilot school: the
post-9/11 downturn, the
global 昀椀nancial crisis/
Great Recession, and then
Covid. Simon managed
to keep 昀氀ying through all
these troughs, keeping his
The ever-busy Simon Rolfe (S82-92)
career going. He will be
has been in touch, bringing us up to date
returning to the airline industry in 2025, as
with his hectic, whirlwind life. He was an
long as no further downturns intervene in
airline pilot for Eastern Airways, operating
this notoriously cyclical industry. Overall,
the magni昀椀cent SAAB 2000 turboprop,
his 昀氀ight time is now approaching 12,000
until he was furloughed in April 2020,
hours, of which over 4,000 hours are as a
just as Covid hit. He was then laid o昀昀 in
昀氀ying instructor in light aircraft.
December 2020 as a part of a drastic
Simon is still in regular or fairly regular
pruning of the workforce – Covid again.
contact with a lot of OFs, including Andy
Once Covid lockdown restrictions were
Twite, Marcus Ward, Tom and Tami
lifted, he resumed working as a 昀氀ying
Wornham (nee Carlick), Nick Lee, Sam
instructor, something he had done before
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