This episode of The Jake Dunlap Show features Robert Ceravolo, CEO of Tropic Ocean Airways and real-life Tom Cruise as Maverick in Top Gun. All his life, Robert had wanted to become a jet fighter. His father's wartime stories of bombers flying overhead, liberating Italy from the fascists, would be imprinted on him.
By the time he came of age, Robert strived to achieve his and his father's dream for him. He graduated top of his class and secured his future as a Tomcat pilot. Robert shares stories of landing on carriers, his deployment in Iraq, and his eventual transition to various squadron responsibilities.
This well-rounded training would serve him well as it taught him, essentially, how it is to run a business. During his deployment to Italy and after reading Richard Branson's Screw It, Let's Do It, Robert decided to start his own business where he would sacrifice his Porsche, boat, and basically everything he owned to get the business off the ground.
Through grit and a passion to serve his customers the best service possible, Robert survived near bankruptcy, drove out wolves in sheep's clothing, and embodied his core value of compassion during the aftermath of Hurricane Dorian.
Listen to the full podcast on Robert's passion for the air and sea and his unshakeable desire to fulfill his dreams.
QUOTES:
09:22 "You mean I could land on a boat so I could always be around the ocean, which I absolutely loved, I get to date my instructor, ride a motorcycle. This is the coolest thing ever. And that was it. At that point I was like, I'm going to join the Navy."
20:35 "The Tomcat community was very, let's go have a good time mentality. It was the last of the old fighter pilots, if you will. In training, we had that jet up to 60,000 feet, we had it in Mach 2 plus. I mean, it was just insanity. And that thing was such a good performer."
31:46 "You start to look at these seaplanes as a phenomenal transportation solution to get people out of those major metropolitan areas that's congested or really tough to get to the airports, or to be the last mile connectivity piece for places like the Bahamas."
41:00 "We took that obstacle and turned it to an opportunity. It's all you can do when something bad happens is take a step back and say okay, well, how can we get through the next few days and is there any opportunity that's going to come out of it."
46:47 "These airplanes are great assets in an island nation during a disaster so, guess what, 2016 Matthew hits, we serviced 2 locations just after Matthew, 2017 we had an airplane in Puerto Rico did some evacuations on there. Then Dorian hits."
More about Robert
Robert took inspiration from his father, a lifelong aircraft enthusiast, whose passion for flying rubbed off on Robert from a very young age. His experiences growing up, from hanging out with seasoned pilots to flying with his father, solidified his path towards becoming a pilot.
Robert served in the Navy as a pilot flying the F-14 Tomcat, F-18 Super Hornet, and F-5 jets. He served in many more areas for the squadron for 10 years before becoming a reservist and focusing on his business full-time. As a pilot, he was deployed in support of Operation Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom. He studied Adversary Tactics, commonly known as TOP GUN, and would serve as an instructor for many years.
He founded Tropic Ocean Airways during the last year of his active service and struggled to get his first airplane off the sea. With persistence and passion, he was able to weather near bankruptcy and the recent pandemic to build the world's largest amphibious fleet in the world.
Find out more about Robert and connect with him in the following links:
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