Well, it’s been almost two years in the making and the amount of work involved has been incredible… and I’ve loved every single second of it!

I was beaming with pride when we had the opportunity to finally present The Aviators, the new and highly anticipated weekly magazine-style television series we’ve been working on, to an audience of thousands aviation enthusiasts and pilots for the very first time.

The world premiere of The Aviators was held at EAA AirVenture 2010’s Theatre in the Woods at the end of July. Over 5,000 excited viewers were in attendance to watch the inaugural showings of The Aviators. The response from the crowd was universally positive which gave me (the show’s executive producer) a sense of contentment like I’ve never felt before.

Episode one features segments on the Tiger Moth biplane, the U.S. Air Force's mammoth C5M, an interview with Miracle on the Hudson hero Jeff Skiles, a flat spin survivor, and a segment on AirVenture itself.

The first season of the series was made possible by the support of aviation companies including Mid-Continent Instruments of Wichita, KS and Zaon Flight Systems of Addison, TX and the cooperation of North America’s largest aviation organizations, AOPA and EAA.

The Aviators was a hit at the PBS Annual Meeting held in May in Austin, TX and is expected to air on many of the 356 Public Broadcasting Stations across the United States starting this fall. For broadcast information viewers are encouraged to contact their local Public Television Station (contact information can be found at http://pbs.theaviators.tv)

We’re thrilled by the excitement surrounding the show within PBS and very pleased by the number of stations across the country eager to air it right away. There’s obviously a demand for intelligent, entertaining aviation television and stations and viewers are telling us that they’re energized knowing that it’s finally here.

The Aviators can also be seen across Canada on Saturday mornings on the Global Television Network as well as Wednesday and Saturday nights on CHEK-TV. Talks are well underway that will also see The Aviators broadcast across Europe and Asia in early 2011.

Preview videos and behind the scenes photos can be seen on the show’s website at http://www.theaviators.tv which will also host a special online members area where complete episodes can be viewed online and you can also read our exclusive digital magazine which expands on stories from the TV show and much more.

In producing season one we had the chance to visit a number of wonderful places across North America and have been welcomed by many, many amazing people. We’ve been fascinated by the stories that have been shared with us and we hope that you take pleasure in our retelling them to you week after week.

For the cast and crew of The Aviators though it’s back to work. On to season two!

Enjoy the show.

… and fly safe(r).