40 years in the business and aviation vet still looks up at each takeoff

Bob Schnurr has worked in aviation for 40 years but he loves airplanes as much as ever.

"Everytime an airplane takes off after 30, 40 years, you still look up."

Schnurr, Air Tindi's business manager, is celebrating 30 years with the company.

When people think about aviation, Schnurr said they always think about pilots first, "but there are so many other people involved in aviation that love it and have passion for it."

Schnurr started in the industry when he was 16, loading planes in Pickle Lake, Ont.

He first thought he would go the pilot route, but found his passion in dispatch instead.

Schnurr traveled north in 1992.

The diamond rush had set off a boom in aviation at the time and so when he called Air Tindi looking for a job, they asked if he could start Monday.

From his decades in the industry, Schnurr said "it's funny how some things really change and some things don't."

Speaking with host Loren McGinnis on The Trailbreaker, he said the airplanes are the same but the technology has changed.

Satellites, GPS and advancements in communication have all made the industry safer, but the Twin Otters, Beavers, Caravans, 185s, those are the same, he said.

Reflecting on his decades in aviation, Schnurr acknowledged the loss that's a part of the business.

Like any loss, he said losing colleagues affects you and workers can sometimes be triggered by certain noises or sights. Leaning on the aviation community helps, he said.

"We do lose people and it's a terrible part of the business, of any business, you carry that with you and never, ever forget."

As much as managing the loss is challenging, Schnurr said it's as important to share the difficulties if the job with newcomers, as it is the positives.

He said mentorship has become an unofficial part of his job.

For young people to ask questions, and more experienced workers to share stories and knowledge, is a sign of a healthy culture, he said.

"We really have a good culture here," Schnurr said, adding that the people are what has made his experience in the industry, and sharing stories is a part of that.

Schnurr's official 30th anniversary with Air Tindi was on June 13.

Chris Reynolds, the airline's president made a Facebook post to mark the occasion.

Reynolds described Schnurr as someone people know as "the person to help them safely get to a random remote spot in the Arctic."

He wrote that "Bob's passion for the people in our Northern communities is genuine and unrivaled."