"Going Pro" in Business Aviation

Professionalism has always been the quiet foundation of safety in business aviation. It’s the invisible margin that separates a good flight from a great one, and a well-managed operation from a truly elite one. Yet for all its importance, professionalism has remained surprisingly hard to define, measure, or even demonstrate. Pilots often rely on flight hours as a shorthand for competence, while operators depend on intuition, word of mouth, and scattered documents to evaluate the people they trust with their aircraft.

Tony Kern’s Going Pro: The Deliberate Practice of Professionalism offers a way out of this ambiguity. Kern argues—compellingly—that professionalism is not something one “has” but something one “practices.” In one of his widely cited excerpts, he makes the point plainly: “Professionalism is a habit, not a trait.” That idea sits at the heart of Flying Company’s mission: to build the tools and systems that allow pilots and operators to practice, measure, and signal professionalism with clarity.

Understanding Level III Professionalism

At the core of Kern’s framework is the concept of Level III Professionalism, a mindset defined by deliberate practice and continuous improvement. Level I is basic compliance—doing what regulations require. Level II is competence—developing skill through experience and training. Level III, however, is where true excellence lives. It is self-driven, internally motivated, and grounded in accountability. As Kern puts it, “The Level III professional is driven from within and accepts responsibility for everything in his or her control.”

This is the kind of professionalism the industry values most, yet it has never had a consistent method to capture it. Operators want to hire pilots who embody Level III discipline, but have few objective ways to identify them. Pilots want to stand out for their professionalism, but have few places to display the depth of their training, their safety mindset, or the habits that make them exceptional.

Flying Company exists to bridge this gap.

Bringing Deliberate Practice Into the Digital Age

Much of Kern’s work centers on the idea that professionalism thrives when supported by structure. He writes that “Consistency is the hallmark of true professionals,” emphasizing that good habits are only meaningful if they are practiced deliberately, documented consistently, and reinforced over time.

Flying Company is creating that structure for business aviation.

By giving pilots a comprehensive profile to record their training, knowledge, worker classification, credentials, and experience, the platform becomes more than a résumé—it becomes a living record of professional discipline. Pilots who invest in their craft finally have a place to show it. And because profiles are built around industry-recognized standards, operators gain a clear, comparable view of the professionals they entrust with their aircraft.

Equally important is the role of feedback. Kern argues that “Self-evaluation and outside feedback are essential to improvement,” an idea that has long been true in the cockpit but has rarely existed across the hiring lifecycle. Through features like Post-Flight Safety Reports, operator feedback mechanisms, and future integrations with safety data providers, Flying Company creates a loop where professionalism is no longer invisible — it becomes part of a pilot’s ongoing digital reputation.

Professionalism as a Culture, Not a Checkbox

Kern’s work also makes clear that professionalism cannot exist solely at the individual level. He writes that “Organizations must create cultures where professionalism is modeled, reinforced, and expected.” This insight is foundational to Flying Company’s Trusted Partner Program, which allows operators and management companies to participate directly in elevating the standard.

Trusted Partners signal their commitment to safety and professionalism through their audit credentials and active participation in the platform’s safety ecosystem. For pilots, seeing these signals is meaningful: it tells them they are working with organizations that share their values. For operators, it becomes a way to differentiate themselves in a competitive hiring environment and to attract the most disciplined, Level III professionals on the market.

This creates a cultural flywheel. Professional pilots gravitate toward professional operators. Professional operators hire pilots who invest in their craft. Over time, the entire ecosystem rises.

Beyond Flight Hours: A More Complete Picture of the Professional Pilot

One of Kern’s most important insights is the idea that experience alone does not guarantee professionalism. As he notes, “Experience can create confidence, but only discipline creates professionalism.” For decades, the industry relied on flight hours as a proxy for discipline, readiness, and safety. But hours alone cannot capture the real markers of professionalism—training recency, safety habits, preparation discipline, and a commitment to continuous improvement.

Flying Company expands the definition of what it means to be a “qualified” or “professional” pilot. A pilot with current training, NBAA CAM Credentials, UPRT certification, SOP familiarization, robust safety participation, and a strong professional track record may offer more predictable safety outcomes than a pilot with thousands more hours but fewer professional habits. Flying Company helps operators recognize this by making these hallmarks of professionalism visible and comparable.

For pilots, this means that the work they already do—practicing checklists, preparing thoroughly, maintaining standards, pursuing training—now contributes to a professional profile that reflects who they are. The invisible becomes visible.

Professionalism as a Collaborative Effort

Kern often says that professionalism is “contagious,” noting that “When we raise our own level, we raise the level of those around us.” This captures the spirit of Flying Company: a platform designed not just to match pilots and operators, but to move the entire ecosystem toward greater safety, transparency, and professionalism.

For pilots, contributing to this ecosystem means presenting themselves fully and honestly: updating credentials, documenting training, participating in safety feedback, and treating Flying Company as the professional tool it is.

For operators, it means engaging with pilots not just as labor, but as partners in safety; providing feedback, aligning on standards, and showing the industry the value of professional discipline.

Going Pro, Together

As Kern’s work makes clear, professionalism is not a static achievement—it’s a journey. It requires intention, structure, feedback, humility, and collaboration. Flying Company is proud to build the platform that supports this journey for both pilots and operators.

Our hope is simple: that by making professionalism measurable, visible, and valued, we can help raise the standard of business aviation across the board. If you are a pilot or operator who shares this vision, we invite you to join us. Contribute your credentials, share your feedback, engage with trusted partners, and help us shape the future of safe, professional aviation.

Together, we can take business aviation further.