United States, Great Britain and France. This included both government-sponsored aid and deliveries of supplies flown in by philanthropists—including Michael Bloomberg and country musician Kenny Chesney. “In the month and a half after the hurricane, I personally flew more than 300 legs,” Bohlke explains. “It was just non- stop. Oddly exciting, in a way. A challenging adrenaline rush all day long, every day, for months. Our entire team really came together to pitch in.” Bohlke International Airways is now a third-generation, family-run business. The FBO will celebrate its 60th anni- versary in 2019, and some of its employees have been with the company for as many as 35 years. When Bohlke uses the word family, he means it both literally and in the warm- est and most heartfelt Caribbean island sense of the word. In the aftermath of Hurricane Maria, he personally pur- chased and flew in generators for all members of his team who lost power to their homes. For his team members who lost their homes altogether, he put them up in hotels. His medevac pilots and nurses slept in rooms on a cruise ship, that was brought in to help provide emergency housing during the crisis. “You know how sometimes after a natural disaster you start to hear stories of looting and terrible things? It wasn’t like that on St. Croix. It was more like this all-encompassing feeling that you want to care for your neighbors and help them out, and I feel like we really saw the best in people,” Bohlke comments. “We put everything else on hold for a month to just help—whether it was moving people, food or supplies—or actually feeding people here at the FBO. We put capitalism aside for a minute and just did the right thing.” Aviation Business Journal | 3rd Quarter 2018 Bohlke says he’s been impressed with the rebound on St. Croix in the year since Hurricane Maria. Power was restored to the entire island within four months. Destroyed roads have been mostly repaired. Homes are being rebuilt, and Bohlke says new buildings and a new hangar are now going up at Bohlke International Airways. “In Puerto Rico, there are still some places without power, a year out, which is crazy. But to me it feels like we’re about 90 percent recovered here in St. Croix,” he says. “We’ve rebounded very quickly, thanks to a group effort and some tremendous support. It’s a testament to the fact that when you put a lot of boots and resources on the ground, you can really make a big difference in a short amount of time.” He says he’s been inspired by the partnership between the Virgin Islands’ local government and U.S. agencies— ranging from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, Department of Defense, Public Health Service and Health & Human Services. This in addition to international coopera- tion between the U.S., Great Britain and France in the relief, recovery and rebuilding efforts. “I’m really proud of the role we’ve been able to play in facilitating each of those partnerships,” Bohlke states. “It’s a reminder of the critical backbone that general avia- tion can provide, both year-round and in times of emer- gency response. Our success in such trying times, is also a reminder of the importance of having a good contingency plan and a great team in place.” There were definitely some lessons learned, Bohlke continues—”For one thing, we learned just how dependent we’d become on Internet, phone lines and cell phone service.” But in all, he considers the disaster and its aftermath as proof of the resiliency of the company his grandfather built and as a testament to the role NATA members can have in times of great need. “Looking back on it, there isn’t much I would have done differently,” Bohlke concludes. “It feels good to be able to say that. It means everything we had in place—from our team and our training, to our emergency preparations, evacuation plan and contingency plan—all combined to keep us in business, even as our headquarters and hangar were wiped out. And, it meant we are able to immediately help others, during what has been called the worst natural disaster known to man.” Continued on page 18 17
