Capt Jeff A Thompson.

This is my passion.  I have been flying balloons for well over 30 years and still show up every morning with a huge grin on my face to go fly.  This has been my passion since I was 15 years old.  I am ranked as one of the best competition pilots in the country with Mutable top 20 finishes in the country as well as regional and state titles.  I am out to fly every day that we operate.  It is more than a passion to me it is an obsession.  We are creating memories that you will treasure as well as share with your friends and family for the rest of your life.  I want that to be a perfect memory in all ways.  That is why I am out to fly each and every day and hand choose our pilots to make the Thompson Aire perfect.  You may not know this but "Aire" is French for My Domain!

Capt Jon A Thompson

Jon is my brother.  Some times when I tell my passengers that brother Jon has been flying most of his life I have to explain that when I say brother Jon I mean blood relative not priest. 

Jon Thompson has been flying balloons for almost 30 years.  A top competitive pilot with multiple state championship titles, as well as spending over 15 years flying corporate balloons around the country Jon has seen all aspects of balloon flight,  He enjoys his flying and sharing it with others.  His personality will entertain you and his flight skills will amaze.

Capt Doug Cleghorn

Doug started in Ballooning here in the central Florida area back in the early 80's!  Yes he too has been flying balloon for nearly 30 years.  Are you starting to see a trend here?  He was involved with the Church Street balloon team in the beginning.  Flying passenger flights most of his years he has perfected the program.  Doug is a perfectionist and we like that in a pilot.  Great charm and excellent pilot skills make him a wonderful addition to our pilot staff.

Kim has been with us for more than 10 years now.  He made the decision to become a pilot.  His life has not been the same since.  He has worked his butt off to learn the regulations and get his flight time as well as purchased his own balloon to finish his training in.  We are happy to say that on July 27th of 2008 Kim took his first SOLO flight!  Have a look on the calendar to see his photo after his solo flight.  Kim has now passed the commercial flight reviews and is now one of our very own professional pilots.  We are proud to have him on our team.

Photos below were take of Kim's SOLO on 07/27/08

Capt Peter has relocated to New York State.  We will miss him but there is always a spot open for him on the calendar and it is our sincere hope he will come out to fly with us any time he is in our area.  Jeff.

Capt. Peter Griswold

Peter was referred to us by another local pilot.  When we found out that Peter had been around balloons since he was child since his father was a pilot we knew he would be a good fit with us.  He is a full time charter airline pilot but when he is in town he loves to come and fly with us.  His charm and easy going personality is fantastic to be around and his flight skills are well within the standards we set for Thompson Aire.  He is a veteran pilot and still enjoys each flight.  We kid him about being our rookie pilot.  He has only been flying since he was 17.  We think he looks good for 55...  Just kidding.  The Thompson brothers started to fly balloons before they had a drivers license so at 17 Peter was a late bloomer.

Capt Mark Roberson

Capt Mark has been involved in the world of aviation for many years.  A safety officer as well as a designated examiner for the FAA Mark is also a flight instructor for fixed wing aircraft as well.  His charm and innocent humor makes him a welcome addition to our pilot staff. 

Capt Kenny Shuemate

Capt Kenny is also a local boy.  Starting as one of the pioneers in the balloon world here in central Florida Kenny has been flying balloons for over 30 years as well.  Kenney is a top competition pilot.  Kenney spends time in the summer months traveling to balloon competitions all over the southeast united states.  You have to watch him since he love's a good practical joke.  We truly enjoy the days when Capt. Kenney can come out and play with us.

Capt Jim Thompson

Dad as we know him.  Capt Jim Thompson is the second generation of the Thompson family involved in ballooning.  We were going to put him on the ground crew page since he started his ballooning life as ground crew for Jeff Thompson.  But since he is now a top ranked pilot and has been a top ranked pilot for almost a quarter century we figured he should be listed here.  Dad does not fly passenger flights for Thompson Aire but in the winter months when he comes down from Iowa to get away from the snow.   Occasionally during his winter stay he will come out with his little Pilot +one balloon and fly along with us.

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