You started life as a restaurateur - so how did you get involved in the aviation business?

I didn't start flying until I was 35. But the opportunity arose to sell my restaurant and train in Canada - and, after graduating from the programme, the school asked me if I would be interested in recruiting more Irish students. In our first year (which was last year), we recruited 10 Irish students, and this year we hope to double that figure.

Will prospective students be seduced by the glamour of flying?

It's really more hard work than glamour, at first anyway. A lot of airline work is very much performancerelated, and it is very stringently monitored. But a lot of younger pilots may find it glamorous, especially with the nice uniforms.

For me, I'm a more handson air taxi pilot. I work for four months at the school, four months in Ireland, and four months in West Africa, flying sports fishermen to an archipelago off the coast of Senegal. I love the flying, and I love the lifestyle.

And is the image of the dashing pilot accurate?

Well, there are very stringent rules about not drinking when you are flying, but pilots do party a bit when they are off-duty.

Are there any pilots who are afraid of flying?

I've personally never been afraid on a plane, but maybe that's because our programme is unique. It was originally developed from the Canadian armed forces by the head of the school, Ron McDonald - Ron was a colonel with NATO and the Royal Canadian Armed Forces - so everything in the school is geared towards safety.

And, outside of the glamour, is flying a good career?

Pilots are practically guaranteed employment. And, at the moment, they can demand a premium - wages are definitely on the way up, and it's not an employers market anymore.

It is true that, in the past, there were pilots in North America who were underemployed, but that is no longer the case - for example, last year we had 10 flight instructors, and five stayed on with us for another year.

The rest have already got jobs with the airlines.

It is partly because of changes within the industry.

Two years ago, the minimum requirement for airlines was 1,000 hours, but now people are being hired with only 600 hours of flight experience - so they are saving a full year in training.

As well as this, we have an internship programme, which guarantees that people will be working within three years.

Finally, is there any type of plane that you would like to fly?

I'd love to fly a Bombardier 415 Waterbomber - the ones they use to put out forest fires. Bombardier actually assembles them at the base.

Or maybe Ron's jet - the one he flew in Korea. But I'd have to take it down from the podium first.