SpeedBird CEO Chris Bull: Exceptional Customer Service Is the Real Engine of Rapid Business Growth in Aviation

As part of our series about “The Future Of Aviation,” I had the pleasure of interviewing SpeedBird CEO Chris Bull.

Chris Bull is the founder and CEO of The HeliTeam, a national full-service aviation company. Earlier this year, Bull announced the debut of The HeliTeam’s newest brand, SpeedBird, which offers bespoke private air charters to destinations far and wide for the most discerning clients. SpeedBird boasts a fleet of luxury aircraft, world-class service culture, and an unwavering commitment to safety as the foundation of its mission to advance private air travel.

Thank you so much for joining us in this interview series! Before we dive in, our readers would love to get to know you a bit better. Can you tell us a story about what brought you to this specific career path?

I started out in media technology, starting a business that helps digital advertisers maximize their ROI and another that delivers location-based offers over Wi-Fi. Both were founded in the U.K. and expanded to the U.S. as they grew and became successful. When I decided to sell those companies and move to the U.S., I had the opportunity to pursue my passion for aviation. Becoming a helicopter pilot started out as fulfilling a childhood dream, but my entrepreneurial spirit had other plans.

I bought a helicopter and became interested in the business of aviation, where I found an overall lack of customer service was keeping potential competitors from achieving greater success. So, in 2013, I founded The HeliTeam as a full-service aviation company with a commitment to world-class service. We differentiated ourselves first in aerial application before moving into aerial firefighting, electronic news gathering, and now VIP charter flights. Our newest brand, SpeedBird, offers bespoke private air travel to destinations far and wide. Embracing technology, entrepreneurship and my passion for flying has allowed me to advance my career in ways I could have never imagined.

Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you started your career?

I knew we had something special with The HeliTeam when we took on our first aerial application job. We had a trial run for a new client who offered us 2,000 acres to show our skills. Our quality was on par with much more experienced service providers, but it really was our commitment to excellent customer service that sealed the deal for this client. He was so pleased that he committed 40,000 acres to us. The one successful trial turned into an amazing growth opportunity. We were able to expand from one aircraft to 12 in just two years. I always knew placing service at the forefront of our business was a good idea, but I never expected to achieve such rapid growth.

Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?

When I first met my now wife, I thought it would be really cool to pick her up in my helicopter for our first date. I would literally sweep her off her feet, right? Well, it turns out landing a helicopter on your date’s front lawn isn’t the flex you might think! Thankfully, we did hit it off and together we have two beautiful kids.

None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story?

One of my more influential mentors built a number of successful businesses, most of which are focused on the luxury automotive market. Like me, he came to Florida from the U.K. in his 30s. He started out as an apprentice car technician in the U.K. and, not to sound cliché, worked his up. He later emigrated to the U.S. in the late 80s and now owns one of the most distinguished car dealership groups in Central Florida. We met and became fast friends when he came to us for helicopter lessons.

Aside from our common heritage, we both share a passion for doing things the right way and for delivering exceptional customer service. He’s been a tremendous mentor in both my move to the U.S. from the U.K. and in building a world-class service culture in my business. It means a lot to me that I can call on him for business advice, run different scenarios by him, and receive his honest and unfiltered feedback. A lot of our customer service touchpoints we offer at SpeedBird are based on insights from his experience in the luxury automotive market. We want our guests to be irrationally loyal because we not only provide a superior travel experience but also because we can fulfill their unexpressed wishes and needs here on the ground too.

You are a successful business leader. Which three character traits do you think were most instrumental to your success? Can you please share a story or example for each?

Three traits that have made the difference for me are listening, problem-solving, and being a motivator. Listening can be a lot more powerful than talking, and it was a skill that I, like many other business leaders, needed to learn and must continue to practice in order to be effective. I take time to listen to my employees, mentors and customers. It has also been a powerful trait that has helped me to develop my problem-solving acumen. One of the ways we differentiate our service to our clients is by minimizing potential travel delays before they can even occur. Being able to look broadly at a large fleet of aircraft and a complex schedule to identify potential challenges is how we work to be proactive problem solvers for our clients. And to do so at scale requires me to motivate my employees to always be at their best. This is really my passion. I love to walk the halls of our office and communicate with my employees, and help them stay focused on what matters, what drives our business forward, and what will make them successful both personally and professionally.

Thank you for that. Let’s jump to the core of our discussion. Can you share with our readers about the innovations that you are bringing to the Aviation and Air Travel industries?

With the launch of SpeedBird, we are focused on delivering a world-class private air travel experience like no other. We can look back and remember when commercial airlines were the epitome of luxury, yet the service experience declined as commercial flights became commoditized. We see the same trend in private aviation. Demand is at an all-time high and charter flights are more accessible than ever through membership programs and shared ownership. But accessibility need not come at the cost of luxury, in our opinion. That’s why we are advancing air travel through our commitment to customer service. We want to make sure the aviation and air travel industries are the most respected and advanced when it comes to luxury travel.

Which “pain point” are you trying to address by introducing these innovations?

Clients choose private aviation for many reasons that are unique to them. But not all charter services really consider those needs in their service model. Just because you have access to a private jet through a membership program, for example, does not mean private air travel will be more efficient than commercial flights. You may not always be able to bring your pets or children on board. That’s not the case at SpeedBird. We listen to our clients and learn what really matters to them (e.g., flexibility, speed, accessibility, amenities, etc.) and consistently deliver on those expressed and unexpressed desires. In doing so, we are advancing our industry’s abilities to better serve and sustain its client base.

How do you envision that this might disrupt the status quo?

We want to reset the bar for luxury private air travel. Our clients have unique travel needs that cannot be served by other companies that focus on volume. Instead, we focus on an extraordinarily high level of service that we believe will once again become the standard in private aviation.

My expertise is in product security, so I’m particularly interested in this question. Recently there were famous cases of hackers breaking into the software running automobiles, for ransomware or for other malicious purposes. Based on your experience, what should aviation companies do to uncover vulnerabilities in the development process to safeguard their vehicles and aircraft?

Private aviation is highly regulated. As such, we are required to follow all FAA requirements for software updates, and our security resources are highly vetted by government agencies. We are committed to following all of these requirements in order to ensure our clients’ safety and privacy.

Fantastic. Here is the main question of our interview. What are your “5 Things You Need To Create A Highly Successful Career In The Aviation Industry?

1. Precision. I was drawn to aviation for the freedom that comes from being a pilot. But I learned that attention to detail is a non-negotiable in this industry, and critical to success. The precision required to become a pilot was part of what made flying so exciting and fun for me. You have to learn to understand, appreciate and enjoy all of the details that make flying a plane possible in order to really achieve success in this field.
2. Devotion to customer service. I cannot overstate the need to focus on customers first in order to become successful. Anyone can learn to fly, but not everyone can earn the trust required to run a successful aviation business. A devotion to customer service helps build that trust and loyalty.
3. Passion for safety. There is absolutely nothing more important in aviation than safety, yet it’s the least “” glamorous part of the business for most. At SpeedBird, we are passionate about safety, and we are energized and excited about opportunities to make flying even more safe and to take great care of our customers.
4. Teamwork. I am fortunate and humbled to work with an outstanding executive leadership team, and to be able to attract and develop future leaders throughout our company. In aviation and business in general, it takes a team to deliver an unrivaled experience and being able to recruit and retain excellent teammates is truly a marker of success.
5. You have to love to fly. If you’re not passionate about aviation and the miracle of flight, then this isn’t the business for you. Every day, we wake up excited to share our passion for flying with our customers, and it makes all of the work we have to do all the more fun and rewarding.

You are a person of great influence. If you could start a movement that would bring the most amount of good to the most amount of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger. :-)

I never attended college or university, so people are sometimes surprised at the success that I’ve earned throughout my career. The truth is that I have always relied on my passion versus education to help me get where I want to be. And helping others find their passion in their work and life is truly valuable to me. I love to talk to students about entrepreneurship and I find that many of them have the skills and drive to be successful in any endeavor — they just don’t know what they really care about. If I could make any meaningful impact, it would be to help more of these students find what excites and drives them for their personal and professional benefit.

How can our readers further follow your work online?

Visit our website at www.flyspeedbird.com and follow us on LinkedIn at https://www.linkedin.com/company/flyspeedbird/. We are currently seeking experienced pilots, first officers and other professionals to join our team.

This was very inspiring. Thank you so much for joining us!

About The Interviewer: David Leichner is a veteran of the Israeli high-tech industry with significant experience in the areas of cyber and security, enterprise software and communications. At Cybellum, a leading provider of Product Security Lifecycle Management, David is responsible for creating and executing the marketing strategy and managing the global marketing team that forms the foundation for Cybellum’s product and market penetration. Prior to Cybellum, David was CMO at SQream and VP Sales and Marketing at endpoint protection vendor, Cynet. David is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Jerusalem Technology College. He holds a BA in Information Systems Management and an MBA in International Business from the City University of New York.