90.1 FM San Luis Obispo | 91.7 FM Paso Robles | 91.1 FM Cayucos | 95.1 FM Lompoc | 90.9 FM Avila
Play Live Radio
Next Up:
0:00
0:00
0:00 0:00
Available On Air Stations

Assisting John McCain's 2011 initiative to increase funding for veterans

Ways To Subscribe
Papillon Airways helicopter flying over the Grand Canyon
Papillon Airways
Papillon Airways helicopter flying over the Grand Canyon

 

A conversation with veterans employed at Grand Canyon flightseeing operations

Even though Senator John McCain had voted periodically to not support various funding proposals for U.S. Military veterans, back in 2011, Senator McCain was passionately advocating for legislation to increase funding for U.S. Military veterans.

Through mutual Arizona friends in the PR industry, McCain’s office learned that Tom Wilmer was scheduled to interview veterans who were proudly employed in the civil aviation industry at the Grand Canyon for his podcast.

Wilmer was introduced to two flightseeing industry leaders, veterans themselves--John Becker COO of Papillon Helicopters and Charlie Bassett, VP of Operations for Grand Canyon Airlines.

 Becker and Bassett set up interviews with combat veterans who had joined the ranks as employees in their Grand Canyon air tour operations, serving proudly as pilots, ground crew, maintenance and customer service positions.

 At the time of the interview back in 2011, unemployment among returning Iraq and Afghanistan combat veterans exceeded 17 percent and the Grand Canyon flight-seeing industry served as a trendsetter targeting employment opportunities for military veterans. Regretfully, it was the Republican side of the isle that voted down McCain’s proposal to increase funding for veterans.

This show is reposted as a best-of-the-best Journeys of Discovery podcast.

Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer is a featured show on the NPR Podcast Directory
NPR
Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer is a featured show on the NPR Podcast Directory

You are invited to subscribe to the seven-time Lowell Thomas Award-winning travel podcast, Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer, featured on the NPR Podcast DirectoryApple Podcastand more than twenty other podcast hosting sites including iHeartRadio and Spotify

 

Tom Wilmer produces on-air content for Issues & Ideas airing over KCBX and is producer and host of the six-time Lowell Thomas award-winning NPR podcast Journeys of Discovery with Tom Wilmer. Recorded live on-location across America and around the world, the podcasts feature the arts, culture, music, nature, history, science, wine & spirits, brewpubs, and the culinary arts--everything from baseball to exploring South Pacific atolls to interviewing the real Santa Claus in the Arctic.
Related Content