By Tyler DiSalle
Pilots are known for their exceptional skills in the air, but for a local group of professional aviators their greatest impact was recently felt on the ground in communities throughout the Tampa Bay area.
A handful of selfless Frontier Airlines pilots came together last week to not only assist their fellow aviators recover following the devastation resulting from Hurricanes Helene and Milton but to also do their part in helping heal the Greater Tampa Bay community.
For Jason DuVernay, a Frontier pilot and Brandon resident, the impact was personal. He saw the destruction caused to his parents’ home on Anna Maria Island as well as his own home in Brandon and was compelled to take action.
“When you deal with hurricane devastation, … you walk into a house, you look around and you just absolutely do not know where to begin,” DuVernay said.
“It wears on you on such a deep, emotional level.”
DuVernay currently flies out of San Juan, Puerto Rico, but was previously based out of Tampa International Airport. It was there that he got to know many of his co-workers on a more personal level. With hundreds of pilots living in the Tampa Bay region based out of Tampa International, the impact of the two disasters just weeks apart couldn’t be ignored.
“[Frontier Airlines Air Line Pilots Association Chair] Captain Mike Maynard was aware of this as well, and he said, ‘Let’s utilize the RV to bring relief not just to the pilots, but also to the community,’” DuVernay said.
Frontier ALPA (Air Line Pilots Association), the union representing Frontier Airlines pilots, has a mobile communications center RV that it uses for pilot outreach and unity-building events. With it sitting idle in Denver, Colorado, Maynard thought there was no better way of putting it to use than to help with hurricane recovery efforts.
To make it happen, however, Maynard needed a driver.
With that, DuVernay contacted Roger Hanchak — a fellow Frontier Airlines Tampa-based pilot — who was happy to accept the arduous task of flying out to Denver to pick up the bus and hit the road for a more than 27-hour road trip across the country to Atlanta, where Maynard took over.
“I got my CDL a couple years ago,” Hanchak said. “I like driving big trucks.”
When he originally had heard about Frontier’s ALPA bus, he joked about how he’d love to drive it someday.
So, with the opportunity to both drive the bus and make a difference in his community, Hanchak sprang into action to help, even if it meant losing a few hours of sleep.
“I flew out to Denver in the morning on Saturday. I think it was a 6 a.m. flight,” Hanchak said. “I got there and spent a couple hours making it roadworthy because it had been parked for a while.”
Riding solo, Hanchak’s journey saw him drive 12 hours on the first day, stopping only to get some rest at a hotel before continuing on for the last 15 hours to Atlanta, Georgia, where Maynard and his wife, Sara, then took the keys.
Back in Florida, DuVernay worked in coordination with Radiant Church while Maynard and his wife — who are both Frontier pilots — filled the bus with diapers, paper towels, cleaning products and nonperishable food items to distribute to those in need.
When the bus arrived in Florida, nine Frontier ALPA pilots and their families came together to not only help their affected co-workers rebuild but also to assist people across the Tampa Bay communities in getting the daily necessities they had been left without.
Storm surges from the hurricanes devastated properties, and high winds left some without power for days. Throughout it all, the tight-knit Tampa pilot group made it a point to check in on each other.
“The pilots are an integral part of the community,” DuVernay said. “A lot of the pilots in this base have been here for a very long time.”
As news of the damage spread, the Frontier ALPA pilot volunteers sprang into action to go above and beyond to help their own who were directly affected.
The journey took the volunteers all over Pinellas and Hillsborough counties. At each of their stops, the scenes were eerily similar.
Piles of debris scattered across yards.
Floodwater forcing residents to remove everything from their homes.
Furniture and clothes destroyed.
Personal keepsakes forever ruined.
In Apollo Beach, Frontier Airlines pilot Christa Atwood’s house was strewn with debris. After learning of Atwood’s situation, the volunteers showed up to help patch up her patio screen and remove hurricane shutters.
“It felt like we were family,” Atwood said. “Trying to get professionals out there would have taken a lot longer.”
Fellow Frontier pilot Roxanne Lambie and her family had recently moved into a home on the coast of Port Richey. The hurricanes left them with nothing but a house she said is currently unlivable.
Lambie said all her money was put into fixing up the home they purchased in June, leaving them with very little.
Feeling a bit lost and unsure of where to turn, she documented the destruction on social media and immediately heard from DuVernay, asking how he could be of assistance. Six volunteers later showed up at her house to help Lambie and her family rebuild.
Despite the hardship she and her family are going through, Lambie said it was nice to have a sense of a restored faith in humanity.
“All of the help that we have gotten, … both financially and then just physical labor, has just been absolutely amazing,” Lambie said. “I don’t know what we would do without the people who have helped us.”
And despite the devastation, she feels an overarching sentiment of people wanting to do good for others — something she hopes to pay forward should another disaster strike.
“It’s not that I want to go through this again,” Lambie said, “but there’s actually a beauty I have been able to witness because of what happened.”
Atwood said that compared to other major airlines, the small size of Frontier’s bases like Tampa allows pilots to develop relationships on a more personal level.
“Everyone watches out for each other,” said Atwood.
That feeling was shared by Lambie, who stated it is the main reason she stays flying for Frontier.
“I’ve always said we have an amazing pilot group,” Lambie said. “This reinforced that.”
For the ALPA volunteers, the days were long and the work, while fulfilling, was difficult. Many of them used precious days off from their flying jobs to help the cause.
Pilot volunteer and Tampa-based Frontier pilot Steve Sorbie said it was imperative for everyone to stick together and “keep the sense of camaraderie. That’s what Florida people do.”
As the efforts continued, the outreach widened.
After learning via social media of a need for more hands on deck for a Hurricane Milton outreach event hosted by the Angel Foundation FL, an organization that provides families in the Greater Brandon area with resources during life-threatening illnesses and catastrophic events, the Frontier ALPA pilot volunteers stepped up.
Angel Foundation FL CEO Liz Brewer said the event allowed those affected by the hurricane to leave with food, clothing and information from Senator Marco Rubio’s office on how to move forward with FEMA assistance in the wake of the disasters.
Frontier pilot volunteers grilled food and set up tables so that volunteers of the Angel Foundation FL could refuel and recharge over the course of what was a long but productive day.
Later that afternoon, the Angel Foundation FL distributed 500 hot meals to families donated by Operation BBQ Relief, a nonprofit that aims to feed first responders and communities affected by natural disasters.
The event was a major success that came together in less than a day, thanks to a handful of phone calls, social media posts and word of mouth by the foundation.
“It wasn’t preplanned,” Brewer said. “As a matter of fact, the venue was booked by us for our 18th annual fundraising gala. So, instead of celebrating with 300 supporters, we were able to serve over 500 people. None of this was scheduled. It was a real blessing for us.”
While the recovery and healing that comes with it is far from complete, the contributions of Frontier’s ALPA pilot volunteers and the feelings of hope have been impactful.
Above all, it’s been a true showing of stepping up and coming together for a common good in the community.
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