Zoltan Miklos: Adventures in Wisdom

At the tender age of five, Zoltan Miklos had an epiphany.

“I remember reading a book about paper airplanes. You could create different folds to make the plane do various things,” says Zoltan.“From that book, I understood how an aircraft was controlled. Just the basics, of course, but I already knew what an aileron was at age five.”

From that moment on the now 48-year-old, Kitimat, B.C.-native knew Zoltan Miklos is one of Harbour Air's veteran pilotshe wanted to become a pilot. From high school in Port Coquitlam, B.C., he soared immediately into the aviation program at Trinity Western University and received flight training at Langley Airport and floatplane training at Fort Langley.

His first flight job took him to Flin Flon on the Manitoba-Saskatchewan border. As a pilot’s assistant on a Single Otter aircraft serving the uranium mining industry, Zoltan helped load and unload planes. “We moved generators, camps and other heavy stuff . It was hard work, but also very focused. A good place to cut my teeth.”

The 1980s were a rollercoaster ride for Zoltan. He was back in Vancouver working as a pilot for Tradewinds Aviation when his younger brother was killed in a car accident in Northern B.C. “It was deep waters for me,” Zoltan admits. “At that time, I had just started to get established. Zoltan Miklos is one of Harbour Air’s veteran pilots In the space of two weeks, the woman that I thought I was going to marry broke off the relationship, I got laid off from my job and my brother died.”

A man of faith, Zoltan entertained the idea of entering the ministry but needed an undergraduate degree. He attended the University of British Columbia but between his third and fourth year the opportunity arose to fly in Mozambique, Africa for NGOs and aid agencies involved in famine relief, including UNICEF, CARE and World Vision. “Mozambique was in the middle of a civil war. We flew over unsafe zones to safe zones. I enjoyed that; I felt I was making a difference.”

He admits, however, that “Africa can wear you out. I felt that if I were going to do that longterm, I wanted to be married.” After two years in Mozambique, Zoltan moved back to Vancouver. On the heels of finishing his degree in 1989, he got a job at Harbour Air.

His work has brought him stability and good adventures. A memorable experience was flying John Travolta to Victoria. They talked about aviation for the better part of the journey as Travolta is a pilot and owns a few planes.

When not flying, Zoltan enjoys his motorcycle, reading, and the arts, especially music. His mother encouraged him to learn accordion when he was young and he played clarinet, saxophone and guitar in school. Starting a gospel choir at his church is a dream he plans to realize.

Overall, Zoltan’s main goal in life is to gain wisdom. To that end, he appreciates simple pleasures, like a great sunrise. “On the first flight of the day about three years ago, a slightly overcast layer reached all the way over to Mount Baker. As the sun rose, Baker’s shadow formed along the band of clouds and a myriad of pinks, purples and golds glowed against a blue sky. At that moment I was just thankful to be alive.”