Stanislav Kaljban is a 47-year old flying instructor from Slovakia whose blog, The Piper Pilot, regularly shows the most spectacular aerial views of the Canary Islands, photographed from the vantage point of a Piper training aircraft.
STAN, TELL US HOW ALL THIS STARTED.
I wanted to be a military pilot originally, but back then the Berlin wall had just fallen and no one knew what was going to happen with the Soviet Migs I would have been flying. I followed another career, but the dream never died, and when I came to Tenerife in 2004, I joined a flying club, eventually becoming an instructor.
The blog began in 2010. I’d bought an iPhone 5, took it up to the top of Mount Teide and was amazed by the photos. At first, it was mostly a way for me to keep memories, but it picked up more and more followers all round the world.
WHAT IS YOUR FAVOURITE CANARIAN AIRPORT?
Tenerife South – it’s my home base, the controllers there are great and I like the way our little training plane gets to mix with the big boys – it’s a busy international airport with lots of passenger planes.
IS THERE AN AIRPORT THAT’S CHALLENGING?
Not really, but La Gomera sometimes worries people the first time. It has cliffs all around, and the winds can be strong. It’s like landing on an aircraft carrier. All airports are different – Tenerife North is often cloudy, for example, while Gran Canaria has two big runways.
WHAT DO YOU NOTICE ABOUT THE ISLANDS FROM A BIRDS-EYE-VIEW?
All sorts of things. I love flying to Lanzarote. It’s forbidden to fly over Timanfaya but I love seeing El Golfo and going up to La Graciosa. On Fuerteventura you see long white beaches and crashing seas, and the western islands are much greener. The Canaries are dry in the summer, but after rain, everything goes green in just a few days.
DO YOU EVER SEE PLACES YOU’D LIKE TO VISIT ON THE GROUND LATER?
Often. For example, the old airport at La Gomera fascinated me for five years, so I arranged a trip there and wrote a long blog post about it.
Stan’s amazing blog can be found at www.flywithstan.com, but you can also follow him on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter. Search for “The Piper Pilot”.
