Ever since I was child and I first saw Jerry Reed driving that Kenworth in the movie Smokey and the Bandit, I always wanted to drive a truck and do it like him. Jerry Reed wasn't just a talented singer, song writer and an actor. He was someone that made you laugh and feel good just by being him. He had a way about him that made you want to meet him and be friends with him. Watching him in his movies, hearing his songs, and listening to interviews. He made you feel like you knew him personally. People that did know him always said that he didn't act, he just turns up and plays himself. He was the same at home according to his daughter. He was a huge inspiration to me, and he always will be.
So what I did was I joined an agency, and they supplied drivers on a free-lance basis to the Royal Mail.
Those European trucks were nothing like the long nose chrome fronted twin vertical exhaust stacked 18 wheelers, but I was sure I would drive one of those in the future as I would always keep this up living on the other side of the Atlantic. Its a good side line to have. For now, I fell lucky with the Royal Mail. I was treated well, given decent runs and began to enjoy it. I could be a full time driver, part time or leave and come back days, weeks or months later and get right back into it. There was that much freedom.
While I was trucking and saving up some more money for the next rating, which was the FAA instructor rating. I happened to stumble across a banner towing operator in Daytona. They were advertising for 47 banner tow pilots for the coming season on their website. They said that they could sponsor foreign pilots for their work permits because of a shortage of American pilots.
At the time, I was thinking that it was genuine. There is a logic as to why banner tow pilots are in short supply, since after a season they have built up enough hours to move onto bigger and better things. Besides, its not the sort of job that every pilot would want to have a go at. It does make sense if you think of it like that.
So being a bit naive back then, I figured it might have been possible to get this job under a US H-2 seasonal visa. Then continue with my plan to become an instructor and get a more permanent visa while already working there as a banner tow pilot. I saw it as a way to get to the States quicker in the first place, and have a lot of fun in the meantime. I did fancy a crack at it, and this person made it sound possible.
I had my FAA commercial now, so potentially I could be employed in America as a pilot to do a job such as this, as long as I could get the US work permit.
After a few months of driving trucks and saving up for the banner towing course, I returned to Florida, rented a car and went to Daytona.
In 8 hours, I was taught how to take off while holding a banner hook under my elbow. I threw the hook out the window beneath the tail so it trailed behind. I dived down over the banner pick up assembly and then I hooked it.
To get to a safe standard where I could be signed off as competent, I guess I would have needed at least another 10 hours practise. I was just signed off as soon as I had done it successfully a couple of times. I was told that I would be hearing from them with regards employment within a couple of weeks.
I already knew at this point that I had been swindled. There was no job.
The company in Daytona is no longer owned by the same person. I have no reason to believe that the person who has it now isn't genuine.
