Rhode Island’s Highest Flying Small Business Turns 25
GoLocalProv News Team
Rhode Island’s Highest Flying Small Business Turns 25
You probably have seen the company — the bright red helicopter flying over Aquidneck Island. It provides tours, charters, and custom flights for photography.
Codman’s work ethic started as a boy, cutting and delivering firewood with his father. Their customers were all over Rhode Island. He remembers delivering wood to then Senator John Chafee’s cabin in the Pojac section of North Kingstown. The cabin had no heating except a wood stove.
But, cutting wood was not his passion. Flying was. He learned how to fly planes.
“I learned to fly with my dad. He flew out of Quonset, and I was around airplanes growing up. I think I was like 13 when I started to fly. I soloed at 16, it was my 16th birthday,” said Codman.
“I had a nomination for the Air Force Academy, but did not make the final round,” he said.
It did not deter his passion for flying. For years, Codman hustled and had a range of jobs, and flying was already a part of his life.
Big Idea
"I started flying helicopters, I think it was, 1983 or 1984, over in Quonset," said Codman.
“I think at the end of that, [around] 1988, I got my commercial helicopter license, did a lot to build flight time. I did a lot of aerial photography, real estate, boats shots, I'd get the job and then I would fly it. I have friends of mine shoot it with cameras, or I would have my instructor,” he said
“In 1999, I started kind of looking around at things and trying to get serious and try to find a job or create something. There wasn't really anything around the area. And so there was no one over here from 1998 until I started up in the spring of 2000. So that helicopter I bought was an old 1977 Enstrom, 3-blade helicopter,” he added. "It was great."
Codman said he got rejected by about a dozen banks to finance the business. Ultimately, he caught a break.
“I started it in 2000. Started it with an SBA loan, same story, small business guy trying to get money. I was working another job,” he said.
“[The SBA loan] was through Textron. Because back then, I don't think I was making $25,000 a year, and the first machine I bought was about $100,000, and they were like, "This kid?" said Codman.
There have been great successes, and it is a dream job for Codman, but it has not been without its challenges.
“We have overcome some significant economic challenges. Just after we launched was 9/11. Then there was the economy in 2008 [The Great Recession] and COVID. They were all tough for a small business,” said Codman.
“Quite a few tour companies went out of business across the country because of COVID. We ended up selling one of our helicopters — just someone wanted to buy the second machine. I said, you know what, let's just downshift,” said Codman.
“Obviously, we weren't flying for a while [during COVID]. It was at least probably six, eight weeks. I actually made it kind of into a taxi cab type of thing. I put a temporary divider between the front and the back seats,” he added.
Family Involved and 25 Years
Codman said the experience has been extraordinary. Both his son and daughter have been involved in the business.
It is a Rhode Island success story —25 years of passion and just getting started.