By Benn Marks  

Contrary to the perception in the aviation community that Australia’s small regional airlines are slowly contracting, one Victorian regional airline is bucking the trend and going from strength to strength.

Sharp Airlines was established in 1990 principally as a flying school but also as a charter operator, operating from its Hamilton base in southwest Victoria.

The company originally used a single Piper Warrior to provide training for pilots in Hamilton and, in so doing, offered other aspiring pilots in the wider region the opportunity to learn how to fly and obtain first class training without having to relocate to Melbourne.

The school flourished during the early 90s, with two Cessna 172s and a Cessna 182 joining the ranks in 1994 for more advanced flight training. The beginnings of an airline were emerging too, which would later lay the foundations for the airline as it is today. The one constant throughout the company’s inception, growth and development however, has been its managing director and chief pilot, Malcolm Sharp.

Sharp has acquired more than 11,000 flying hours as a charter pilot, pilot instructor and regional airline pilot. But the 41 year old highly driven aviator has also acquired a reputation for his business acumen, drive and ambition.
Born and bred in Hamilton, Sharp started flying when he was 16 years old, gaining his pilot’s licence when he was 17. As a young man growing up with a desire to fly, he worked as a trades assistant at the Alcoa construction site in Portland, which would ultimately pave the way for a working relationship with his company that continues today.

Before founding his company in 1990, Sharp worked as a commercial pilot in southeastern Australia. Accumulating valuable flight time in the region, he conceived plans for an airline that would ‘provide an efficient, accessible transport solution for western and south-western Victoria’.

Another historical event at the time, which later proved to be ‘basically a blessing’ for Sharp, was the Pilots’ Strike, which brought the Australian domestic aviation industry to a halt. When a large number of big jet pilots forfeited their employment with their former employers and sought it elsewhere with smaller operators throughout the region, Sharp recognised their experience would place them ahead of him in the employment pecking order. However, that realisation provided the impetus for Sharp Airlines.

“The Pilots’ Strike was very much a catalyst for creating the airline,” Sharp said. “Despite accumulating a wealth of experience in aerial work, charter, to pilot training – the whole gamut - I couldn’t compete with pilots who had commanded the big jets,” he said.

“So, I basically created my own job by creating my own business.”

Another bonus for the airline at the time was the involvement of local Hamilton businessman, Peter Sobey. Having accumulated at least twenty years of agricultural and commercial business experience in the region, Sobey decided to switch careers and learn how to fly, as well as invest in Sharp Airlines.

Another local identity also invested in the airline but it was Sobey, who gained his commercial pilot’s licence with Sharp as his instructor, who would play a crucial role in the company’s growth and development as well.
In fact, as director and partner of Sharp Airlines alongside Sharp, Sobey would ultimately be delegated responsibility for overseeing the company’s nationally recognised Advanced Diploma for Airline Pilots; in conjunction with his role as Chief Flying Instructor for the airline’s up and coming pilots in the future.

The combined commercial and flight time experience of the two directors also coincided with the company’s investment in necessary infrastructure during the course of the late 90s. Further aircraft were purchased to cater to the growing needs of the airline and flying school arms of the business.
A five-seater Piper Seneca was purchased to augment both facets of the business in the early 1990s and the demand for the airline started gaining momentum in the region during the late 90s.

During this period, Sharp Airlines used a Piper Chieftain to provide ad hoc charters throughout Victoria’s southwest. Although Sharp Airlines didn't own the aircraft initially, it still managed to establish a presence for the fledging airline with the business communities of Portland and Hamilton.

O’Connor Airlines operated out of Mt Gambier and serviced the Melbourne – Mt Gambier – Adelaide sector - along with Rex Airlines and Kendall Airlines formerly, but there was no real operator to service the ‘smaller towns in between and along the way’; towns such as Portland and Hamilton and to provide a connection to Melbourne for business travellers.

Towards the early 2000s Sharp Airlines had acquired an impressive reputation as it continued to tap into the thriving and prosperous industries of Hamilton and Portland; industries which range in diversity from healthcare and education, to shipping and wood-chipping. In fact, with the Alcoa aluminium smelter plant and only major shipping port between Melbourne and Adelaide located in Portland, the need to rapidly transport ‘FI-FO’s’ (fly in/fly out contract workers) to these facilities, from cities such as Melbourne, started to increase. Add to the equation a large educational base and regional hospital in Hamilton, an emerging blue gum wood-chipping industry of Portland (all of which continue to thrive today) and the need for a niche operator to service them was rapidly becoming a given.
As demand continued to grow to service these industries, extra aircraft were also required.

In 2001, three nine-seater Piper Chieftains were bought to cater to the growing regional demand, and to provide additional ad hoc charter capability when required. In fact, the year was a milestone for Sharp Airlines, in that the first of its scheduled services was inaugurated; its daily Hamilton - Warrnambool - Essendon service, which was flown by the company’s Piper Chieftains. The airline’s other daily service between Portland - Avalon – Essendon also commenced that year; again with the company’s ever-reliable Chieftains flying the route.

With regular scheduled services now firmly underway, the growing airline was establishing a respectable and noticeable presence along Victoria’s southwest.

The Portland and Hamilton business communities were becoming increasingly aware of the small but rapidly growing regional airliner in their midst. More specifically, business travellers and the travelling public were coming to realise that a relatively inexpensive regional airliner was operating in the region - for the region. And Sharp was always on the look-out for innovative ways to expand and develop the airline arm of the business in terms of the scope and size of its operations: a desire he still retains today.

“There’s always been a lot of core business that we’ve chased. To be successful you’ve got to have a core group of flyers. But we’ve always explored new markets, new opportunities and we’ll always be open-minded to what’s out there,” he said.

During the course of 2001 through to 2006, both Sharp and Sobey recognised that the need to upgrade the airline’s fleet was approaching, as demands of the Hamilton and Portland communities’ continued to increase. Furthermore, the growing demand was starting to transcend the capabilities of the company’s venerable Chieftains.

The Chieftains, alongside the four-seat Seneca the company now operated, could provide ongoing commuter services in the region but both partners recognised something faster, larger and more economical was required to take the airline to the next step of its commercial success.

After drafting a shortlist of 19-seat turbo-props in 2006, which included the Beechcraft 1900, the BAe Jetstream 31 and the Fairchild Metro III, they chose the Metro III.

“The Chieftains weren’t big enough and we needed an aircraft to operate like a small regional airliner; what’s more, they didn’t have the capacity or strength to handle the passenger work,” Sobey said.

In November 2006, Sharp Airlines purchased the first of ultimately four Fairchild Metro III/23s; a purchase which took the airline to the next level and in so doing, cemented its place as a solid and legitimate regional airliner in the state’s south west - and Australia.

“We did a very in-depth analysis of our needs and the Metro came out on top of the competitors in the market; that is, out of the Jetstream 31 and Beechcraft 1900,” Sharp said.

“When we looked at what was available in the region, as far as engineering experience, engineering support and operating expertise, there were at least 60 Metros in the region and on a cost per seat kilometre basis, you couldn’t come close to a Metro,” he said. “It’s the least expensive of the three that we finally considered to operate.”

The 19-seater and the world's most successful twin turboprop, quickly established itself on the Portland to Melbourne, via Hamilton service, and quickly proved a hit with both crew and passengers alike when it was introduced.

Furthermore, a twice-daily direct service from Portland to Avalon was inaugurated in January 2007, to meet the needs of Alcoa, and its crew rotations for its other aluminium smelter plant located at Port Henry near Geelong, and various lucrative charters also emerged for the airline.
In fact, so popular was the aircraft that Sharp leased two more of the distinctive ‘flying pencils’ to service the airline’s growing itineraries in early 2008.
“It’s proven itself. It’s an accountant’s aircraft. The pilots like them, they’re a great aircraft to fly, and they’re capable of carrying a respectable payload,” Sharp said. "Metros are fast, comfortable, perform well in all conditions and are economical.”

The years 2006 and 2007 saw major developments with the flight training side of the business too. Despite the fact flight training had ceased for the general public in late 2007, the Hamilton-based flying school still taught students but the clientele was quite unique. The registered training organisation (RTO) was modified to teach and train its own pilots - right up to the commercial level - for deployment within the ranks of the airline itself. Consequently, the airline/flying school ‘conglomerate’ is now strategically positioned to serve both the needs of itself...and the region.

Since its inception, the Sharp Airlines flying school has grown considerably into a modern, well-equipped and nationally recognised training facility whose graduates are first class. In fact, both directors are extremely astute and have displayed enormous commercial sense in conceiving a flying school whose sole aim is to train pilots who will ultimately be deployed as line pilots on the company’s Metro aircraft.

“The unique difference with Sharp Airlines was that the school was set up specifically to train pilots for its own needs,” Sobey said. “The main reason we started the training was because we weren’t getting enough quality pilots coming through, so we thought we’d train our own,” he said.

“We know what standard and quality we’re after. We train 10 commercial pilots per year and our training will grow with the needs of the airline.”

The theoretical and practical training the pilots receive is all encompassing and first-class. A component of it encapsulates customer service theory, in conjunction with their flight training. Essentially, graduates of the school acquire a qualification, which teaches them the ‘human element’ side to the aviation business, in addition to the technical, theoretical and practical elements of it.

“We’re after quality, not quantity and our trainee pilots are very professional. We emphasise personal development, personal skills and safety. It’s no longer just about ‘stick and rudder’ flying,” Sobey said.

And with the school training pilots right up to commercial level, which includes an endorsement on the Metro as part of the package, their training is comprehensive and highly valued.

“The traineeship is for two years; the first year is training and in the second year they work for Sharp Airlines as a line pilot,” Sobey said. “After 750 hours total aeronautical experience, some stay and some go. We accept we’re a stepping stone through to the major airlines.”

In many respects the early part of the 21st Century has seen Sharp Airlines evolve into a highly sophisticated and self-maintaining entity. It has a flight school to train its own pilots and the Metros have enabled the airline to increase its range of services, as well as branch out into different states.
In late April 2008, a series of new routes were introduced in South Australia, to serve both the resources boom there, and also provide highly sought after scheduled passenger services.

The same month saw the commencement of a four times daily return Metro service between Adelaide and Port Augusta and a four times daily return Metro service between Adelaide and Mildura: essentially, two morning departures and two afternoon departures for each sector.

For Sharp though, the desire to establish a presence in SA was relatively simple and obvious: “We primarily cater for the business market, so basically 85 percent of our passengers are in that category, while 15 per cent are the ‘visitors, friends and relations’ (VFRS) market.”

“And there’s the growing resources boom in SA that we’ve grabbed a slice of, too. Also, there’s a strong demand for the VFRS market there as well, so we knew there was a demand to establish services too.”

With the recent acquisition of a Metro 23, Sharp Airlines now has a fleet of four Metros, which regularly fly throughout Victoria and South Australia.
In fact, the airline now flies 40 scheduled services each week in SA alone, while 54 scheduled services are flown in Victoria each week.

Although the airline is headquartered in Hamilton, with its engineering division located in Portland, it still retains operational bases at Essendon Airport, Adelaide, Port Augusta and Mildura.

With a smaller fleet of training aircraft and the Piper twin still with the fleet, the airline continues to perform its secondary function of providing ad hoc charter, aerial survey and other work as required.

Sharp Airlines now has 28 full-time and 7 part time staff, 15 Metro line pilots, and three highly experienced and qualified instructor pilots, who are now grooming the next generation of Sharp Airlines pilots.

However, the next year will be one of ‘consolidation’ for the airline, according to the company’s founding director and chief pilot, as he contemplates his company’s achievements and its future strategic direction.

“We need to just catch our breaths for a while and we’ll consolidate our position in the short term too,” Sharp said. “We’ve got a great product and very good staff and we’ve doubled our income in two years,” he said.

“After this period of consolidation we’ll look for other opportunities in the longer term, such as opportunities in south east Australia, and there are larger aircraft on the horizon too.”
With Malcolm Sharp’s desire, vision and ‘let’s do it’ mindset, Sharp Airlines has grown considerably into a well-respected regional airliner but, more importantly, one that is here to stay.