Cruising with Kalitta Air – Arvin Sierra Climbs High within the Aviation Management World

Most College of Aviation alumni praise the roles that instructors played in guiding them to successful careers, but Arvin Sierra cites a different species of advisor among his hierarchy of heroes. 

On the payroll of Kalitta Air since his 2019 graduation from WMU with a degree in aviation management and operations, Sierra lists as his special person Sharon Van Dyken, the college's director of academic advising. 

"She helped me plan throughout my years at WMU," Sierra says.  "Even when I was in a low time during my academic years and other advisers seemed to doubt my ability to succeed, she never gave up on me.  I never wanted to let her down.  She always believed I could complete a semester with full credit hours."    Sierra now wants to pay forward that kind of confidence in those who choose to follow his career path. 

That journey started in Bolingbrook, Ill., a 74,000-population village and southwest suburb of Chicago.  The 2015 graduate of Bolingbrook High School doesn't recall his first flight, which came as a 1-year-old when his mother returned to her native Thailand to visit family. Later in the playground at a Thai temple, he remembers Southwest Airlines flights landing at Chicago's Midway Airport.  Home was near the airport serving Bolingbrook where he was no stranger to hearing planes overhead. 

"The annual 'Cavalcade of Planes" air show was hosted there," he says.  "I saw warbirds, experimental aircraft and a B-2 bomber flyby one year."  So when aviation loomed as a career possibility, Sierra began looking for a pathway.  "Out of three schools in three states." he says, "WMU felt the most 'homey'." 

In addition to Van Dyken's "homey" counsel, Sierra believes that he found eventual success because of his consistent weekly routine around Western's Kalamazoo campus and the Battle Creek home of the aviation program.  "I was not really a party-type person," he says, "so I did not go to many gatherings or sporting events, with the exception of some hockey games.  I went to classes and then to Waldo Library to complete assignments." 

That personal routine also included twice-a-week visits to the Student Recreation Center to strengthen his physical being as he did so with his mental capabilities.  Saturdays often became trips to Waldo to continue polishing academics.  "I would not leave until I was done," he says.  "I would almost always sit in the same spot on the second floor with my back to a pillar that could charge my devices."  It was not unusual for Sierra to be there from the library's opening to when the doors were locked. 

Not entirely cloistered from a social life, Sierra served on the Aviation Student Council during his final two years at Western, focusing on public relations, event planning such as broomball matches at Lawson Arena, and overseeing the organization's Facebook connection. 

Within a year, he was elevated to the position of international flight-clearance coordinator, a role that involved making certain that company operations were legal and successful in foreign nations.  Dealing with various government agencies and even the U.S. military were part of that Kalitta routine. 

These experiences and responsibilities prepped him for new duties as a Flight Follower -- being in charge of "creating, releasing and watching over live flights for Kalitta Air," which made him feel "more involved in company operations."  Within a year, he was promoted to shift supervisor, his current position where he now assigns live flights, performs random audits of flight plans, and makes certain "all the rules are safely complied with."  If something is "urgent," Sierra takes action. 

Among his long-term goals is to embody Van Dyken's philosophy -- "to become a person whom others could look to for advice or assistance," he says.  "Growing up, I was always viewed as being 'one step behind' academically.  I did OK in normal classes in high school but was on the opposite end in honors classes.  As 'the dumbest honors student,' I always thought I would never be as successful as those at the top of the class.  Comparing myself to them killed my motivation. It was not until my second half at WMU," he says, "that I realized I should stop doing that and focus on bettering myself.  Flash forward to my current position.  Of course, I am not going to stop where I am today.  In order to help others, I must always learn new things so that I can incorporate that into my teaching, which is easy because that's what I like best about my job." 

Sure, there are obvious reasons such as job schedule, salary, and "jumpseat privileges" for taking a weekend jaunt.  But to Sierra, the best thing about his career is that he is "constantly learning.  No two days are the same.  On one day it is dealing with volcanic ash in the Pacific and the next day an "Mx emergency."  While "nobody wants those kinds of experiences, I take them as learning opportunities.  I would love to be able to explain to somebody what to do in those situations and present a story based on past events."  

That's why Sierra willingly takes part in outreach and recruiting events, such as volunteering for the college's Aviation Outlook Day at WMU. There's nothing like hearing about a career from somebody who is in that role, he believes. 

 One such trip took him to the Tuskegee Airmen Museum Career Day in Detroit. He is often accompanied by WMU alumnus Bryce Harden, who works with him at Kalitta along with Bronco grads Bryanna Dishaw, Eric Epplett, Matthew Gosbeth, Paul Barnes, Ashley Thornton Murdock, Brandon Smith, and Ryan Stevens. 

His "jumpseat" tales don't hurt at recruiting events either.  Those off-the-cuff flights have taken him all over the United States and -- next to Thailand -- to his favorite destination -- Hawaii.  He and a friend jumpseated there in an afternoon, stayed the night and came back the next day -- almost with the same ease as a drive to Chicago.  At the controls for the "jumps" were the same Kalitta flight crew. 

Still part of Sierra's "routine" to this day is being "taught by a WMU friend to place the palm of my hand on every aircraft I board for good luck," he says.  "I have been pretty much doing that every time.  Also, I almost always play a song in my earbuds that I have designated just prior to take-off.  That is definitely a 'me thing' and I accept the term 'nerd' for this."  While a little superstition is OK, what would be better is to make certain the flight crew had a good night's sleep. 

An avid game player, music fan (especially when selecting a take-off tune), and a follower of anime (hand-drawn and computer-generated animation originating in Japan), Sierra will often "jumpseat" his way to conventions of this like all over North America. 

If that's being a nerd, we should all be so lucky.