Out of high school, Bruce Merrell, owner of Merrell Air, began a career in construction and eventually started his own construction business in the San Francisco Bay area. In 1994, Merrell moved to Sisters and started Laredo Construction, which remodels homes.

In April, one of his clients, who noticed Merrell’s enthusiasm for small airplanes, gave him an idea for a new venture. The tip proved valuable, Merrell bought into a SkyTaxi franchise in Bend and began his new business catering to air travelers.

SkyTaxi is an operation that runs much like a taxi cab service-with a network of contracted airplanes and crews. SkyTaxi books flights and regulates the statewide operation. Merrell received his pilot license two years ago and during his spare time, he flies planes with his 21-year-old son, who is training to become a pilot.

How did you build an expertise in airplanes?

To operate this business, you don’t really have to have an expertise in airplanes. They’re looking for franchise owners that can handle the business and take care of people. They look at your net worth as well. Basically, all we have to do is buy the plane, buy the franchise and hire the pilots. It’s all monitored by SkyTaxi.

When did you start your business? How much capital did you start with?

We incorporated Merrell Air in June. Approximately $100,000.

Tell me how SkyTaxi service works.

You call the SkyTaxi corporate headquarters at 866-Sky-Taxi and they are the central dispatch and reservations number for all the franchises. They’ll line up the proper planes to meet people’s needs.

You can call and have a plan pick you up in generally three hours or less and take you anywhere you want to go. In Oregon, there’s a hundred airports we can land at or pick people up at.

How many planes do you have?

We have one plane and one crew. The next step, as business picks up here, we will add another crew so that we can fly seven days a week. Our goal is, in about a year, we’ll add a second plane. We’re hoping to get a franchise in Redmond so we’ll have two planes based in Central Oregon.

What is the range in fares?

It depends on the destination and when you want to fly. It’s on SkyTaxi’s Web site. For example, they’re going to run specials from Bend to Portland’s airport for $111 per seat one way as long as you buy two seats.

Where are your customers?

They’re from all over. It’s hunters, fishermen, and average people.

We had two guys that wanted to get to Idaho with their dogs on short notice. We’ve had some of our construction clients use it.

One of our clients bought a car in Portland to surprise his wife. So he booked a flight with our plane from Bend to Portland and they drove home their new car.

People from St. Charles Medical Center may use our service. They own Air Life but those planes need to be available to take care of emergencies.

What percentage of business comes from politicians?

I don’t know the exact percentage because we’re just getting started. But Kevin Mannix and Bill Bradbury used (SkyTaxi) on their campaign trails.

Has your company been affected by the weak economy?

We’re not noticing it at all. As a start-up business, we’re exceeding the proforma data that they gave us. It’s going better than planned.

Many major airline pilots were furloughed indefinitely last year after September. Have you seen a demand for work among pilots? Are you able to hire more seasoned pilots?

A lot of them are calling SkyTaxi. I heard 150 guys applied.

How do you choose your pilots? How much do you pay them?

The two pilots we’ve hired live right here in Bend. They love to work for us because they want to be at home with their family every night at the same place, even though it might be less pay than flying the big heavy metal for United Airlines.

People have to apply with SkyTaxi first then they present a couple of candidates to us to choose from. We’re looking for guys that are not only qualified to fly the plane but they’ve got to be personable. That’s how we built our construction firm. Our pilots interact with you, they’ll answer any questions about the plane, they carry your bags.

There’s a sliding scale depending on their experience. A first officer starts at about $1,000 per month. He can go up to about $18,000 per year.

The captain is paid $30,000 to $50,000 a year or more depending how much they fly. They are paid an hourly rate for the time they are flying.

Recently Sen. Paul Wellstone, his family, three staff members and two pilots were killed in a crash in Minnesota riding a small plane. Have you felt an impact on your business after the incident?

We haven’t felt an impact at all. Any more then if there was a car crash, people don’t stop driving.

Flying in any airplane is statistically safer than taking a trip in a car. How safe are charter flights compared with major airlines and regional carriers?

Personally, I feel very safe in them. Our crew wants to get home every night to their wives. They’re very well qualified. Our captain has to go to FlightSafety International, which is one of the highest standards in the industry for any airlines. Plus they’re trained by SkyTaxi, plus they have the FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) check they go through.

We have very safe planes with the highest technology avionics in them. We don’t have to fly this way but we have a twin engine plane with a captain and first officer. Either one can fly and land the plane. That’s how we’ve addressed safety. We’ve gone way beyond what’s required.

Do smaller planes have the same safety features as larger commercial aircrafts?

In general, yes. There’s some things that are on the jets that’s not on our planes but we’re not flying at 20,000 feet or in extreme weather conditions.

Monica Lee can be reached at mlee@bendbulletin.com