Reply to message from Bob: I was there as a pilot for Ernest...

Reply to message from Bob: I was there as a pilot for Ernest Bennett around 1982 but did not stay until 1985 which was misprint.

To be honest with you I became somewhat depressed with the poverty situation and lack of others from mainland to interact with along with fact Bennett took a personal liking to me and I found myself not flying so much as being driven around in the backseat of his BMW with the guard with the machine gun sitting the right front seat. It was interesting but short lived experince and I was not fond of some of short dirt airstrips in Hait, etc. that helped me decide to leave Haiti.

The formation of Air Haiti was just in process of developement and I recall Bennett wanted to fly tourist to Cuba but pilot objections because U.S. would object caused him to change his mind about that. I lived in that hotel up on the hill overlooking Port-of-Prince and one day when I was in the elevator with the owner of the hotel he said to me" This is the only elevator in Haiti.!" Considering the present situation after earthquake and with 9,000 U.N. troops in Haiti and high rates of rape and other crimes what do you think will now come next and what chances to you see for services needed?

I personally see a need for a military school with government backing.

It would not only serve education purposes but provide the country with security which at least existed when I was there even if a lot of poverty Haiti had an army and and an Air Force.

Now the situation is obviously much worse but at the same time because it so bad there may be chances for services needed.

Emails to the embassy of Haiti don't always bring a response.

I did speak to a man once from the Embassy who called me and he was bragging about all the airlines that stop in Haiti but of course now since the earthquake its back, at least in my mind, to a period of time of progress that was no where near as high as existed in Haiti back in the year 1982. I more interested in what you think comes next than talking about the past. Mr. Bennett is dead and his daughter no doubt played a role, in the demise of Baby Doc, with her high spending habits.

It is a period and time I found it interesting to be indirectly involved with but as it because obvious even back then there was militant organized opposition it became something that I didn't want to be in the middle of and was also served to motivate me to leave Haiti.

It was sort of like being with Bennett was like being part of "the first family of the nation" which exactely loved by everyone..

Baby Doc was just too young at the time to be president and I found it somewhat funny that at cabinet meetings he would doze off and Bennetts daughter would start giving instructions to government officials!