On Father’s Day, Captain Nigel Narara reflects on growing up with a dad whose life was defined by flight, family, and passion for aviation.
When Aviation Becomes Family – A Father’s Legacy In The Skies
By Captain Nigel Narara – Etihad Airways – A380/A330/A320F Captain [CASA/GCAA/ICAO/CAAV]
It’s Father’s Day in Australia, and in the part of the world I come from, that always gets me reflecting on what it was like having a dad in aviation.
Most families measured time in weekends or school holidays.Ours? In logbooks, flight hours, terminals, and the occasional jumpseat ride (with plenty of airplane talk we didn’t always ask for 😅).
Looking back, that’s been one of the greatest blessings — aviation moments became family moments, and those memories are a grateful passage of time.
After decades in the Middle East — flying for both Emirates and Etihad and holding senior management roles in both (and even giving me the chance to fly alongside him as a FO on the A330 early in my Etihad career) — Dad left the UAE in his 60s.
But instead of slowing down, he went back to the islands and highlands of home in Papua New Guinea.
Still flying. Still instructing. Still giving back in management.
Today, he’s helping our home airline prepare for the introduction of the 787 while serving as a senior TRE on the Boeing fleet.
Happy Father’s Day, Dad — thank you for showing me that passion doesn’t retire, and that when you love what you do, the journey never really ends.
