RAI Jets in Encore Magazine


We’re proud to announce that RAI Jets will grace the cover and have an inside feature in the upcoming September issue of Encore Magazine! We were delighted to have their crew out to the hangar recently for a photo shoot and sit down with Becky, David and Brian, the original Riley kids who helped build the company. The magazine is Greater Kala-mazoo’s oldest lifestyle and culture magazine and tells the stories of the people and places in Southwest Michigan better than anyone. Here’s a sneak peek at the photo shoot and watch our social media for notification of when the magazine hits the stands around town!

Captain Highlight: Doug Swartz

If you’ve traveled with RAI jets, you may have met Captain Doug Swartz. Doug has been flying our Citation III for the last 13 years and is an experienced pilot with more than 19,000 hours of military and civilian flight time logged.

Doug is a Detroit native who graduated with a degree in engineering from Michigan State before joining the U.S. Air Force. He was selected for pilot training and eventually did a tour of duty in Vietnam where he flew more than 300 combat missions and was awarded the “Distinguished Flying Cross.” After his duty he returned to Michigan and was reassigned to flying a KC-135 refueling aircraft.

For many decades, Doug flew for the Upjohn Company in Kalamazoo and even served as Director of Aviation there. After the merger with Pfizer, Doug joined the RAI team. He went from being a great customer to being a great team member! We wish Doug all the best on his upcoming celebration of his 50th wedding anniversary with his wife Terry, which he will undoubtedly share with his three children and six grandsons.

“Flying with RAI allows Terry and I to spend winters in Arizona,” Doug says. “We find the flights to be very productive and operated with a strong focus on safety, and all the RAI employees are very professional and great to work with.”

Thank you Doug, for all you do for our customers!

What Do Charter Flights and Diamonds Have in Common?

No two are exactly the same! Hence the budding relationship between “Diamond Doug” of UniQ Jewelry Gallery in Portage (pictured) and RAI Jets. UniQ specializes in creating one-of-a-kind jewelry pieces. “Diamond Doug” and RAI Jets President Becky Bakeman grew up together in Mendon, Michigan and their moms were close friends. Stay tuned for more on the “UniQ” things to come with this fine company and RAI Jets.