#prestigeprofiles | JULY 2019 PRESTIGE 89

t the age of 30, while most of

his peers were busy climbing

the corporate ladder, Matt

Jones traded in his suit and tie

for flight overalls. After about

seven years of working in an investment bank in London, he

left the corporate world to take to the skies and go after his

childhood dream of becoming a pilot.

In making the switch, Jones took a “horrific” pay cut

and struggled in the beginning when training for his

licence. He was spending most of his savings on flight

training, which cost him over £1,000 per 90-minute

flight. But he has no regrets. “Flying is such a cleansing

experience, especially in something like a Spitfire, which

is so powerful and agile,” says the 45-year-old. “It gives you

such exceptional freedom.”

Being British, Jones says he has always loved the

Spitfire, which was the fighter aircraft used by the Royal

Air Force and other Allied countries during World War ii.

Spitfires became the pride of the nation after bringing down

1,887 German planes in just

over three months during the

Battle of Britain, and remain

a treasured symbol of

freedom in the uk and

around the world.

Jones is now Managing

Director and Chief Pilot at

Boultbee Flight Academy, the

only accredited Spitfire training school in the world, which

he co-founded with explorer and pilot Steve Brooks in 2010.

This August, in partnership with iwc, the two will attempt to

fly a polished silver 1940s mk9 Spitfire around the world.

The ambitious expedition, christened Silver Spitfire – The

Longest Flight, is a first for the aircraft and will see the two

pilots visit over 30 countries in a span of about four months.

The main goal of this historic flight is to inspire more

people with the Spitfire, says Jones, and to make sure that it

continues its legacy in the skies and not just in museums.

“History aside, the Spitfire is the most beautiful flying

machine,” he effuses. “I challenge anyone to watch or listen

to that plane fly past and not be touched by it. So we want

to engage with people. We’ll be flying at a very low level so

that people can follow us on the tracker and wave at us as

we fly past, and hopefully, we can wave back.”

Partnering with iwc for the expedition is also a way to

spread awareness. The Swiss watchmaker has been making

its Pilot’s Watches for over 80 years and launched a new

Spitfire collection earlier this year. “We’ve done a lot of

storytelling through iwc, which helps to get the message out

there and to inspire others through the trip,” says Jones.

While he has been preparing for the flight for two

years, something Jones did not anticipate was it coinciding

with the birth of his first son, who is due in October,

halfway through the trip. “I think that will be very

difficult,” he admits sombrely. “But I talked long and hard

with my girlfriend about whether going ahead with the trip

is the right thing to do. And she is 100 percent behind me

going. Because she knows if I stay, I won’t really be there

with her.”

He adds: “This is something we’ve committed to and it’s

something that’s important to everyone involved. It’s

important to me as well; it’s what drives me.

“I’ve sat in a bank and watched people having a life

outside while I waited for the weekend. And I think if we

can make those people in office chairs feel like they’re with

us on the adventure, then we’d have achieved our goal of

inspiring even more people, and showing them what’s

possible if you believe in something and put enough effort

into it. At the same time, we can inspire ourselves, as we get

to see this beautiful world from 1,500 or 2,000ft”.

“If we can make people in office chairs feel like

they’re with us on the adventure, then we’d have

achieved our goal of inspiring people and showing

them what’s possible if you believe in something ”

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