My journey
with Air Zermatt

It was at the Raron heliport that I first met the people at Air Zermatt. I had applied for the advertised position of dispatcher and was given the opportunity to attend an interview. I hadn't expected that three people would be sitting opposite me. It was a pleasant conversation. In the Swiss Plateau, where I grew up, this informal language and the use of first names is not common, but I found it very inviting. And in the end, it was very reminiscent of the morals from the Lower Valais, where I lived before I came to Zermatt.

Whether it was ultimately my skills that made me suitable for the job in question, or perhaps my immediate availability, or even the fact that I was wearing a typical necklace from Nepal, which the CEO at the time, Gerold Biner, liked and approached me about, remains to be seen. In any case, I was able to join the existing dispatcher team in Zermatt at the beginning of October 2013 and started a rather atypical job as a commercial clerk.

My aim at that time was to combine my new work with my new home in Zermatt, and this could be combined very well with this interesting, very versatile, and varied job. The introductory period in late fall was a rather quiet time of year compared to today, but the weeks before the start of the winter season were extremely intense for me because there was a lot to learn. After all, I had never had any contact with a rescue operation before, nor was I familiar with the helicopter industry. So, I was certainly not "helisexual", as we affectionately call the absolute helicopter fans, and so I was also unfamiliar with the aviation alphabet, the types of aircraft and so much more. However, this also fueled my ambition to learn new things even more.

An intensive winter season was followed by the summer season, which brought a favorable change for the activities in the dispatch office, which is the "heart" of daily flight operations. With the construction sites in the mountains being set up as the snow melted and the mountain huts starting to operate in the summer, the transportation of materials increased significantly after the winter season. During the almost five years that I was able to work in this team, I always appreciated this seasonal variety and saw advantages in both seasons.

As in any job, there were more exciting and less interesting aspects to being a dispatcher. On the one hand, it was very important that we planned the flight operations as efficiently as possible so that our colleagues in flight operations could carry out the orders smoothly and to the satisfaction of the customers. On the other hand, the flight programs in daily business were very similar and yet they could change completely within an hour if they had to be adapted to weather conditions, available aircraft, etc. This varied work meant that no two days were the same. My weekly assignment in the accounts department at the heliport in Raron offered me additional variety. This enabled me to understand internal relationships, get to know the operations at this site and, of course, my colleagues working down in the valley.

When I felt the need for a career change and, as in my previous job in Sion, wanted to work in the field of marketing communication again, the management of Air Zermatt decided to establish a new marketing communication department. I was given the opportunity to take over the management of this new department and so the marketing department was created in summer 2018 with the aim of professionalizing marketing activities based on a uniform brand language. The first step was to revise the corporate design, further develop the Air Zermatt brand identity and define corresponding brand guidelines. Since 2019, numerous measures have been initiated, designed and implemented in this endeavor and have since been further developed. In the process, we were always able to count on the support of the Metaloop design and communication agency.

A milestone in this work for me was the creation of an in-house magazine, which appeared for the first time in 2021. With reports from the company's various business areas, Alpha Zulu Magazine provides an in-depth insight into the world of Air Zermatt, which consists of so much more than rescues on the Matterhorn. Another major communication project was implemented the following year: in summer 2022, our small team produced the TV format Alpha Zulu On Air in collaboration with filmmaker Matthias Lüscher. Further stories about people who put their heart and soul into their work for the helicopter rescue company followed last year under the name Alpha Zulu in the form of blog posts and, of course, the podcast, for which we were able to count on the professional support of former radio presenter Bruno Kalbermatten.

Realizing a long-standing dream project to operate a store in the village of Zermatt, which finally came true after a two-year test phase with a pop-up store at the end of 2023, was also a decisive event during my time as Head of Marketing. The realization of the store in Zermatt was a challenge for every single person who contributed to this success with heart and commitment. The Hamilton x Air Zermatt Store in the village of Zermatt may be a small dot on the map, but ultimately it represents something big - our ability to achieve extraordinary goals together. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all our colleagues involved and, of course, our partner Hamilton International Ltd.

The unique thing about Air Zermatt is that so many different professions come together within a small company and the challenge of working together towards a common goal. It is precisely this diversity that makes working in a mixed company like Air Zermatt so interesting. You meet very different people from a wide variety of areas and, ultimately, it is precisely these kinds of encounters that enrich not only our work, but also our lives. In addition to fateful days, I also remember emotionally beautiful moments, such as when the wives of two or three alpinists who gave no sign of life for a few hours on the last day of the year were able to embrace their husbands again at the heliport after they had been evacuated by our rescue crew. Or rescued people who visited us at the heliport after they had recovered from their accident.

Another unusual operation took place at the beginning of 2018, when Zermatt was cut off from the outside world twice for several days after very heavy snowfall in January and Air Zermatt had set up a so-called airlift on behalf of the security staff. For years, I had heard long-standing employees talking about such scenarios from the past, but I couldn't really imagine what this meant until my boss at the time called me on a Sunday to come into work on my day off. It was extremely busy at the heliport, after all, the many people who wanted to travel home from Zermatt or start their vacation in Zermatt had to be transported from A to B as soon as the weather conditions allowed. I believe there were almost 1000 people transported by the five helicopters on the first flight day. A small excerpt from the 2018 annual report illustrates the scale of these intensive days:

"...during the two airlifts between Zermatt, Täsch and Stalden, our employees did their utmost and did an excellent job. Before we could start with the airlifts, the president of Zermatt and the president of Täsch first had to submit a written request to us, a safety concept had to be approved by the Federal Office of Civil Aviation and the landing sites in Stalden and Täsch had to be prepared. The solidarity of the entire population was enormous and local ski schools, the mountain cable cars company as well as private citizens spontaneously offered to help and support us. In addition to the fire departments of Zermatt, Täsch and St. Niklaus, many agents of the cantonal and regional police were also in charge of ensuring that everything ran smoothly. The municipality provided buses, Zermatt Tourism was responsible for issuing tickets and communication, and the Visp Civil Defense provided support at the loading and unloading points. The MGB employees in Täsch helped to load the passengers."

Many thanks to the entire Air Zermatt team for the unforgettable years and the precious memories. It was an honor to be part of this extraordinary operation.

I wish you all the best and of course many happy landings.