Long-time Corporate Pilot Bart Gault Dies

Bart Gault, a long-time corporate pilot known for his expertise in international operations, died this month as he turned 67 following a battle with ALS. Gault, born July 2, 1949, in Chicago, had moved to Beverly Hills, Calif., as a young teen and there learned to fly. He enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1967 and served two tours of duty during the Vietnam war. He was an artillery specialist and involved in special forces in operations and intelligence.

After the war, he worked at Santa Monica Airport in California, where he met his wife, Pam. He ran a charter operation and flew for a number of clients, including Howard Leight. He relocated to San Diego when Leight’s company moved there, spent time flying for Jenny Craig in Carlsbad, and later moved to Phoenix, where he flew for the owners of the Phoenix Suns basketball team.

Over the past decade he had flown under a number of short- and medium-term contracts. “He successfully managed flight departments in some very challenging environments,” his son Travis said, “places folks only hear about in the news after something bad has happened.” He spent months working in Nigeria, Egypt, Jordan, India and the UK and flew in Cameroon, Niger, South Africa, Mauritius, Pakistan, Israel, Russia, Peru, Congo and Kenya, among others. Gault, who was Jewish, was caught in the Arab Spring in Egypt for months before his aircraft owner decided to leave the country. “Never afraid…he respected all people and kept friends of all political persuasions,” said Caterina Taylor, a long-time friend and industry colleague who is manager of North American business development for Jetex Flight Support. Gault shared his expertise gained from those travels at the NBAA International Operators Conferences.

Gault’s symptoms of ALS appeared in late 2015, bringing his flying to an end. In addition to Pam Boldizar Gault and Travis, he is survived by his sons Gavin and Zach.  A “celebration of life” is scheduled for 4 to 8 p.m. this Saturday (July 23) at the VFW Post 2422 in Coronado, Calif.