Picture Kodak, king of silver-oxide-and-celluloid photography forever, confronting the age of the digital image, and you can imagine the turmoil, upheaval and forced reinvention that have assaulted the Rochester, N.Y.-based film and processing giant in recent years. These have not been easy times for traditional “memories capsules” packaged in little yellow boxes. And before the digital onslaught, there was the assault by Japan’s brand F in the little green boxes.
The part of the company of interest here that has proved its worth through these trying times has been the corporate flight department, under the leadership of Jack Kuss, chief pilot since 1997. Kodak has long recognized the value of the mobility provided by company aircraft –it was back in 1945 that the first of two DC-3s began carrying company personnel between Rochester, New York City and Kingsport, Tenn. who had previously ridden the train, setting the stage for what has become one of the longest continuously operated flight departments in the U.S.
