Father, son share cockpit in first flight together

FATHER and son Mark and Christian Round operated their first commercial flight together last Friday.
It was a proud moment for Captain Mark Round and First Officer Christian when they flew an Air Niugini Fokker 70 aircraft (flight PX208) from Port Moresby to Lae, then Hoskins, Rabaul and back to Port Moresby.
That afternoon they also operated PX244 from Port Moresby to Hoskins where the aircraft overnighted — the flight being made even more special with Jernin joining her husband and son.
“I wasn’t sure we would ever get to fly together, if the schedule would work out but I always looked forward to an opportunity like this, hoping that one day it happens and thanks to Air Niugini. It’s an experience of a lifetime to have flown together with dad,” Christian said.
He first took an interest in aviation as a child living in Port Moresby in the 1990s. Christian’s father on numerous occasions took him flying on Air Niugini.
After deciding that he would like to fly as well, Christian joined the Royal Australian Air Force in 2001.
He flew a C-130J Hercules for 12 years, including six tours of duty in Iraq and Afghanistan, as first officer for the first three tours and as captain for the last three tours.
Prior to leaving the Air Force, Christian trained and checked to develop and mentor new crews.
In 2014, he joined his father and flew with the airline but left the next year for personal reasons but was happy to return in July last year.
“Air Niugini holds a special place in my heart, it provided for my education. It is so knitted and the opportunity to fly together with dad wouldn’t have been possible if it was with other airlines,” Christian said.
Mark on the other hand started work with Air Niugini in 1989 from a charter-corporate background as a first officer on F28s. He moved through the ranks to become a captain on Dash 7, Dash 8 and F28 aircraft.
He left Air Niugini in 2000 and returned in 2008 when he took on a training and checking role on the Dash 8s. Through the next few years, Mark played a role in developing the new cadets before moving up to the Fokker 100 in 2014, where he has been flying since.
“Today was a culmination of my flying career, an amazing experience and a proud moment for me to have my son and I flying a commercial flight together, it’s something we will never forget,” Mark said
“We thank Air Niugini for the opportunity. Also if I could add, Air Niugini provides an exceptional training ground for any pilot, the crew are well trained, it is entirely up to individuals to take up the opportunity.”
Capt Mark is from Western Australia and his wife Jernin is from the Seychelles Islands, a small island nation in the Indian Ocean northeast of Madagascar and about 1600km east of Kenya. She arrived from Brisbane a day prior to her son and husband’s first commercial flight and joined them on their second flight from Port Moresby to Hoskins where the aircraft stayed overnight.