Our Team
Ben Smart
Director/Chief Pilot
For Ben Smart, the love affair with rural life and things that fly, began in his childhood growing up on the family’s livestock and cropping operation in South Australia. Now with almost 30 years’ experience in the aviation industry, backed by a keen knack for systems and figures, Ben has successfully turned his passion into a business.
After completing his schooling, Ben secured his pilot’s license, and his first job required him to move to the Western Australian Kimberly region to work at Meda Station as a ringer and then later at the Kidman-owned station ‘Innamincka’, where he honed his work ethic and gained experience in the use of aeroplanes for mustering.
It was then Ben set about to achieve his next aspiration – to fly helicopters for a living. A move to Cloncurry gave him the opportunity work in his dream job of helicopter mustering. In 2000, he gained his aeroplane Ag rating which allowed him to work in aerial crop spraying in the summer (either in South Australia or on the Darling Downs in Queensland) and helicopter mustering in Cloncurry and surrounding districts in the winters.
Aerial Agricultural applications became the primary focus as Ben settled with wife Steph near Dalby in Queensland where he was Chief Pilot for a local aviation firm ‘Cropcair’ for more than 10 years. Ben’s keen business acumen, coupled with his extensive flying experience (in agricultural applications, mustering, pest control and fire bombing), put him in the perfect position to purchase that same aviation business in 2012. Smart Air Services was born.
In 2017, Ben and Steph established a helicopter maintenance business located at Cecil Plains. Ben’s experience in helicopters provides the HeliSmart team with a meticulous test pilot, who understands first hand the importance of timely, quality maintenance. The aeroplane and helicopter businesses provide diversification that helps through the troughs and peaks of rural life
Steph Smart
People, Culture & Business Support
Steph draws on more than 25 years’ experience in business, administration, human resources and logistics to help support the business management and growth Smart Air.
Raised on a cattle station near Cloncurry, Steph is no stranger to country life. She kicked off her career path in the late 1990s working for a Mt Isa-based passenger aviation charter company. Little did she know back then that she would go on to become part owner of her own agricultural aviation and helicopter maintenance businesses.
After further study and overseas travel, she took on an administration and customer service role in aviation, spent a year as an air hostess and later moved into logistics and Human Resources with BHP where she spent the next seven years.
Steph refers to herself as the “Gap Filler” happy to help out where ever she is needed in both businesses, working around their family and three active teenagers the only thing she won’t do is fly the planes or fix the helicopters.
Matt Russell
Operations Manager
Joanne Bourke
Administration Coordinator
Jo particularly enjoys the variety of her role, interacting with clients and the sense of satisfaction she gets from ‘getting the job done’.
Will Walton
Pilot
Matt Peters
Pilot/Mixer
Josh Smart
Casual Mixer
Archie Smart
Casual Mixer
