FunkyPilot Journals: Book 1 [Paperback]
Think Catch-22 meets The Office — set at a budget airline, at 35,000 feet, with a therapy pig named Sherman.
FunkyPilot Journals follows two pilots — a burnt-out captain and an ambitious first officer — through scheduling chaos, career setbacks, and an emergency landing nobody planned for. It is funny, warm, and packed with real aviation insight. Each chapter ends with a Captain’s Learning Log introducing genuine aviation concepts in plain English, so you will actually learn something without it ever feeling like a textbook.
✦ Kirkus Reviews — GET IT verdict: “Off to a tremendous start — one that fires on all engines.”
✦ IndieReader — IR Approved, 4.2★: “An engaging, accessible, laugh-out-loud introduction to piloting.”
✦ Readers’ Favorite — Three independent ★★★★★ reviews
Suitable for teens and adults. A great read for any age — and the perfect gift for anyone who loves aviation, has ever worked a job that tried its best to grind them down, or has always wondered what really goes on behind the cockpit door.
Book 1 of a planned series. Also available on Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats.
$12.99
Product Details
IR Approved · 4.2★
Readers’ Favorite · ★★★★★ ×3
Think Catch-22 meets The Office — but set at a budget airline, at 35,000 feet, with a talking therapy pig.
FunkyPilot Journals is the debut novel from corporate pilot and FunkyPilot Academy creator Vesa Turpeinen — a hilarious, surprisingly heartfelt look at what really happens on the other side of the cockpit door.
The story follows two pilots at very different points in their careers. Captain Jack Williams is burnt out, overworked, flying 12-day stretches with his vacation requests perpetually denied. First Officer Lando Harris is ambitious but barely scraping by — on-call most of the week, getting assigned flights once in a blue moon, and quietly wondering if it was all worth it. Together, they make a great team. Until the system starts pulling them apart.
It begins with a bird strike, a left engine fire, and two pilots who did not plan for this on a Tuesday.
“Did we hit something?” Jack asked, voice gravelly.
From the right seat, Lando didn’t look up from the tablet on his lap. “Pretty sure we did.”
Jack leaned forward to peer at the engine gauges. The left engine fan speed was hiccupping like it had a caffeine addiction.
“Tell me that’s turbulence.”
“Nope,” Lando said, finally glancing up. “And turbulence doesn’t usually smell like charred goose.”
Then the cockpit lit up in flashing amber and red. LEFT ENGINE FIRE.
Jack exhaled. “Of course it is.”
Sherman. Therapist. Philosopher. Couch occupier.
The story then rewinds — showing the months of pressure, exhaustion, and missed vacations that led Jack and Lando to that emergency landing. Along the way you will meet Frank Power Unity (yes, that is his name), Missy the flight attendant who has seen too much, three aviation-obsessed neighbourhood kids who somehow become important, and Sherman — a therapy pig from a Tallahassee research lab who occupies the therapy couch, refuses to move, and occasionally says exactly the right thing.
It is funny. It is warm. It is occasionally absurd. And underneath all of it, it is an honest story about what it costs to do a job you love inside a system that is not always designed to love you back.
What’s inside
Full Novel
A character-driven aviation comedy with real emotional stakes and an emergency landing you will not see coming.
Captain’s Learning Logs
After every chapter — plain-English explanations of real aviation concepts woven into the story.
Comic Panels
Each chapter opens with an original FunkyPilot Academy illustration.
Aviation Endnotes
Optional deep-dives into technical terms — there if you want them, easy to skip if you don’t.
What the critics said
REVIEWS
A heartfelt tribute to aviation… off to a tremendous start — one that fires on all engines.
KIRKUS REVIEWS · ✦ GET IT VERDICT
With passion and wry humor, Vesa Turpeinen’s FunkyPilot Journals invites teen and adult readers into the fascinating and complicated world of a commercial airline pilot.
INDIEREADER · IR APPROVED · ★★★★ 4.2 / 5
A hilarious and educational aviation story that entertains while revealing what really happens behind the cockpit door.
READERS’ FAVORITE · THREE INDEPENDENT ★★★★★ REVIEWS
This book is for you if…
- You are a pilot, aviation professional, or aviation enthusiast
- You love dry workplace humor — think The Office, Catch-22, or Scrubs
- You want a novel that is genuinely funny and genuinely educational
- You are looking for a unique gift for someone who loves flying
- You are a teen or adult reader who has always wondered what really goes on up front
- You enjoy stories where the therapy pig ends up being the wisest character in the room
Book details
| Title | FunkyPilot Journals — Book 1: A Pilot’s Journey from Flight Deck Chaos to a Highly Questionable Flight School |
| Author | Vesa Turpeinen |
| Publisher | Vildock Publishing |
| Series | FunkyPilot Journals, Book One |
| Genre | Humour / Aviation Fiction / Educational |
| Suitable for | Teens and adults (any age) |
| ISBN | 979-8-9924670-5-5 |
| Also available | Amazon (paperback & Kindle) |
FunkyPilot Journals is Book One of a planned series. If you enjoy it, the best way to support the next book is to leave a review on Amazon or Goodreads — even a few sentences makes a real difference for an independent author.
Also check out the FunkyPilot Academy comic book series at funkypilotacademy.com — the universe this novel is built on, and a perfect companion for younger aviation fans.
Reviews