At just 10 years old, Alex Jacquot has secured himself the deal of a lifetime. The young aviation fan will go into business with Alan Joyce, CEO of Qantas, once he's finished high school. Not only that, but the adorable story of Oceania Express's pint sized CEO has inspired Qantas to launch their own program for more kids to get up close and personal with the Qantas operation.

A couple of weeks ago, we shared with you the heart-warming story of a 10 year old airline CEO who got in touch with one of the world’s most prolific CEOs in aviation. Young Alex Jacquot posted a hand written letter to Qantas CEO Alan Joyce, asking for advice on running his very own airline, Oceania Express.

Not only did he get a thorough and very friendly reply from Joyce, he was also invited to a meeting at Qantas HQ to further discuss his plans. Apparently, they weren’t joking, and little Alex went ahead and met his CEO hero just this week.

The meeting of a lifetime

Alex didn’t attend the meeting alone. As any good CEO would, he brought some key members of his management team with him. Attending alongside the young CEO were Deputy CEO Wolf Stringer, aged 10, and his seven year old Head of Inflight Service, Mila Jacquot.

Over the course  of the visit, Alex and his team enjoyed a behind the scenes tour of the Qantas facility, including getting up close and personal with an A380. But that’s not the best part.

The young entrepreneurs got to meet with the man himself, for what Joyce called an ‘Airline Executive Summit’. In this high class meeting, held in the sprawling Qantas boardroom, natch, they were presented with the professionally designed logo, livery and business cards for their new airline.

But it gets better still…

The pinnacle of the meeting saw Mr. Joyce and Mr. Jacquot sign a memorandum of understanding that they would begin working together from 2026 (when Alex has finished high school). Of course, it’s all subject to regulatory approval, but wow! What a future this young boy just secured for himself.

Following the meeting, Alan Joyce said:

“In his letter, Alex asked me to take him seriously. So we did. It’s hard not to be impressed by his enthusiasm. The aviation industry needs people who think big and Alex has that in spades. It was a pleasure meeting with him and his co-founders.”

Future high flyers

Following Alex’s amazing success in contacting Alan for advice, hundreds of other children wrote to the Qantas head to tell him about their own aviation ambitions. Now, Qantas has created a dedicated program to inspire and encourage young aviation hopefuls from around the world.

Dubbed the ‘Qantas Future High Flyers’ program, the scheme invites children between the ages of seven and 12 to experience a day at the Qantas HQ in Sydney. Applicants are promised the opportunity to see behind the scenes at the Flying Kangaroo, including meeting engineers, pilots and office staff, and to share their ideas for future passenger experience.

To join the program, kids can apply right here, and just need to tell Qantas (in 50 words or less) why they want to spend a day at the airline. Don’t you wish you were 10 again right now?