From Marine Corps to Bush Pilot: Life in the Outdoors

Blaine Tonking was born into an avid outdoor family. Growing up in such an environment in Houston, Texas, it was only natural that he developed a passion for adventure early on. His grandfather, a geologist, helped shape Blaine’s adventurous spirit.

“He was a real-life Indiana Jones,” Blaine said. “He traveled to all corners of the world, met tribes in jungles, explored caves in South America, and he had near-death experiences — he was important to my upbringing and inspired me to be adventurous.”

In addition to his grandfather, Blaine’s coaches also encouraged his valiant spirit and helped him on his path to the military. After graduating from the Naval Academy in 2011, he joined the Marine Corps, finally able to serve his country — this path would see him rise through the ranks and face some of the most challenging, yet rewarding, conditions imaginable.

A Distinguished Military Career

Blaine’s military career began in the Marine infantry, where he served for four years and undertook deployments to Afghanistan. “We had basic grunt infantry deployments under Operation Enduring Freedom,” Blaine said. “The conditions were nasty, but it was during this time that I was exposed to the Marine Special Operations Command (MARSOC).”

He learned about operators and officers during this time and knew where he wanted to go in his military career. When he eventually got back from his deployments, he went to selection and was chosen to become a Marine Special Operator, but there was still one problem: He owed two more years to the infantry.

In 2015 he went to Jordan at a time when ISIS was growing. It wasn’t a combat deployment like earlier but was equally important to becoming an operator down the line. While there, he assisted in matters of foreign internal defense, such as training locals and taking a “ragtag group of amateurs and turning them into a professional defense force.”

Blaine said: “I learned what it meant to build rapport, talk with embassies, and be diplomatic. Then to go to the range to train Jordan soldiers — that was the bread and butter of special operations.”

In 2016, after learning the importance of building relationships and trust, Blaine moved through the MARSOC pipeline, undertaking three deployments and transforming his military career.

Leading in MARSOC

His deployments in MARSOC took him to Iraq and Syria, where he faced ISIS and other threats. In 2018, when he picked up his first team in MARSOC, he experienced the most challenging part of his career yet. Blaine said, “I was in charge of guys with 15–20 years of experience, I had much more difficult problem sets, more training, more money, more authority, all of which required a mature and highly skilled operator.”

Despite overseeing a team of people with more years of experience than him, Blaine knew how to handle the situation. “They knew I had the final decision and that they wouldn’t be micromanaged,” Blaine said. To Blaine, they were the subject matter experts, while he was the energizer. Blaine said, “I’m like the coach of a football team: I can bring the team together, brief a concept of operations, sell a mission, and build faith and confidence, while they’re the skilled players who can execute the plan.”

In Iraq, Blaine was wounded in 2019, sustaining a gunshot wound to his left hip. Despite this injury, he continued to lead his team and complete his mission. “Most special operators get one two-year shot as a leader before a desk job,” Blaine said. “I got a second chance with a second team in Southeast Asia. It was the most complex part of my job, dealing with no military gear or fighting.”

In 2023, after years of service, Blaine medically retired from the Marine Corps, transitioning to the next chapter in his life — flying.

A Passion for Flying as a Bush Pilot

Blaine’s interest in aviation was sparked during his military career. In 2018, he pursued a private pilot license, driven by his desire to be an expert in flying. “Flying balances, me out,” he said. “It combines art and science, right brain versus left brain. It’s very different from special operations, which involves soft skills, communication, and execution of complex mission sets.”

He obtained his commercial and seaplane licenses, eventually transitioning to a second career in aviation. “I didn’t want to be an airline pilot; I wanted to be in the bush among hunters and wilderness lodges,” Blaine said. He founded Bushcraft Aviation, a small LLC based in Maryland, offering specialized instruction in float plane flying. His clientele includes experienced pilots looking to expand their skills, often associated with hunting activities.

Relearning to Love Hunting

Blaine’s love for the outdoors and hunting has been a constant thread throughout his life. Blaine said: “I started hunting at five years old; It was ingrained in our culture. My uncle even had a ranch with genetically superior whitetail deer in West Texas, where I spent summers hunting and working.”

When Blaine was 12, he looked after the ranch on his own during the summer with complete independence. He was driving a truck around the ranch, had a list of chores to complete and even got chased up some trees by some Javelina hogs here and there. In his teenage years, he got more into whitetail hunting, and in particular hunting out west using a spot-and-stalk style.

While he dabbled in western state hunting during his college years, his eventual military career often left little time for hunting. Blaine said, “I missed it, but the stress of the job made it difficult. I was deployed 300 days a year and the last thing I wanted to do when I was home for 60 days was to freeze my butt off and struggle in the outdoors. I always viewed my identity as a hunter but felt like I started to lose myself during.”

He didn’t hunt for 10 years and — it wasn’t until after his retirement that Blaine rekindled his passion for the outdoors. After he spent some time in rehab, his team chief invited him out hunting on his 15 acres of swampland in North Carolina, where Blaine hunted wood ducks, whitetail and more. Blaine said, “I started reliving my youth, before I had stress, problems, and bills — it was a stress reliever, and I reconnected with nature and my primal roots as a hunter.”

One of his most rewarding experiences was a hunting trip to Alaska in the summer of 2023. That’s where he got bit by the bug again, describing it as his “anti-drug that got me back into who I am.”

A Memorable Hunting Expedition in Alaska

“I wanted Alaska flight time experience,” Blaine said. “In July 2023, I joined a group for a DIY float moose hunt. It was an incredible experience, combining my skills from special operations and aviation.”

With only 30 days’ notice, Blaine joined three men from South Dakota for the hunt that he had never met before. “They were all true country boys from South Dakota who went to high school together,” Blaine said. “Fortunately, we completely hit it off and personality-wise got along great: giving people shit, joking and jabbing.”

They formed a team dynamic like Blaine’s military units. It was a 10-day trip with 100 miles of river. It was a rainy week, and on the fifth or sixth day they had their big chance.  “We had a pincer movement on the moose: I called the bull while the other raft took the initial shot. I moved my raft over to the other side of the river, and we landed a group kill on our first bull, but it went down in super deep water at sunset, raining heavily. We worked all night to clean and transport the meat, setting up camp to dry off.”

The team dynamic was crucial, as they each used their own unique skills and strengths. Blaine said, “I almost feel like I was back in Marine Special Ops — to meet a partner force, and plan how to accomplish a goal — I saw many parallels with my military career.”

The trip tested their survival skills as they faced bad weather, limited food, and challenging terrain. They couldn’t reach their intended exit site as planned, so they went 10 miles out of the way before they saw a lake attached to a river with a cedar tree overgrowth that could keep them out of the oppressive rain. They set up camp there while waiting for their evac but were running out of food and were hit by a bad storm. “We had to negotiate with pilots to convince them that they could land on the lake,” Blaine said. “We finished the trip in survival mode three days past schedule, living off moose meat.”

Despite the intensity and harsh conditions of the hunt, Blaine said, “It was the most rewarding hunt ever, building friendships with complete strangers, and overcoming emotional, mental, and physical adversity — that’s where I came from in Spec Ops”

He’s still friends with his Alaska hunting crew thanks to their shared experience, and they’re even planning another moose hunt this year.

Reflections on a Life of Freedom from a Bush Pilot

Blaine’s journey from Marine Corps infantry to special operations and then to bush flying and hunting is a testament to his adventurous spirit and resilience. His experiences shaped him into a multifaceted individual who continuously seeks new challenges and embraces the freedom that comes with making consequential decisions.

“Hunting and flying have given me a sense of freedom and self-reliance,” Blaine said. “In bush flying you are stuck with consequences, and I enjoy making decisions that have consequences; that way, when it works out it is much more rewarding, but I also like knowing that if you screw it up the consequences can be very severe.” .”

As Blaine Tonking looks to the future, he remains committed to his passions, whether in the skies or the wilderness, always ready for the next challenge.

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