14 DAY TRIAL // The one and only Gabe Aul, head of Microsoft’s Windows Insider program, has just announced that he’ll be taking an extended leave from the company until 2017, to follow his dream of becoming an aviator.
Gabe has revealed today that it’s his dream to “fly with the birds” and said that he hopes to overfly the river where his friend Joe Belfiore is rafting with his kids. Belfiore announced in October 2015 his decision to take a one-year sabbatical to spend more time with his family. As a huge fan of this sport, he’s often seen rafting the toughest sections near the Celestial Falls, on the White River in Oregon.
Returning in 2017
That’s where Aul wants to fly his H-4 Hercules amphibious plane, planning to use his Lumia 950 running an unreleased build of Windows 10 Mobile to capture Belfiore’s fight with whitewater rapids.
“I’ve always dreamed of becoming an aviator. When I was young, I used to sleep with my aviator glasses on, close my eyes, and imagine flying over Mount Everest,” he told us in a statement this morning.
As far as his work on Windows 10 and Windows 10 Mobile is concerned, Gabe says he’ll continue to keep an eye on feedback and install new builds as soon as he lands. “Windows is my second passion,” he says, “so I hope Satya finds a way to put Windows into airplanes. This way, I’ll have both loves of my life around me all the time.”
Surprisingly, his decision to take an extended leave from Microsoft comes at a time when the software giant wants to make Windows Phone less of a priority, saying that more “cool things” will arrive in 2017.
“I’ll be back just in time for the cool things,” Aul said. “Now excuse me, I gotta take my suit on. I’m flying to Las Vegas tonight. If any of you insiders needs a flight, just let me know on Twitter. I’ll be on invisible mode.”