Meet the Captains

Captain Kelly has been at home on the waters of Southeast Louisiana for more than 45 years. The son of shrimpers, he had his own little skiff as a boy and fished for crabs after school. By 13, he was allowed to take the trawler boat out on his own. Born on Barataria, a little island on the other side of the bayou from Lafitte, he learned much of what he knows about this land from the men he went hunting with as a boy. He loves getting to meet people from all over the planet and getting to be outdoors all the time with the alligators he knows by name – Psycho, Big Black, Stormy, Benji, She-Devil, Baby Hook, to name but a few.

Captain Randy has been driving airboats for 30 years and has been giving tours for more than twenty. Born and raised on Bayou Barataria, he has spent his entire life working, hunting, trapping and fishing in Louisiana's wetlands. It doesn’t get any more authentic than Randy — he’s a six-generation Louisiana Cajun and one of his ancestors was in the Battle of New Orleans. People who tour with Randy tell him he ought to run for office because he’s so passionate about protecting our wetlands and is full of facts about the choices we made as a society that endangered this land. A natural teacher, Randy loves when kids are on the tours and he can share what he knows. On a personal note, Randy has been a Born Again Christian for more than 10 years and attends the White Dove Fellowship Church in this area.

Captain Derek has been doing airboat swamp tours for sixteen years. Also, born and raised on the bayou, Capt'n Derek has spent his entire life working, hunting, trapping and fishing in Louisiana's wetlands. His hobbies are scuba diving in local lakes searching for sunken cypress trees known as "Sinkers" and Indian artifacts. He's involved in Louisiana's alligator egg harvesting program, collecting eggs from alligator nests. His ancestry is Cajun French and Houma Indian.

Captain Branden has been working here at New Orleans Airboat Tours as an airboat tour guide for six years. He was born and raised on the bayou and has made his living in these wetlands. He has also made a living as a trapper, fisherman and alligator hunter in our swamp and marsh wetlands. He is also a practicing taxidermist.

Captain Kendal has been working at New Orleans Airboat Tours for five years as a tour guide. He's also a native of the bayou area and has spent most of his life in the swamp and marsh wetlands as a hunter, trapper and fisherman.

Captain Cameron quit his job working as a captain offshore to spend more time with his family in the marshland he loves. For the last ten years, this Lafitte native has been driving airboats which he says are lot more fun than traditional swamp boats and can get you places the other boats can’t go. Guests on his tours have come from faraway places like Australia, Canada and Mexico and probably every state in America. As a guy who’s been hunting, fishing and playing in the swamp his whole life, Capain Cameron enjoys sharing Louisiana stories and explaining what this marshland does and why we need it. He loves that New Orleans Airboat Tours is run by family and friends and he especially enjoys when kids are onboard. (He also likes the bachelor party groups but claims he can’t really talk about those.) When he’s not working, Captain Cameron spends time with his wife Amy (they went frog hunting on their first date) and three children.

Captain Chip When asked why he does what he does, Captain Chip will tell you, “It beats real work,” which is another way of saying he enjoys what he’s done for the last 15 years. Chip, who’s Cajun ancestors came from Nova Scotia, loves nothing better than sharing his knowledge of Louisiana flora and fauna and discussing issues surrounding the disappearing wetlands with visitors from all around the word. One of the things Captain Chip likes most about airboats is the fact that they let you maneuver into areas the larger tour boats can’t — into nooks and crannies rich with cypress trees, for example. He also likes the fact they allow for only small tour groups which makes the experience more personal. When he’s not giving tours, Chip enjoys hunting and fishing (including bow fishing) with his wife, Veronica, and their two sons.

Captain Ken was born and raised on the bayou. Capt'n Ken  has worked in the wetlands as a commercial fisherman and trapper all of his life for shrimp, hard crabs and soft shell crabs. Like all our captains, these wetlands are his backyard and he knows every inch of them.

Captain Ryan has been doing airboat tours for many years now. He once worked for a law firm working on wetland legal matters, but decided to return to the airboats, He owns his own airboat and makes his living by harvesting alligator eggs, trapping, hunting alligators and, of course, as an airboat capt/tour guide.

Captain Lane has ten years experience on airboats and also as a tugboat captain. Capt'n Lane is Experienced in bow fishing on airboats and has worked as both a commercial fisherman and trapper.

Captain Myles has been driving airboats his whole life and has known his way around tour boats since he was six years old. A fourth-generation Louisiana commercial fisherman and trapper, Captain Myle’s family has been down here for seven generations. In fact, his was one of the first families to settle in Lafitte on a Spanish land grant in the 1700s. Captain Myles knows Louisiana, he knows the marsh, and he knows how to bring history to life for you. When he isn’t taking folks on tours, he enjoys hunting and spending time with family.

Captain Kody, like all our airboat captains, is passionate about Louisiana culture, history and wildlife and loves nothing better than to show it off. Born and raised in bayou country, a tour with Captain Kody is an authentic experience.