Xaviland Through The Seven Pillars

Process: Industrial Engineering at Kamome Airways

A study in play, design, and the forgotten discipline of doing things well.

I’ve been designing airlines for as long as I can remember.

Before I had real tools or real teams, I had 1:24 scale models—fleets of aircraft, train systems, and logistical webs stitched together with masking tape, floor plans, and pure will. There were no passengers, no revenue goals, no deadlines. Just systems. And the joy of perfecting them.

That’s what Kamome Airways is.
Not a toy. Not a simulation. But a full airline—real in spirit, 1:24 in scale.
And one of the most important engineering projects I’ve ever built.

My Kind of Play

There is something deeply honest about designing at this scale.

When there are no financial incentives, no investors, no productivity metrics—you’re left with nothing but process. There’s no scoreboard to chase. Only the question: is it beautiful? is it functional? does it work better than yesterday?

That kind of environment is rare. And precious.
It’s the kind of environment most corporations try to simulate with design sprints and innovation retreats—but can never quite access. Because real creative freedom only exists when the stakes are both high and imaginary.

Kamome Airways was born in that space.
And for the first time, I decided to design an airline not just as a child playing, but as a systems engineer solving real problems.

Kamome's DNA

There have been airlines in the Xaviland 1/24 since 2011.
But Kamome was the first to incorporate real-world management theory.
Specifically, I built it reading Gordon Bethune’s memoir about turning around Continental Airlines.

That book taught me to see airlines not just as carriers, but as design companies, logistics networks, and service cultures—equally.

So I built Kamome with three equal foundations:

1: KDL

I created a fictional firm—KDL Associates—to unify Kamome’s aesthetic and functional identity. They were responsible for everything: aircraft livery, uniforms, cabin interiors, signage systems, boarding passes, even architectural design for hubs and lounges.

We introduced a full retrofit of the 787 fleet for consistency.
But more importantly, we designed a new aircraft: the XS21, a short-haul jet tailored specifically to the needs of the Xavilandic population density and rail-air intermodality.

The design philosophy?
No corporate jargon. No futurist hand-waving.
Just clear, human, functional beauty—what I came to call the Shinrokuro philosophy.

It was design as cultural expression. Design as system logic.
Everything mattered.

2: Xaviatec

Xaviatec was an integrated online platform that handled:

Bookings (even simulated passengers need itineraries)
Aircraft maintenance records
Service protocols and manuals
Performance data across routes and aircraft types

It made the operation intelligible, scalable, and documented. It allowed me to track logistical inefficiencies so that I could know where to focus resources.

3: Service by Design

We imagined a hybrid cooperative management structure—where every employee felt partial ownership, and high-level decisions required collaborative input. Frontline staff were encouraged to act first and ask later. Our entire training ethos centered on “forgiveness, not permission.”

Even our design materials reflected that—every manual was written in plain language. Every employee guide emphasized empathy and autonomy. We used symbols and stories more than rules.

We weren’t just building an airline.
We were rehearsing a new kind of work.

Why put so much into something no one can use? Why work this hard for something no one flies?

I always think of the Zen archer.

In Kyūdō, the target is not the point.
The form is. The presence is. The process is.

Kamome Airways didn’t exist to impress anyone.
It existed so I could learn how to do things right.
How to build things that work at every level—from engine placement to emotional tone.

And now, as Xaviland grows into full-scale aviation and infrastructure projects, I look back on Kamome not as a childhood project—but as a prototype of integrity. A proof that good design starts with no audience. Just clarity.

The scale was small.
But the systems were not.
And the lessons still fly.