Shannon Earl Smith

Owner/Operator/Guide

 My name is Shannon Earl Smith.  Like most of ya’ll, I began waterfowl hunting at a very early age, with my father. I remember the days of riding on his shoulders through flooded timber holes to the duck blind.  In high school, I worked at a sporting goods store in Tyler, TX called The Sportster.  One evening in 1991, as I sat behind the gun counter, 2 gentlemen approached me, explained they were from Dallas, and were in town on business with some time to kill.  They were looking for a place to duck hunt. As I started drawing them maps of some public holes they could get too (no where near my good holes!), they asked me if they could pay me to take them out personally, since I knew all the local holes.  At that point, a light bulb came on: “WOW, I can make money killing ducks?”  So I started guiding out of the sporting goods store.

 A friend of mine from South Louisiana, Kurt Meyer, started guiding with me and we began to acquire more private property and better equipment.  Because our favorite way to scout for ducks was by plane or helicopter, we choose the name Flying Aces for our new business venture.  The call making end of the business, started just as meekly as the guiding, with just a few tools in the garage building calls for my hunting buddies and myself.  I enlisted into Military service in 1995 and spent 4 years as a US Marine Scout stationed at Camp Lejuene, NC.  For beer money, on my weekends and time off, I spent time guiding Marine officers and other folks from the base on duck hunts, not far from Chesapeake Bay and the Pungo National Forest. I moved back to Tyler in 1999 and partnered with Jason Carsten, a life long friend as close as a brother. 

Since then the guide service and duck call making has continued to grow.  We are currently hunting 4 privately owned properties on the Sabine and Neches River bottoms in East Texas, as well as on the best private blind at Lake Palestine.  We also have operations in Oklahoma on a 1500-acre grain farm and spots on the Canadian River bottom, and several rye grass meadows.   The duck call making end of the business (which started as a turned cedar piece of crap with a beer can reed), has evolved over the past 15+ years into heirloom quality calls that we feel are very natural sounding.   The calls are made to be used as a durable tool for the duck hunter, as a hammer is to a carpenter. 

I have a curl-tailed, turd eating black lab whose name is “Gunny”, who is by no means a great dog, but he picks up 99% of what we shoot, and he doesn’t mind eating cheap dog food!  We get a long well!  We work hard to provide our clients with the best shooting possible, but like every other guide in the county, we are at the mercy of Mother Nature.  Jason and I are proud of the fact, that we always tell our clients, the matter of fact truth- if the birds are there or not.  Because of this, we have clients that come back to us season after season. You can contact us by phone, or email to book a hunt or to order your custom calls.  I look forward to sharing a seat in the blind with you. 

Happy feather chasing!

Shannon Smith

Jason Carsten

Owner/Operator/Guide

Hi! My name is Jason Carsten and I am one of the proud owners of Flying Aces Duck Calls and Guide Service. I was born and raised in Tyler, Texas since 1972. I am a proud father of two beautiful girls.

 Like many others, I have been hunting since I was a little boy. My Father and Grandfather taught me the joys of nature and hunting with family and friends. I grew up learning about and hunting wildlife for many years and have always wanted to share my experiences with others who may not have had the same opportunities that I have had. I believe that the most important part of hunting is the comradery that we all share having fun and spending time with our kids, friends and family.

 I met Shannon in September 1982, and we have been friends ever since. He also shares the same dream I have about sharing hunting experiences with others. So, about 1999 he brought me on as a partner in Flying Aces, and the rest is history. During that time, we have designed and built duck calls for the sport that we love. We’ve created a sound product that will perform when no others will. Shannon and I have put our combined experience together to create a product that the hunter can use time and time again.  These calls can be passed down from generation to generation and will continue to work as well as the day they were bought.

 Here at Flying Aces, we are very family oriented and would like you to be a part of ours. So - if you want a good call or just want to experience a good time hunting with friends and family, come and join us.

Jason Carsten