Sat, May 07, 2005
The National Association
of Flight Instructors (NAFI) takes pride in announcing a
significant aviation accomplishment on the part of these very
special aviation educators. Recently, they were all designated
Master Instructors by NAFI, their professional aviation
organization.
To help put this achievement in its proper perspective, there
are approximately 85,000 CFIs in the United States. Fewer than 500
of them have earned the Master designation thus far. As a measure
of the prestige conferred by this title, the last ten FAA National
Flight Instructors of the Year were Master CFIs. In addition, the
FAA has approved the designation as an alternate means for CFIs to
renew their flight instructor certificates.
The Master Instructor designation is a national accreditation
recognized by the FAA that is earned by a candidate through a
rigorous process of continuing education and peer review. Much like
a flight instructor's certificate, it must be renewed biennially.
This process parallels continuing education regimens used by other
professionals to enhance their knowledge base while increasing
their professionalism. Simply put, the Master Instructor
designation is a means by which to identify those outstanding
aviation educators, those "Teachers of Flight," who are
demonstrating an ongoing commitment to excellence, professional
growth, and service to the aviation community.
Through their dedication to excellence, Master Instructors have
earned their "black belts" in aviation education. They truly
represent the cr�me de la cr�me of the aviation
industry!
Aviation educators who earned the "Master" title during April
are:
Renewals
- Ernest Paul "Rusty"
SACHS, Master CFI
Oshkosh WI / Norwich VT
E-mail: RSachs@eaa.org
Rusty Sachs recently earned his Master CFI designation for the 5th
time. Rusty is the executive director and airman certification
representative for the National Association of Flight Instructors
in Oshkosh, WI. He has also served as a pilot examiner (DPE) and
safety counselor (ASC) for the FAA's Portland FSDO.
- Phillip Jeffrey "Phil" POYNOR, Master CFI
Nashua NH
E-mail: MasterCFI2@aol.com
Phillip Poynor recently earned his Master CFI designation for the
5th time. Phil is the aviation division chair at Nashua's Daniel
Webster College (ASH) and serves on the Board of the National
Association of Flight Instructors. The 2001 National CFI of the
Year, he is also a safety counselor for the FAA's Portland
FSDO.
- Harold Frederick "Harry" LEICHER, Master CFI
Whittier CA
E-mail: ItllClear@aol.com
Harold Leicher recently renewed his Master CFI designation. Harry
is an independent flight and ground instructor at the Long Beach
Airport (LGB) specializing primary, instrument and multiengine
training. He also serves as chief pilot for Fresh Air Cargo and is
a safety counselor for the FAA's Long Beach FSDO.
- Gordon Ashby EWALD, Master CFI
Hardy VA
E-mail: GAEwald@earthlink.net
Gordon Ewald recently renewed his Master CFI designation. Gordon is
an independent flight instructor at Roanoke Regional Airport (ROA).
He also instructs in the USAF Initial Flight Training Program,
teaches ground school classes for the Roanoke City school system
and is the senior instructor at LC's Flying Service.
- Andrew Victor "Andy" DALE, Master CFI
Winston-Salem NC
E-mail: AVDale@mindspring.com
Andrew Dale recently renewed his Master CFI designation. Andy is
the chief flight instructor for Heart of Virginia Aviation at
Martinsville's Blue Ridge Airport (MTV). He is also a member of
AOPA's Airport Support Network (ASN) and serves as an Aviation
Safety Counselor for the FAA's Greensboro FSDO.
Initials
- Darren SMITH, Master CFI
Tampa FL
E-mail: CFIDarren@yahoo.com
Darren Smith recently earned his Master CFI designation. Darren is
a Tampa-area flight and ground instructor specializing in primary
and instrument flight training as well as ground training. He also
holds a Master Ground Instructor (MGI) designation and serves as an
Aviation Safety Counselor for the Tampa FSDO.
- Paul GRETSCHEL, Master CFI
Coram NY
E-mail: PaulCFI@aol.com
Paul Gretschel recently earned his Master CFI designation. Paul is
an independent flight instructor working primarily at Islip's
MacArthur Airport (ISP) and Farmingdale's Republic Airport (FRG).
He also provides recurrent training and flight reviews through the
Beechcraft Pilot Proficiency Program (BPPP).
- Adrian Young COLLIER, Master CFI
Mercer Island WA
E-mail: Adrian_Collier@CFItalk.com
Adrian Collier recently earned his Master Instructor designation.
Adrian is a flight and ground instructor at Galvin Flying Service,
a Part 141 flight school at Seattle's Boeing Field (BFI). He is
also the founder, publisher and webmaster of www.CFItalk.com, a
resource for aviation related news.
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