Eight Awarded Prestigious Designation

Master Instructors LLC and its Board of Review take pride in announcing a significant aviation accomplishment on the part of these very special aviation educators.  Recently, they were all accredited as Masters by Master Instructors LLC, the international Master Instructor accrediting authority.

To help put this achievement in its proper perspective, there are approximately 93,000 CFIs in the United States. Fewer than 700 of them have earned Master accreditation thus far. As a measure of the prestige conferred by this title, the last 14 FAA National Flight Instructors of the Year were Master CFIs.  In addition, the FAA has approved the accreditation as an alternate means for CFIs to renew their flight instructor certificates. 

The Master Instructor designation is a national accreditation recognized by the FAA and industry that is earned by a candidate through a rigorous process of continuing professional activity 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.  

Aviation educators who earned the "Master" title during December are:

Richard William "Rich" Barclay, Master CFI Elbert CO
E-mail:   FFRichDana@msn.com
A 2-time Master who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  Rich is a flight and ground instructor as well as a Cirrus Standardized Instructor Pilot (CSIP) with Independence Aviation ( http://www.IA-KAPWA.com/ ) at Centennial Airport (APA).  He specializes in Cirrus, Diamond, and other technically advanced aircraft training.

Cleon Joseph Biter, Master CFI Longmont CO
E-mail:   CJBiter@earthlink.net
A 6-time Master who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  An American Meteorological Society certified consulting meteorologist, Cleon is also a flight instructor with Air West Flight Center ( http://AirWestFlightCenter.com ) at Vance Brand Airport (LMO).  Additionally, he serves as a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Denver FSDO area.

Thomas Monroe "Tom" Evans, Master CFI Tampa FL
E-mail:   WorldwideOptical@att.net
A 5-time Master who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  Tom is a flight and ground instructor with Atlas Aviation ( www.AtlasAviationInc.com ), a Cessna Pilot Center at Tampa's Peter O Knight Field (TPF).  He also serves as president of the Florida Association of Flight Instructors and is a FAASTeam rep in the FAA's North Florida FSDO area. 

Robert Kloman "Bob" Gawler, Master CFI Bethesda MD
E-mail:   TreborAV8@starpower.net,
A 6-time Master and SAFE member who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  Bob is an independent flight instructor as well as a designated pilot examiner (DPE) at Montgomery County Airpark (GAI) in Gaithersburg.  He also works with the Civil Air Patrol and serves as a FAASTeam representative for the FAA's Baltimore FSDO area.

David Allen Koehn, Master CFI Tulsa OK
E-mail:   David@DestinationsEFC.com
A 4-time Master and SAFE member who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  David is the owner Destinations Executive Flight Center (DestinationsEFC.com ) and co-founder of Fast Forward Aviation at Tulsa's Richard L Jones Riverside Airport (RVS).  Additionally, he serves as a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Oklahoma City FSDO area.

Timm Preusser, Master CFI Kleinwallstadt Germany
E-mail:   TimmPreusser@t-online.de
A 6-time Master and SAFE member who recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation,  Timm is the chief flight and ground instructor at the Darmstadt Flying Club ( www.FlyDFC.com )  as well as the chief instructor for the Cirrus Owners & Pilots Association (COPA) in Europe.  He also serves on COPA's board of directors. 

Beverly Jean Runner, Master CFI Lakeside CA
E-mail:   HWRunner@earthlink.net
A 4-time Master and SAFE member who recently renewed her Master CFI accreditation,  Jean is an independent flight instructor at El Cajon's Gillespie Field (SEE).  She also serves as a judge for the Pacific Coast Intercollegiate Flying Association (PCIFA), a coach and evaluator for SDCC aviation students, and is a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's San Diego FSDO area.

FMI: www.MasterInstructors.org