One New, Seven Renewing Master Instructors Make The Grade

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.  

Through their dedication to excellence, Master Instructors have earned their "black belts" in aviation education. They truly represent the crème de la crème of the aviation industry! 

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

Raylene Barbara Alexander, Master Aviation Educator, Lindsborg, KS
Raylene recently earned her first Master Aviation Educator (MAE) accreditation.  Raylene is an assistant professor in Kansas State University's department of aviation technology (www.Salina.K-State.edu/Aviation) at Salina Municipal Airport (SAL).  She also serves as the technical education committee chair with the University Aviation Association (UAA). E-mail:  Raylene@K-State.edu

Parvez Dara, Master CFI, Toms River, NJ
Parvez is a 3-time Master and SAFE member, recently renewing his Master CFI accreditation. Parvez is a Mooney Pilot Proficiency instructor as well as president of the MAPA Safety Foundation (www.MAPASafety.com). He also serves as a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Philadelphia FSDO area. E-mail: ParvezDara@gmail.com

John Kent Earlywine, Master CFI, Fort Wayne, IN
John is now a 5-time Master and a SAFE member, having recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation.  John is an airplane and glider flight instructor in the Fort Wayne area. The holder of an SAA Silver Badge as well as two Indiana soaring records, he will soon begin serving as a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's South Bend FSDO area. E-mail: JKE4034@aol.com

David Hall Faile Jr, Master CFI, Fairfield, CT
David has recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation for a 7th time. A  Master CFI and SAFE member,David, the 1999 National CFI of the Year, instructs with Three Wing Flying (http://ThreeWing.com/) at Bridgeport's Sikorsky Airport (BDR). He is also an AOPA Airport Support Network representative and a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Windsor Locks FSDO area. E-mail:  DFaile@aol.com

William Scott O'Brien, Master CFI, Tallahassee, FL
Scott is now a 3-time Master and SAFE member, having recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation.  Scott is an independent flight instructor who also teaches with FlightLine Flight Training (http://FlightlineGroup.com/ServicesInstruction.cfm) at Tallahassee Regional Airport (TLH).  He also serves as a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's North Florida FSDO area. E-mail: ScottOB37@gmail.com

 Michael Louis Phillips, Master CFI, Venture, CA
Michael is a 2-time Master and SAFE member, with a recently renewed Master CFI accreditation.  Michael is an aviation educator with CP Aviation (www.CPAviation.com), a Cessna Pilot Center at Santa Paula Airport (SZP).  He also serves as the SAFE membership committee co-chair and is a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Van Nuys FSDO area. E-mail: Michael_Phillips@roadrunner.com

John Urban "Rock" Rockcastle, Master CFI, Oxford, FL
A 2-time Master and SAFE member, John has recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation.  Rock is a simulator instructor with Simcom in Orlando and serves on the production crew at the FAA's National Resource Center in Lakeland.  The 1989 National CFI of the Year, he is also a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's North Florida FSDO area. E-mail: Rancher@digital.net

Stewart Douglas "Doug" Stewart, Master CFI, South Egremont, MA
Douglas recently renewed his Master CFI accreditation for a 6th time.  The 2004 National CFI of the Year, Doug operates Doug Stewart Flight Instruction (http://www.DSFlight.com/) and is the chairman of SAFE, the Society of Aviation & Flight Educators (http://SafePilots.us/).  He also serves as a pilot examiner (DPE) and a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Albany FSDO area. E-mail: Doug@DSFlight.com

FMI: www.MasterInstructors.org