Wed, Oct 06, 2010
Owners Of "Master Instructors" Program Say They Have Been
Vindicated In The Marketplace
Sandy and JoAnn Hill, owners of Master Instructors LLC, recently
agreed to dismiss their copyright infringement lawsuit against the
National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI) in exchange for a
waiver of fees and costs. The case alleged NAFI's misappropriation
of intellectual property associated with the Hill's "Master
Instructor" program. According to Sandy Hill, "We feel completely
vindicated by the response of the marketplace to our program.
Moreover, events of the last year have simply rendered many of our
concerns irrelevant to the continued prosecution of our case."
Hill continued, "It just no longer made sense for us to expend
more time and money on the legal action -- much of which had been
donated by hundreds of our wonderful aviation friends and
supporters. Although we remain confident that the court would
ultimately have found in our favor, it's time for us to move on and
focus our energies on the needs of the Master Instructor community
as well as strengthening our products, services, and industry
relationships."
The Hills' Master Instructor Program has been available through
their independent company since early 2009. To ensure impartiality
in the designation process, participation in the program is open to
all qualified aviation educators regardless of their other
affiliations. The program lists five full Master designations that
are FAA Wings-approved and can be used to renew unexpired flight
instructor certificates. Additionally, Master Instructors LLC is
the only organization offering an Aerobatic Instructor Designation
Program. Working with FAA and others in the industry, Master
Instructors LLC is in the process of creating additional Master
designations.
The distinguished Board of Review at Master Instructors LLC is
comprised of the same nine-member team assembled by the Hills when
their program was affiliated with NAFI. This team of reviewers has
examined more than 1,440 portfolios over the years, and is now
processing applications through Master Instructors LLC at nearly
the same rate as they did when their program was affiliated with
NAFI prior to 2009.
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