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New Instrument Rating – Mike Fritsche
Jun 12 2020Date: April 14, 2020
Certification: Instrument Rating
Instructor: Nathaniel Thorpe
Aircraft: Cessna N53456
Our Chief Instructor, Jen Watson, earns “Master CFI”
Jan 24 2020AeroDynamic’s Chief Flight Instructor, Jen Watson, has been awarded Master CFI accreditation by the National Association of Flight Instructors (NAFI). This distinction is held by only an average of 300 flight instructors per year!
“The NAFI Master Flight Instructor designation is a national accreditation for aviation educators that is based on a system of advanced professional standards and peer review. The designation is granted by NAFI and has two levels: the NAFI Associate Master Flight Instructor, and the NAFI Master Flight Instructor or Master Ground Instructor. These accreditation’s publicly recognize aviation educators who demonstrate an ongoing commitment to excellence, professional growth, and service to the aviation community, and they set professional standards to which all professional aviation instructors and educators can aspire.
Both levels of the accreditation process focus primarily on the individual’s training activity and evaluation of pilots as well as his or her experience—the foundations of what an instructor is able to pass along to his or her students. They emphasize active instruction and pilot evaluation, not simply taking courses or the tenure of an individual’s instructor certificate. They are not honorary awards that recognize long-time service; rather, they are recognition for the individual who continues to practice aviation education at the highest level.
Accreditation requires a rigorous process of on-going professional activity. Like a flight instructor certificate, NAFI Master Instructor accreditation’s must be renewed every 24 months to assure a dedication to continuous involvement.”
First Solo Flight – Kaleo Clissold
Sep 25 2019Solo Date: September 21, 2019
Aircraft: Cessna – N62244
Instructor: Ben Khader
Location: Monterey, CA (KMRY)
“June this year I had a amazing opportunity that opened up to me to pursue aviation as part of my carrier in law enforcement. This had never even been a thought in my mind until now. I have always been mesmerized by flight but never in my dreams did I think I would actually do it. To my amazement I have now been blessed to have just completed my first solo flight in my pursuit of commercial aspersions. Thank you Ben Khader and Aerodynamic Aviation for making this dream a reality.” ~Kaleo
New Private Pilot – Nicole Herbig
Jun 07 2019Date: June 4, 2019
Certification: Private Pilot
Instructors: Lynzie Hudson & Terry Norbraten
Aircraft: Cessna N62244
New Private Pilot – Bentley Mundle
Jan 05 2019Date: December 18, 2018
Certification: Private Pilot
Instructors: Martin, Jamie & Ben
Aircraft: Cessna N53456
Another Monterey pilot earns their wings with DPE Eric Cook! Congrats to Bentley and his instructors on a job well done.
“Growing up I always had a fascination with aviation and thought my Dad had the coolest job as a pilot for United Airlines. The timing of graduating high school, 9/11, and the down turn in the aviation industry led me to follow in the footsteps of both of my grandfathers as a PGA Professional. Ten plus years later I still think my Dad has the coolest job and I’m excited to make a career change and chase my childhood dream of becoming a professional pilot!” ~ Bentley
New Private Pilot – Liz Woodard
Jan 04 2019Date: November 20, 2018
Certification: Private Pilot
Instructor: Terry Norbraten
Aircraft: Cessna N62244
Three teenage pilots take to the sky!
Aug 01 2018One of our recent graduate’s mom snapped this photo of three 17-year-old Aerodynamic students (2 newly licensed private pilots and 1 student pilot) departing out of Monterey airport. Adam Shapiro is in the left seat, Katrina Espinoza is in the right (his safety pilot) and Sophia Taylor-Home is in the back seat. If you look closely, you can actually see clear silhouettes of 3 people inside the plane.
Adam earned his Private Pilot with us in Monterey back in December 2017. Katrina earned her license at our Reid-Hillview location in June 2018 thanks to a generous scholarship from AOPA (she won their High School scholarship in 2016 for $5000) and another scholarship from the 99s in 2018. Sophia is a current student pilot working hard to get to solo.
We are so proud of you all! This next generation of pilots work hard for their successes and prove you are never too young or too old to go after your dreams. We wish you all the best in your aviation careers!
New Private Pilot – Adam Shapiro
Dec 31 2017Date: December 29, 2017
Certification: Private Pilot
Instructor: Jamie Redding
What were you doing on your 17th birthday? Very few people could answer that they were taking the checkride for their Private Pilot License, let alone doing so well they impressed the FAA examiner. But that is exactly what 17-year-old Adam did last Friday. What an incredible achievement for one so young. We are happy to have been able to give you your first set of wings, Adam, and wish you so much luck in life.
Examiner: Eric Cook
Aircraft: Cessna N62244
Checkride Location:
Monterey, CA (KMRY)
New Private Pilot – Robert Knight
Sep 14 2017Date: September 9, 2017
Instructor: Jen Watson
Certification: Private Pilot
A huge congratulations to Robert for passing his Private Pilot checkride with examiner Eric. Robert and his instructor, Jen, flew his Cirrus SR22 Turbo down to Paso Robles on Saturday afternoon and returned to Monterey later that evening with a pilot certificate in hand. Robert owns an art gallery in Monterey and came to AeroDynamic with a background in parasailing. He bought his Cirrus after a few months of training in our Cessnas and plans to travel quite a bit. In fact, he already flew his girlfriend to a baseball came in San Francisco! He plans to continue on to an Instrument Rating after a short break to enjoy his new license. Happy flying 🙂
Examiner: Eric Cook
Aircraft: Cirrus SR22T
Checkride Location:
Paso Robles, CA (KRHV)
New Private Pilot – Joonwoo Cho
Sep 05 2017Date: September 3, 2017
Instructor: Ron Vlastelica
Certification: Private Pilot
Congrats to Joon and his instructor Ron for a first-time checkride pass! The following is Joon’s write up of his experience with us:
“My name is Joonwoo Cho, one of the student pilot flying in Aerodynamic Aviation. I achieved my private pilot license in 3rd of September. Thanks to my instructor Ron and aerodynamic.
The checkride was pretty much expectable. My DPE Eric Cook is a very thorough examiner. He did not assume anything. If you are good, then you are good. If you do something bad, then you are bad. It is that simple. I felt if you pass the checkride with him, you can definitely be proud of yourself as a safe pilot not having any luck to pass the exam. I really think all the FAA DPE should be like him. He also always tried to make the flight circumstance comfortable as possible because he knows all the students are nervous in a checkride. On the checkride, he was sure a ‘polite passenger with aeronautical knowledge’ I really recommend other students to use him as a well know passenger. Do not think as he is looking for something you do wrong. Use the DPE for safe flight and smooth exam. This will help students a lot.
Instructor Ron was a great instructor. His knowledge and flying skills are good, but the best thing about him is he really take care his student until the last moment. To pass the checkride, the flying is not everything. I think the flying portion is just a basic that you should be able to pass by yourself. The more important thing is how you prepare it. Is your plane suitable? Didn’t you miss something like maintenance book? CRM, decision makings, etc. To be a good pilot, flying skill is nothing. Just like driving a car, if you fly more, you will fly better someday. But, the mind for the safe flying is the most important thing. To mention about the way of his teaching, he does not just give you the answer, he gives you time to think and come up with an answer of your own. With this method, you can develop you decision making and this is not something you can develop by just building the flight time. I would also like to give my thanks to aerodynamic aviation. They gave me a pleasant time, and comfortable circumstances for flying. It is really a shame that I cannot stay at US and fly more since I have to go back to my country this month.”