Master Instructors is honored to announce that Parvez Dara, M.D./FACP/MBA of Toms River, New Jersey has received his Tenth Accreditation as a Master Instructor, recognizing more than twenty years as an Aviation Educator. Parvez is an ATP and Advanced Ground Instructor and a Gold Seal Instructor. He has been recognized by his peers as Philadelphia FSDO CFI of the Year in 2008 and 2017. He is also an FAA Safety Team Representative of the year. He has been recognized continuously since 2004 by the FAA for his Volunteer External Service. He is a former Senior Aviation Medical Examiner and serves on the Boards of two non-profit organizations – the MAPA Safety Foundation, involved in Mooney Aircraft Pilot Recurrent Training and SAFE, an educational organization that serves aviation and the STEM programs nationwide, where he served as a Treasurer. As a Lead FAASTeam Representative, Parvez is a regular seminar presenter and is also a BPPP accredited Certified Flight Instructor.
Master Instructors is honored to announce that Michael Phillips of Ventura, California has received his Ninth Accreditation as a Master Instructor. Michael states: “My passion for teaching and contributing to the growth of anyone that I am associated with is why I am a full-time Aviation Educator. The majority of my career has been spent teaching others how to be successful and what it takes to achieve their personal and professional goals and dreams. The MICEP Accreditation motivates me to learn and stretch my skills as both a teacher and a pilot. I am proud to be a Nine-Time Master Instructor and honored to be a member of this inspiring Community of professionals. For more than twenty-seven years Master Instructors has been recognizing the best of the best and I strongly urge all Aviation Educators to consider the Master Instructor Continuing Education Program.”
Master Instructors is honored to announce that Chris Palmer of Homer, Alaska has received his Second Accreditation as a Master Instructor. The only MI based in Alaska, Chris is a well-known figure in the aviation community, operating a small flight school while producing and sharing content through his brand, Angle of Attack. Mostly focused on instruction, this media gives the world a view into flight training. At his core, Chris is just another instructor and loves to teach. He provides training for primary students through CFI candidates, and finds that each student brings a new and different challenge. Chris thrives on helping students break through barriers and achieve their dreams. His focus lies in safe flying and learning core stick and rudder skills in the Alaskan landscape, and he appreciates the ‘why’ of aviation, not just the ‘how’.
Master Instructors is honored to recognize Lonnie Hilkemeier as one of only five Aviation Educators in the world to achieve his Master Instructor accreditation 14 times. As he tells his story: My wife (then girlfriend) purchased an introductory flight for me. That flight sparked an interest in aviation that led me to attend Colorado Northwestern Community College (1990 CNCC graduate) for an aviation degree. There, I quickly gained an appreciation for receiving quality instruction! This caused me to focus on becoming a career flight instructor and seeking mentors throughout many specialties of industry – aviation, education and others.
When I learned of Sandy and JoAnn Hill’s Master Instructor program, I was inspired to join this group of aviation educators that knew that quality was much more important that quantity – unfortunately not the “norm” in aviation. I was successful in becoming the first Master CFI in the State of Colorado in 1998. To this day, I am still learning from each one of my current and past clients. Several have graced my flight school by being excellent aviation educators at Specialty Flight Training, Inc. One has been with us for over 20 years! Many others have been astronaut candidates, military leaders, air traffic controllers and professional aviators. Yet with all of their laurels, it is so touching when they choose to reach out and share their “life updates”. Integrity, loyalty, hard work and ethics are common denominators of our clients!