Master Instructors is honored to announce that Doug Stewart of South Egremont, Massachusetts has received his Thirteenth accreditation as a Master Flight Instructor. This marks more than twenty-six years as a Master Instructor, one of only four educators to achieve this extraordinary level of excellence.
Doug, named the 2004 National Instructor of the Year, is a full-time CFII focusing on real-world IFR training conducted on multi-day flights. To date he has provided more than 13,300 hours of flight instruction. He has served as a Designated Pilot Examiner for more than 20 years. The Executive Director Emeritus of SAFE, Doug has served on the General Aviation Joint Safety Committee (GAJSC) for more than 10 years. He is also a subject matter expert for Pilot Workshops and Community Aviation. In addition, Doug has presented seminars to thousands of pilots across the country and authored the monthly “Vintage Instructor” column for EAA’s Vintage Airplane magazine for many years. When not flying, Doug can often be found riding his bicycle.
Master Instructors is pleased to welcome Eric Hake of Missouri City, Texas to the Community of Master Instructors as a Master Flight Instructor. Eric, former Board Chair for the Society of Aviation and Flight Educators, is founder of The Modern Pilot LLC, helping pilots master the complexities of modern technology
in the cockpit. The Modern Pilot Cirrus Training Center (CTC) opened at KAXH (Houston/Southwest) airport in 2020. As ForeFlight’s first employee, he was responsible for all Pilot Support during their first three years, personally answering more than 50,000 support email messages and building a Pilot Support Team. He served as event manager with his role as ‘ForeFlight evangelist’ for EAA AirVenture, NBAA, Sun ’n Fun, Redbird Migration, Sebring, AOPA Summit & Fly-Ins, and COPA Migration. In 2015 he left ForeFlight to start his own company.
Master Instructors is honored to announce that Mark Szpak of Prescott, Arizona has received his Fourth Accreditation as a Master Instructor. Mark is a focused aviation educator. He is a man of few words with a passion for instructing. In his application for accreditation he states: “I became a flight instructor in 2012, and ever since then I’ve enjoyed shaping aviation minds and watching the passion for aviation grow in each person.”
As ForeFlight’s first employee, he was responsible for all Pilot Support during their first three years. He personally
answered more than 50,000 support email messages and built up the Pilot Support Team. Event manager for
EAA AirVenture, NBAA, Sun ’n Fun, Redbird Migration, Sebring, AOPA Summit & Fly-Ins, COPA Migration.
Public speaker and official ‘ForeFlight Evangelist’ for pilot groups and industry events. In 2015 he left ForeFlight
to start his own company, The Modern Pilot LLC, to help pilots master the complexities of modern technology
in the cockpit. In 2020, He opened the Modern Pilot Cirrus Training Center (CTC) at KAXH (Houston/Southwest) airport.
Master Instructors is pleased to welcome Barbara Filkins of Fillmore, California, as our newest Master Aviation Educator, recognizing her commitment to teaching as well as seeking knowledge. Barbara says, “although my career has not been directly in aviation, aviation has been a theme and influence throughout. I learned to fly while in college, obtaining my private pilot rating through the Bates Aeronautics Program, a program that leveraged aviation to help shape future scientists and engineers as leaders in their field.” Upon graduation, she moved to upstate New York and completed instrument and commercial ratings. Back in California by 1978, she became a CFI-I and taught for the Bates Program until 2000, “giving back to the program that gave me so much.”
After a 14-year hiatus, she and her husband began building their Velocity V-Twin and Barbara obtained her multi-engine rating and MEI and they completed the Phase 1 testing on N527VT in 2017.
Barbara is now actively flight instructing on the faculty at CAU, is a FAAST Team Representative and is researching how automation and autonomy will shape the future pilot training.