Leading Executives in Flight Schools
Justin Dennis
President, ATP Flight School
Longtime technologist-turned-operator who became President in 2017 and has helped scale ATP’s nationwide Airline Career Pilot Program and airline pathway partnerships.
website | LinkedIn (company) | Phone (HQ)
Michael Hales
Chief Executive Officer, United Aviate Academy (United Airlines)
Named CEO in January 2024 after building Delaware State University’s aviation program; now leads United’s in‑house flight school in Goodyear, AZ, guiding hundreds of student pilots into the Aviate pipeline.
Lee Woodward
Founder & CEO, Skyborne Airline Academy
Co‑founder and CEO who expanded Skyborne across the UK and US (including Delta’s Propel Flight Academy partnership) with an airline‑style training approach focused on selection and safety.
website | Phone (Vero Beach) | LinkedIn (company)
Michel Azar-Hmouda
Division President, Civil – Commercial Aviation, CAE (Civil – Commercial Aviation)
Division President overseeing CAE’s global commercial aviation training portfolio and product lines across 60+ locations, including ab‑initio, recurrent and airline training centers.
Nick Leontidis
Chief Operating Officer, CAE
Veteran CAE leader appointed Chief Operating Officer in May 2024; oversees both Civil Aviation and Defense & Security segments, driving execution and synergies across global training operations.
Danny Perna
Founder & CEO, Epic Flight Academy
Founder and CEO who has grown Epic from a single Cessna into a large Part 141/147 academy training pilots and A&Ps, with thousands of alumni flying at 300+ airlines.
website | Phone | LinkedIn (company)
Natalia Cimpean
President & CEO, Hillsboro Aero Academy (USA)
President/CEO credited with new financing options, accelerated Part 141 tracks and CFI programs, and partnerships that keep HAA among the largest integrated airplane/helicopter schools in the U.S.
website | Email (general) | Phone
Mikael Eriksson
Chief Executive Officer & COO, Pilot Flight Academy (Norway)
Heads one of Europe’s largest ab‑initio academies, building airline pathways (e.g., ANA/Peach, Widerøe) and running modern DA40/DA42 fleets with integrated ATPL programs.
Oscar Sordo
Chief Executive Officer, FTEJerez (Flight Training Europe)
CEO who has led FTEJerez’s long‑standing airline cadet programs and recent fleet renewal with 20 new Piper Archer DX aircraft, plus expansion back into the UK at London Oxford Airport.
Marijus Ravoitis
Chief Executive Officer, BAA Training (Avia Solutions Group)
CEO driving rapid global expansion (sim centers in EU, MPL agreement with Qatar Airways Group, and a major Cessna 172 fleet order) to scale ab‑initio and type‑rating capacity.
Captain Larry Wade
Chief Executive Officer, OxfordSaudia Flight Academy
Veteran trainer and international aviation educator leading one of the Kingdom’s flagship ab‑initio academies with CAE‑aligned standards and modern fleets.
Dave Cox
Academy Director, L3Harris Flight Academy (Sanford, FL)
Academy Director and accountable leader featured by L3Harris for steering flight training operations and standards at one of Florida’s largest academies.
website | Contact form | Phone (Sanford)
Joel Davidson
Chief Executive Officer, AeroGuard Flight Training Center
CEO who inked a 90‑aircraft Piper Archer deal to expand capacity past 2,000 students across multiple campuses and deepen airline pathways (e.g., SkyWest, Cathay).
Chris Schoensee
President & Co‑Owner, Paragon Flight Training
President and co‑owner recognized by AOPA and NATA; driving a multi‑year fleet expansion with Piper and growth across Florida and Georgia campuses.
Jill Cole
Chief Executive Officer, American Flyers
CEO of the 85‑year‑old multi‑campus school that trains thousands of pilots and renews roughly half of all U.S. CFIs through its FIRC each year; leads a distributed network in TX, FL, AZ & NJ.
website | Phone | LinkedIn (company)
Mike Sykes
Chief Executive Officer & Founder, US Aviation Academy (Denton, TX)
Founder‑CEO who scaled US Aviation across ab‑initio pilot and A&P training, military and collegiate partnerships, and new MRO career pathways with industry partners.
website | Phone | LinkedIn (company)
Trey Walters
Co‑Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Blue Line Aviation (NC)
Veteran aviator and entrepreneur who co‑founded one of the fastest‑growing accelerated programs in the U.S., emphasizing airline‑style SOPs and modern Diamond/Piper fleets.
website | Phone | LinkedIn (company)
Dr. Robert J. Kraus
Dean of Aerospace; Chair of Flight (oversight), University of North Dakota – John D. Odegard School of Aerospace Sciences
Dean leading one of the world’s largest collegiate flight‑training programs with 130+ aircraft, 2,100 students, and industry‑leading safety and research initiatives.
Johan “Pine” Pienaar
Chief Executive Officer & Director, Flight Training Adelaide (Australia)
CEO (aka Pine Pienaar) who expanded major airline cadet contracts (Qantas Group, Cathay, J‑AIR) and multi‑campus operations across Parafield and Wellcamp.
Kristoffer (KJ) Johnson
Chief Executive Officer & President, Phoenix East Aviation (Daytona Beach, FL)
CEO who is modernizing PEA’s curriculum via exclusive ground‑school partnerships and renewed Part 141 offerings to standardize quality across programs.
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