This presentation is designed to help instructors, both new and established, understand the awesome responsibilities they have in our profession. The decisions we make, the skills we teach, and examples we set touch an untold number of lives and affect our clients for a lifetime, for good or bad. The conversation will guide us beyond just teaching the skills of controlling an aircraft, but to understand why we must teach far beyond that level.
Robert “Bob” Meder completed his initial flight training in 1995 and earned his CFI in 2006. He went on to add single-engine and multi-engine instrument certificates. Recently he retired from a 40+ year career at a major railroad as the Director of Unmanned Aerial Systems (UAS). While in this position, he worked directly with the FAA on regulatory issues for Drones and critical infrastructure companies. During this time, he continued to instruct.
Bob has over 6,000 hours of dual instruction and enjoys training new flight instructors, challenging them to recognize the distinction between skill and critical thinking. He emphasizes that superior risk management, not just skill, is the key to safe flight training. He is a FAASTeam Lead Rep at the St Louis FSDO and was honored as the district and regional flight instructor of the year in 2009 and 2010. After nearly ten years as chair, Bob currently serves as Chair Emeritus on the NAFI board of directors.
Tom Dorl has been flying since he was 16 years old and learned to fly at an Air Force base in New Jersey. It was at this aero club, flying C-152s, that Tom cemented his love for flying. He attend an aviation university in Ohio and secured a commission in the USAF along with a degree in Aerospace Technology.
Tom completed fixed wing and rotary wing pilot training flying the T-37, T-38, UH-1 and HH-60G and was one of the first operational USAF pilots to fly the HH-60G PaveHawk. Tom served over 25 years in the USAF flying mainly combat search and rescue missions in many overseas locations saving the lives of others; additionally he taught powered flight to USAF Academy Cadets in the Cirrus 20 (T-53).
He has been an active and dual rated flight instructor for over 22 years, is an active FAASTeam Representative and presenter, CAP member and published author. He holds a CMEL, CFI, CFII in both single engine airplanes and helicopters as well as a Pt 107 UAS Commercial certificate.
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