User:Rashidyahya

In my 20 years of experience in aviation training, education, and aviation business development and with 9000 plus flight hours as a Professional Pilot and Flight Instructor I have learned and understood how people succeed and sometimes fail in what they love to do. I have always considered failure as part of my success. My attitude of keep going, never give up and find ways to get things done have helped me survive in my professional as well as in my personal life.

Certified by the FAA as a Gold Seal Flight Instructor and approved by the FAA multiple times as a Chief Flight Instructor of a FAA Part 141 Professional Flight Academy, I had the pleasure of flying and teaching people in a variety of airplanes from single engine to multi engine, turbine to jet in general aviation categories. With my knowledge and experience I have created many Training Course Outlines, Standard Operating Procedures for flight training and Polices & Procedures to operate a flight school and aviation related businesses. All of them have received FAA and overseas authority approvals. My engineering education and background have really helped me in formatting and structuring the training and operation process.

My journey in aviation started as a student pilot at Sierra Academy of Aeronautics in Oakland, California where I received my flight training and soon became a ground school instructor and then a flight instructor. With my passion to teach, perform to the standards or better and to learn more I was moved up to a Check Airmen position then to Assistant Chief Flight Instructor. It was a great moment when I was offered the position of Chief Flight Instructor for Sierra Academy of Aeronautics. It is very true, that with great power comes great responsibility.

Sierra Academy now had new owners and they wanted to expand on their vision so did I, and now as the Director of Business Operations I took the lead in business development to set up an International Training Center which would train airline pilot cadets from overseas. I traveled overseas to build relationships and to receive training approvals from the authorities and through this I learned a lot about how different cultures influence the way people learn and perform. It really gave me an insight to the dynamics of how to teach, coach and instruct people. I have led a training center with 250 pilot cadets with 100 plus instructors and yes it was not easy as it came with all sorts of challenges and obstacles but we managed to make the program successful.

When I joined Pacific States Aviation as the VP and Chief Flight Instructor it had its own challenges with the FAA, no training structure, no customer service. In 3 years we went from having 5 students to 50 plus full time students and growing, FAA considers us as once of the best Part 141 flight school in San Francisco Bay Area, its now internationally recognized, it went from 3 aircraft to 15 aircraft and growing and have received approvals for additional programs.

During all this course of time I have personally started 3 companies that are involved in Aviation Education and Management, Aviation Maintenance & Aircraft Leasing and recently Part 135 Air Charter Services. I have also helped my kids start a Non Profit Organization, which helps in providing scholarships to graduating high school seniors and aiding in education to girls in various other countries.

“You don’t have to be great to start but you have to start to be great”