Our Instructors

James is one of our Airline Interview prep instructors.  If you are preparing to interview for a professional pilot position - you will want to do a lesson with James 1st!  He will thoroughly prepare you for the interview both the nerve racking HR portion as well as brush up on your sim flying.  We have either the AST 300 or the Frasca G1000 Mentor to choose from for your sim training. 

James Manages Pinnacle Aviation Academy's Flight Training Department and is PAA’s Chief Instructor.  With his Bachelors degree in Business Administration and his extensive management back ground, he is excellent at mentoring and coaching Pinnacle Aviation Academy’s team of Instructor Pilots.  He leads our instructor team with new ideas and teaching methods for our rapidly changing aviation environment.  In addition to mentoring students and instructors, James provides FAA 141 check rides and stage checks.   

James is a highly experienced Instructor, as he has found his passion in aviation - teaching.  James reflects outstanding customer service, quality instruction, dedication, and a love of aviation.  James enjoys instructing and loves doing it for a career.  He loves flying and enjoys seeing the excitement in new pilots’ faces.  He has been an instructor with us since 2006.

Ben is our Helicopter Transition Training Guru. Ben holds a Commercial- Instrument Helicopter Certificate along with his Fixed Wing Certified Flight Instructors certification – he is the perfect instructor for the pilot wishing to transition between Helicopters and Fixed Wing. 

Ben has been flying longer than he has been driving.  He graduated from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University with a B.S. in Aeronautical Science and a minor in Applied Meteorology.  He is active in many areas of aviation from Helicopters to holding a part 121 Aircraft Dispatcher certificate.  Ben loves sharing his passion for flight and is a general aviation iPad enthusiast.  When he is not at the airport, he enjoys being with his family, being outdoors, and active.  He is a full-time instructor with Pinnacle.  Ben is also our “night” instructor, so he is open for any night flights or night currency on a regular basis. 

Available: Saturday-Monday and Wednesday and Thursdays

Standard days off: Tuesday & Friday

Shift: afternoons and nights

Type of Instruction: Commercial & Private. Aircraft Checkouts(C152, C172R/SP, C172SP NavIII), Flight Reviews and currency flights.

Specialties: Commercial Pilot Training, Helicopter Transition Training & G1000 Systems

Paul has a BS in Management Information Systems and a minor in Aviation from Winona State University in southeast Minnesota. He is an Advanced Ground Instructor and Gold Seal Flight Instructor. Flying has been a lifelong interest for Paul and he enjoys being able to pass that interest on to others. When he is not teaching he enjoys golfing and is a big baseball fan.  Paul is a highly experienced instructor who has been instructing with us since 2009.