Angel City Flyers, Inc.

Congratulations to Robert Rosales on earning a Commercial Airplane Multi-Engine Land rating in a Diamond DA42 Twin Star! Robert came to us after flying Cessnas and Pipers and wanted experience is something different while working towards the airlines. During his training, Robert visited some interesting airports including the infamous Harris Ranch where the wingspan is wider than the runway! Well done, Robert – great flying!

Apologies, Pat – this one is long overdue!

Congratulations to Pat Sullivan on adding a Multi-Engine rating to his Private Pilot Certificate! Pat came to us ready to earn his Commercial certificate with plans on getting his instructor certificates. Realizing he would need 15 hours PIC in multi-engine airplanes to qualify for the Multi-Engine Instructor, Pat chose to earn the Multi-Private first. That meant learning systems, multi-engine aerodynamics and lots of maneuvers and patterns. It didn’t take long before Pat felt right at home, flying like he’s been doing it forever. The checkride went well so step one complete. On to the Commercial rating.

Great flying, Pat!

Congratulations to Mikolaj Nejkauf on completing the professional pilot course! As many of you have seen, Mik has been marching through the courses including an FAA Private Pilot, Multi-Engine, Instrument, Commercial Multi-Engine Land then Single Engine Add On. Along the way Mik had many experience building  character building experiences including flying the DA42 in Telluride then solo in a DA40 to Denver and hot-hot (official FAA RT) temperatures in the in the Palm Springs desert. While he may not have loved every flight he appreciated the diverse opportunities! We enjoyed having Mikolaj here and are sure he will be a success in commercial aviation.

Great work, Mik!

Congratulations to Jeff Leight on earning his Private Pilot Certificate in a Diamond Star DA40! Jeff has been training with us a year, flying on weekends and holidays while attending graduate school full time. During the Private Pilot Course, Jeff visited many scenic destinations such as Santa Barbara, Carlsbad/ San Diego, Big Bear and, well, Chino and learned something new at each. What will he do now that he’s completed this stage? “To begin, take a break!” he quipped. Then Jeff will start his experience building flights as he flies around the Southwest logging Cross Country PIC time before starting the Instrument Rating training.

Well done, Jeff! We look forward to sharing pictures of the adventures you’ll have!

Congratulations to Joe Daicendt on earning a single pilot type rating in a Citation Mustang jet! Joe first came to us in June of 2008 to earn his Multi-Engine rating in the DA42. He returned in June of 2010 in his own DA42 to add instrument privileges to his multi-engine certificate and now, in July of 2011 (one month late!) he’s back and faster than ever. During his training Joe logged several cross country trips including one all the way to Pennsylvania so he was well prepared for whatever might be asked of him during the test. He did so well, in fact, we looking into developing a curriculum inspired by his achievements (a single-engine pilot to multi-engine pilot to jet pilot course). The tough question for him is will he earn a Multi-Commercial Certificate in the Twin Star or the Mustang?

Well done, Joe!

Congratulations to Robin & Tobias Frimer for earning Airline Transport Pilot ratings! The Frimers are commercial pilots from Denmark who wanted to earn the FAA certificates to fly N registered planes. They chose the DA42 Twin Star then found Angel City Flyers and flew to sunny Long Beach, CA  for a working vacation. It was a straight forward, relatively painless process to learn to fly the Diamond and they passed their checkrides with flying colors. Who did better? They did equally well, of course!

It was a pleasure flying with both of them and we hope to see them again someday! Hmm… maybe the Single Engine ATP add-on…

Congratulations to Mauricio Gonzalez-Martinez on successfully converting his Mexican Commercial Certificate to an FAA certificate! Mauricio will be El Capitan of an N-registered DA42 flying from Monterrey and as such needed FAA licenses. Mauricio made quick work of the Commercial and did very well on the long cross country flight to Monterey (California, not Mexico). The trip home was IFR at night, in IMC so it was a great example of a real mission.

Mauricio has returned to Mexico and is flying now – we’re sure he will be successful.
Congratulations, El Capitan, it was a pleasure flying with you!

A good friend has gone home to Berlin and he will be missed. Arguably the most fashionably dressed student ever to cross the threshold at Angel City, Robert “der Drblik” Drblik had been braving the drive from Hollywood for a couple of years while working on the Professional Pilot Course during his “free” time. Though his schedule may not have been described as regular (he often traveled to such glamorous ports of call as Paris, New York and Maine) his dedication was unquestionable. Robert flew with every instructor on the ACF team and had many adventures with each, including flying the DA42 NG to Telluride and a midnight cross-country ending with instrument approaches at Catalina. Der Drblik was a pleasure to fly with and we look forward to hearing the stories of exploits still to come.

Tschüs, Robert, bis bald!

Congratulations to Mauricio Gonzalez-Martinez on converting his Mexican Instrument Rating to an FAA certificate. Mauricio is visiting from his home town of Mexico City where he earned a Multi-Engine Commercial Instrument rating with ambitions of being an airline captain. Times being what they are, Mexicana airlines filed for bankruptcy and fired their staff which flooded the market with well qualified crew members, so Mauricio’s plans changed (for the better it would seem!). He scoured the market and found a Twin Star owner looking for a pilot. So Mauricio will be El Capitan, flying a Lycoming powered DA42-L360 to far away exotic ports of call (lucky guy!). His training schedule brought him to Angel City Flyers where he’ll learn subtleties of flying the DA42TDi for his instrument rating, then the Multi-Commercial certificate course and finish up with differences training for the L360. Remember us, Mauricio, if you’re in need of an SIC for the Aruba run… or St Thomas… or Cancun… or Panama!

Congratulations to Bea Brandhoff for earning her Private Pilot Certificate in a Diamond Star DA40! Bea broke up the training in two phases returning to Germany in between, but flying was never far from her mind. The training went well (of course!) but as the checkride date approached the weather began to cause problems for her solo cross country flights. Never daunted, Bea grabbed an instructor and flew IFR to Bakersfield where she staged her long cross country flight to Paso Robles and Porterville. Her tour of the lower San Joaquin valley was concluded just as the cumulus clouds began to tower over the Sierra Nevadas. The checkride day arrived and the morning was beautiful… but windy. The system that blew the clouds away lingered to cause problems throughout the morning. Mustering her resolve, however, Bea stuck it out, finally getting the checkride started at 6:00 pm. The test went well and Bea accomplished her goal of being a Private Pilot Certificate. Great flying, Bea! Well done!