Sport private pilot acrobatic tailwheel flight training san jose san francisco bay area california flight school Sport private pilot acrobatic tailwheel flight training san jose san francisco bay area california flight school
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Instructors

Len von Clemm tailwheel sport private pilot acrobatic flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Lennert von Clemm, CFI, CFII, MEI, ATP, Aerobatics, Chief Pilot

Lennert offers flight training in tailwheel, mountain flying, aerobatics and confidence maneuvers. His 20,000+ hours include flying bush, canyons, mountains, rivers, lakes and ocean crossings. He can teach you to spin your world around or give you a calm check out in most any aircraft single or multi-engine, landplane or seaplane. He is also a corporate pilot and holds type ratings in eight Jets and even a Ford Tri-Motor! To him, there are thirty-minute airplanes and all-day airplanes, but no bad airplanes.
 
Zdravko Podolski, Master CFI, CFII, AGI, IGI, Gold Seal instructor, Aerobatics, Assistant Chief Pilot and owner of Amelia Reid Aviation

Zdravko's first flight was in a DC 3 airliner when he was two weeks old. More recently, he is now a flight instructor with over 5000 flight hours, over 3500 of them as an instructor. Zdravko received his taildragger and acrobatics training from two generations of Reids. Taildragger and acrobatics from Amelia Reid herself, and back seat flight training from Robin Reid. He enjoys the back seat of a Citabria as much as a front seat in a Bonanza. Whether you like straight and level, or loops and rolls, Zdravko will be happy to fly with you. Read more about Zdravko on http://www.goodflying.com.
 
Dick Chang, CFI, CFII

Having retired from the world of high tech, Dick has been successfully teaching pilots for their Private, Commercial and CFI certificates, and their Instrument Ratings for quite a few years. Dick also volunteers with the FAA Safety Program. Call us or email us and we'll get you flying with Dick.
 
Tristan Duplan tailwheel sport private pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Tristan Duplan, CFI, CFII, MEI

If you want to fly, it's your lucky day because Tristan wants to fly too! Tristan started his flying dreams at the nearby San Jose airport and quickly transitioned to taildraggers at Amelia's. Born in France, he relocated to California as a software engineer for Cisco Systems. Tristan has been personally trained in the back seat of a Citabria by Zdravko and Len. So don't hesitate a second, call Amelia Reid Aviation and schedule your flight training today.
 
Grainne Gilvarry tailwheel sport private pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School

Grainne Gilvarry, CFI

All the way from Ireland, and now living in Boulder Creek, Grainne has been a CFI for over 4 years and has more than 1000 hours of instructing under her belt. Personally trained in the finer points of tailwheel airplanes by Len Von Clemm, we are delighted to have her on our instructor staff. When not flight training, Grainne is a nurse specializing in care of preemie babies.

 
Jim Grant tailwheel sport private pilot acrobatic flight training Jim Grant, CFI, Aerobatics

Jim Grant took his initial flight training and received his private pilot license in 1987. After a career in Engineering, Marketing and Business, Jim got his CFI in 2004 in a desperate attempt to keep ahead of his two young boys. He has over 1150 hours, including some 800 plus hours in tail wheel airplanes with over 200 hours of that being aerobatics.
 
Dave Gray tailwheel sport private pilot acrobatic flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Dave Gray, CFI, Aerobatics

Dave Gray has been an instructor so long none of us can remember when he started or how many hours he has. Let us just say that he has plenty, in many different airplanes. He is just as happy giving flight training to a new student how to fly as he is teaching advanced aerobatics. Dave's philosophy is that flying should above all be fun for both the student and the instructor.
 
Picture coming soon Mark Guerrero , CFI

Mark is our youngest instructor, yet he has already earned th etrust and respect of his students. Mark has many an hour in a variety of taildraggers, including Piper Cubs, Aeronca Champs, as well as Citabrias. Mark is also a proficient Bonanza pilot, flies recreational acrobatics for fun and is enjoying teaching.
 
Picture Coming Soon Daniel Most , Sport Pilot CFI

Daniel has a passion for flying that shows in his fun style. He is our newest instructor, yet his skills belie his age. Whether it is an antique Taylorcraft or the latest Evektor Sportstar LSA, Dan is your man. So don't wait, call Amelia Reid Aviation and schedule your flight training today.
 
Larry Reed sport pilot and private pilot ground school San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School

Larry Reed, CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI, IGI, BS in Professional Aeronautics, Embry Riddle

Larry is our popular Sport and Private Pilot Ground School instructor. Larry had his first airplane ride at six and has loved airplanes and flying since. He began flying lessons in 1964 at the Navy Memphis Flying Club, soloed in 1966 at RHV and became a CFI in 1977, also at RHV. He admits to having his taildragger skills improved by Len von Clemm who also taught him aerobatics in 1978. He taught in tail-draggers and tri-cycle geared airplanes at Amelia Reid Aviation and other flight schools since 1977.
 
Patrik Rosenast tailwheel sport private pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Patrik Rosenast, CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI, IGI, Aerobatics

Patrik is the instructor with the strange Swiss-accent at Amelia Reid Aviation. Originally born in Switzerland, he relocated to the Bay Area in 1999 to attend San Jose State University Majoring in Aviation and to pursue flying. He finished school in December 2003 and is now a licensed A&P mechanic. He got all (nearly all) his flight training and certificates and ratings with Len von Clemm, who he considers one of his greatest mentors. Len taught him the basics and a lot more, which he is now trying to pass on to his students. If you ever fly with Patrik and don't understand his humor or accent then just keep flying and have fun, because that is what he thinks is the most important thing about being up there in the blue sky.
   
Picture coming soon Eric Ruhe, CFI, CFII, MEI

Eric has been flying taildraggers since he started, and has thousands of hours in a multitude of tailwheel airplanes from the Aeronca Champ to the DC3. He has also flown many other airplanes including turboprop airliners. Despite all that Eric is just delighted to be doing flight training in the back seat of a Champ. Eric is also a qualified airplane Airframe and Powerplant mechanic. We are very happy to have him with us.
 
Picture coming soon Hank Smith, ATP, CFI, CFII, MEI

Not content with a long career in aviation where he earned over 20,000 hours in a variety of different airplanes, managed FBOs, flew corporate and instruction flights, and so on, Hank recently earned his Doctorate from San Jose State University. Specializing in instrument instruction, but equally at home teaching a beginner the basics of flight, a flight with Hank is always a learning experience.
 
Roger Standley tailwheel sport private pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Roger Standley, CFI

Roger soloed in a Super Cub at age seventeen while working to pay for flying lessons at his hometown FBO in Charlottesville, VA. He earned his Private, Commercial, Instrument and CFI ratings and became an Instructor for the Mach Tenths Flying Club based at Palo Alto Airport, later coming to Amelia Reid Aviation to fly taildraggers with the legendary Amelia Reid.

Now currently at nearly 2000 flight hours, Roger is pursuing his life-long love of teaching others to fly.  In addition to flight training in the Citabrias, he pilots a KitFox Model IV-1200 experimental high-wing taildragger that he built and flight-tested himself.  He also instructs new KitFox builders in preparation for test-flying their own airplanes.
 
Joe StClair tailwheel sport private pilot acrobatic flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School

Joe St Clair, CFI, CFII, MEI, Acrobatics

Joe has returned to flight training at Amelia's. He taught with us part-time and full-time from 1970 through early 1988, and then operated free lance with ARA and other operators through his airline flying career, before he retired and returned to teaching and contract pilot services. Joe has logged about 24,000 hours, with over 11,000 hours as a CFI in primary and advanced ratings, tail wheel and acrobatics.

Joe lives in Grover Beach, near Pismo Beach, and comes up to the Bay Area by appointment only.
 
Rimas Viselga tailwheel sport pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School Rimas Viselga, CFI, Acrobatics

Rimas loves any airplane that can turn upside down, whether that is a Citabria, a Yak, or an Extra. He has experience in competition aerobatics, but he also enjoys teaching beginners the art of straight and level flying. Come and experience his Lithuanian humor!
 
Vess Velikov tailwheel sport pilot flight training San Jose San Francisco Bay Area California Flight School

Vess Velikov , CFI, Acrobatics
Temporarily away to fly joyrides in T-6 Texans!
Vess has many hours in a wide variety of taildraggers, including the Fairchild and WACO biplanes, Swick Taylorcraft, L2, Aeronca Champs, and Citabrias. He is the first of the new breed of Sport Pilot CFIs, come and do your Sport Pilot flight training with him and he can get you your certificate in a hurry.

Prices and rates are subject to change without notice. All training and rentals are subject to the terms and conditions in the Renters' Agreement.

Come and fly with us in the beautiful San Francisco Bay Area of California. Our flight school is located at Reid Hillview airport in San Jose (KRHV), at the south end of San Francisco Bay and we offer ground and flight training for sport pilot, private pilot, commercial pilot, instrument rating, CFI (certified flight instructor), tailwheel, acrobatics, and multi engine certificates and ratings.