Our flight instructors are more than just teachers – they’re valuable members of the family.
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Tyler Rafferty
Chief Flight Instructor
ATP, CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI,
Backcountry Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor

Tyler’s obsession with aviation began when he lived in the mountains of Asheville, NC, where airplanes constantly flew over his house and into the next valley. One day he decided to follow one and ended up at the airport, where his mind stayed for the next few years. He eventually moved to Daytona Beach, where he earned a B.S. in Aeronautical Science and completed his flight training at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University. While at ERAU, he competed as part of the Embry-Riddle Eagles Flight Team in events such as aircraft recognition, navigation, and precision landings. Tyler has an affinity for tailwheel airplanes and is one of our tailwheel instructors, his favorite airplane in the fleet being the classic 1946 J-3 Cub. In his free time he enjoys building airplanes in his garage (yes, really!).

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Luke Brown
Asst. Chief Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII

Luke grew up in the Atlanta area. He’s always had an interest in aviation, but his journey was kickstarted during a trip to Seattle. After watching a hundred seaplanes landing off the coast and commenting a hundred times to his wife on how that seemed like the best job one could have, the decision was made to leave his career in hotel management and start the necessary steps to become a pilot. He began his flight training with ATP in Chicago, and later finished his training here and joined the team. Luke’s future plans are to continue to build time and add ratings, and eventually retire with a fleet of seaplanes on a nice warm beach. Outside of being an instructor, Luke is a husband and is a father to two beautiful girls. He is quite the foodie and enjoys traveling and being out in nature.

Katrina Newman
Asst. Chief Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII

Katrina grew up in "the sticks" of Southwest Missouri. She was 8 years old and flying as a passenger on her first commercial flight when her airplane got caught in severe turbulence. Passengers were scared but, to her parents' horror, Katrina thought the turbulence was fun and giggled throughout the flight. After this experience, her family encouraged her growing passion for aviation. Kat started training in high school and trained with various flight schools until finishing her CFI training. Outside of being a CFI, Kat is an artist, most commonly commissioned to paint with acrylic. When she isn’t painting or flying, she enjoys hiking with her two dogs and traveling with her family.

 

Michael Bennett
Asst. Chief Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII

Michael is an Arkansas native who grew up in Fayetteville. He graduated from John Brown University with a degree in Business, but fell in love with aviation after taking a discovery flight. Knowing that flying was for him, he started working on his Private Pilot Certificate and soon changed careers to aviation. He did all of his training here at Thaden Field and now also instructs with us! When he isn't flying, Michael loves traveling, adventures and seeing new places. He also loves racquet sports, hiking, piano, kayaking, skiing, and good food.

Brett Dance
CFI, CFII, Tailwheel Instructor

Bio coming soon!

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Chip Gibbons
Designated Pilot Examiner
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, IGI


Backcountry Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor

Chip is an Arkansas native and a long time Northwest Arkansas resident. He learned to fly at the Springdale airport while he was in high school, then with encouragement from his father and father-in-law began building time in earnest several years later. Chip is an FAA FAASTeam member and his current flying passion is backcountry aviation.

 
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Steve Johnson
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI, IGI,
Backcountry Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor

Steve’s beginnings in aviation were decidedly unusual. Fear of flying on commercial airliners led him to confront the fear and start taking flying lessons in 1997. He had a rocky start, including an accident as a low-time pilot, but this only fueled his determination to learn all he could about flying. He is now a 4500+ hour pilot, a Gold Seal flight instructor, and a dedicated advocate of aviation and aviation safety. Steve also runs SuperCub.Org, a website for Super Cub and backcountry aviation enthusiasts which continues to grow. Steve strongly believes that through proper introduction and education, we can help others understand why backcountry aviation is viable, valuable, safe – and a whole lot of fun.

Emma Kisic
CFI, AGI

Emma is an Arkansas native who grew up in Eureka Springs. Her interest in aviation stemmed from her fascination with the sky at a very young age. Emma fell in love with flying after receiving a discovery flight for her 16th birthday, and after that Emma quickly became an airport rat by never missing an opportunity to be around airplanes. Emma started working at the airport, washing the school fleet and fueling planes as she worked on her ratings before she became one of our instructors. When she’s not instructing, Emma enjoys playing her bass with friends, being outside, climbing, and sketching.

Miles Manning
CFI, CFII

Miles grew up in Fayetteville, where he has resided most of his life. He moved to San Francisco to learn web programming, working as a full-stack web developer before he attended flight school at FlightSafety Academy in Vero Beach, Florida. His interest in aviation came from stories from his great grandfather as a pilot in WWII and as a test pilot in the Army Air Corps. His interests are water and snow sports, shooting sports, and hunting.

 
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Josh Martin
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, AGI,
A&P

Josh became a pilot with the goal of one day serving overseas as a Missionary Pilot, helping those who can’t help themselves. He attended Liberty University and studied Aviation with a concentration in Intercultural Studies, also obtaining his A&P certificate. Before moving to Bentonville, Josh ran an outdoor leadership program in North Carolina. He currently lives in Bentonville with his wife Katie and three children. They enjoy biking, climbing, and spending time in the backyard.

Paul Maxey


ATP, Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI

Paul is the kid that rode his bicycle to the airport and begged for a ride in an airplane. When he finally got that ride, his passion for aviation was ignited. Paul completed his first solo flight at age 17 before training at the University of North Dakota and at the University of Southern California, where he graduated with a degree in Aviation Safety and Security. Although he now has abundant experience flying jets, his most rewarding experiences have been flying general aviation aircraft – instructing students and helping others learn the sheer joy of flying. When he isn’t flying, Paul enjoys camping, fishing, bicycling, and flying RC airplanes.

Matthew Paxton
CFI, CFII

A Bentonville native, Matt enjoys good coffee and mountain biking, and will happily take any opportunity to get up into the sky. He followed his childhood dream of becoming a pilot in Washington state while he was serving as a combat medic for the U.S. Army. He continued his flight training and education in Tulsa, Oklahoma where he got his early experience as a flight instructor. Matt is back in Bentonville with his wife and two daughters to share his passion for aviation and further his professional pilot career.

 

David Puryear
CFI, CFII

Bio coming soon!

Ethan Rushing
CFI, CFII

Bio coming soon!

Abby Scholl
Certificated Flight Instructor

Abby grew up in Northwest Arkansas and originally got involved with aviation when she became a Flight Attendant for the airlines. Her passion for aviation quickly grew from wanting to serve drinks in the back to taking the controls up front. She completed her flight training in Tulsa, Oklahoma at Riverside Flight Center, and she is happy to now be able to share her love for aviation with others in her hometown. Outside of flying she enjoys spending time with friends and family and the outdoors.

 

Calvin Wagoner


CFI, CFII, MEI, IGI

Calvin grew up in Altus, Oklahoma watching C-17s taking off from the nearby U.S. Air Force base, and dreamed of one day flying himself. He decided to take a discovery flight while he was in college, and he never looked back. In his free time, Calvin enjoys hunting, fishing, cooking, and watching the Dodgers.

Kori Wilkinson
Certificated Flight Instructor

Bio coming soon!

Gary Withrow
CFI, CFII, AGI, IGI

Gary relocated to Northwest Arkansas in 1999, with his wife and two children.  Having worked in the corporate world for over 30 years he was introduced to aviation by a colleague on a business trip in 2017; Gary’s wife still blames this colleague for Gary’s obsession with aviation.  One discovery flight later and it was off to flight school right here, where he completed his training.  Gary has been a member of OZ1 flying club since 2018, serves in the Civil Air Patrol in Rogers, and joined the team as a Flight Instructor in 2022. In addition to flying, Gary enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, and scuba diving.

 

Noah Wright


CFI, CFII

Noah grew up in Springdale and got bit by the aviation bug during his senior year of high school. Immediately after graduating he enrolled at Spartan College in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He finished up his flight training in May of 2023 and immediately began instructing. Noah is happy to be back home in NWA where he likes to hike, cook, and spend time with family.