Assistant Chief Instructor
Grounded squarely in the middle of the “Sputnik Kids Generation” of the 1950’s, Chuck was an aircraft nut from the very beginning: He was building models and flying them when he was eight years old, and took his first real plane ride—courtesy of a former WWII pilot who was a friend of his parents—when he was ten. From that point on, flying was all he could think about. Chuck also wanted to be a FORMULA ONE race car driver, but with more artistic talent than driving skill, he opted for a degree in architecture instead. While in college, he earned his pilot’s license and enlisted in the U.S. Navy. Having less than 20/20 vision meant he was ineligible for flight school as a Navy pilot, but he did have the great opportunity to fly as an airborne SONAR operator in the Navy Reserve for six years, chasing Russian Kilo Class subs. Chuck comes to NGAV with fifteen years of experience as a flight instructor. He appreciates the warm feeling of the school, as well as the emphasis on making flight training FUN. In his spare time, he enjoys woodworking, watercolor painting, and remodeling his fixer-upper home in the North Georgia mountains. His bucket list includes flying Crazy Horse, the P51 Mustang based in Lakeland, FL.