STAFF

E-mail: fath_heli@yahoo.com

Chad Fath started his helicopter training career over twenty five years ago. Chad was on an EMS ride alone when they had to load a patient onto a Life Flight helicopter. After talking to the pilot and the overall experience of that powerful piece of equipment Chad knew he wanted to become a helicopter pilot and one day fly this amazing machine that fascinated him so much.

A week later, Chad told his parents he found a Helicopter Flight School in California that he wanted to attend. One month later, he hopped on a plane to Concord, CA, and started his training. After eleven hard months of flying and studying Chad took a job based out of Minneapolis, MN, working as a flight instructor with other duties of tours, photos, pipeline, and power line patrol. After about a year, Chad received an offer to fly corporate for a construction company located in Atlanta, GA. There Chad did various flights such as flying the owner to off-airport construction sights, to and from the race tracks where the owner would race, and some flight instructions.

Chad loved all this but missed the enjoyment and self-rewards of flight instruction. Chad then took a job in Fort Meyers, FL, where he would take on responsibilities such as the chief flight instructor and chief pilot of a 135 operation. Here Chad primarily taught people to fly, but also did a lot of passenger transport, photos, tours, alligator counting, and filming of boat races. At this point in time Chad was loving life and his career as a helicopter pilot. Then all hell hit and put fear in all pilots, yes, September 11th. September 11th affected every pilot in some way. With the airspaces closed and not knowing when they would be back up to the general public, Chad went back to Minnesota and waited for everything to calm down again and started to work on his Fixed wing training. Once he completed his training he started looking for a job. After setting up interviews out west Chad hopped in the car and headed out. The first stop, was Las Vegas, NV . Chad interviewed with a couple of companies and took one as a flight instructor. After working there awhile Chad worked his way up to senior flight instructor, tour pilot, charter pilot, and filming for the movies. With various duties ranging from Baja races, VIP charter, Grand Canyon tours, and strip tours, to teaching group ground school to the new students and stage checks with both student and CFI’s.

Chad’s experience contributed to his ideas on what would make the perfect flight school. By working at numerous flight schools throughout his career he found out what really works and what does not. Chad’s goal became to take the best aspects of every school he worked for and some from the schools he attended. In doing so, he came up with a school that is serious and dedicated to transforming you, the student, into a professional and extremely safe pilot.