Meet our Flight Instructors - SunState Aviation Has the Best Flight Instructors in the Industry

Sure, we have great airplanes, a superb flight training syllabus and a training environment that is second-to-none....but....it is our flight instructors that really make the difference. The best in the industry! No joke!

An All-Star cast, SunState Aviation Flight Instructors are mature, experienced professionals with an array of impressive credentials and thousands of hours of flight instruction given. Some of our Flight Instructors have earned the coveted Gold Seal Flight Instructor certificate and some also hold Airline Transport Pilot certificates. Listed below are our instructors with their respective ratings.

Steve Graham

Founder, CEO - Airline Transport Pilot, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, More than 10 years experience providing Accelerated Flight Training.

Steve is the founder and CEO of SunState Aviation. Steve had been providing accelerated flight training as an independent flight instructor for many years and then served as the Chief Flight Instructor for a very large flight school prior to opening SunState Aviation in 2002. Steve hails from Cullman, Alabama.

Ken Crane

Chief Flight Instructor, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, Advanced Ground Instructor, Instrument Ground Instructor, More than 5 years experience.

Ken started his flight training in Van Nuys California at the ripe old age of 14. During the ensuing 3 decades Ken, has flown over 3,000 hours, is an aircraft owner, and has been instructing for more than 5 years.

David Blakney

Senior Flight Instructor, Gold Seal Flight Instructor-Instrument, Advanced Ground Instructor, FAA Safety Team, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, More than 5 years experience.

David, a native of Maine is an Air Force veteran whose career has included management positions in healthcare and the semiconductor industry. Desiring a career change, he pursued aviation full time in 2006, completing his instrument and commercial pilot training right here at SunState Aviation. David has been an aircraft owner and is also an FAA Safety Team member.

"David Blakney was a fantastic instructor who went far beyond what I would have expected of any instructor....I think he takes a great deal of pride not only in the success of his students, but also in working at SunState as demonstrated by his attention to detail."

Nat F.

"I had a wonderful experience at SunState. David was perfect in his job"

Jacques G.

Ryan Sebek

Senior Flight Instructor, Gold Seal Flight Instructor, CFI Training Specialist - Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, Multi Engine Instructor, Advanced Ground Instructor, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, More than 8 years experience.

Ryan was born in Maryland, moved to Jupiter, Florida in 1986 and then finally making St. Cloud his home in 1999. Ryan has an Associates Degree in Computer Science from Palm Beach Community College. He obtained a Bachelors Degree in Aeronautical Science along with his CFI, CFII and MEI instructor ratings from Florida Institute of Technology graduating Magna Cum Laude. Ryan started working for SunState Aviation Flight School in February, 2003 and now has more than 4,000 hours of dual instruction given. His personal interests include automotive mechanics and auto body repair and painting.

"I think the quality of instruction was excellent. Ryan was really top-notch in discipline and continuously raising the bar just high enough to stay challenged without being discouraged. His knowledge is encyclopedic."

Erik K.

Evan Pickle

Gold Seal Flight Instructor, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, More than 5 years experience.

Evan has been flying since the age of 15. He is a Gold Seal Instructor and has over 2,000 hours dual instruction given in many different aircraft. His aviation interests include aerospace mechanical engineering and human factors. Evan lives in the Orlando area with his wife and daughter.

Joe Suarez

Airline Transport Pilot, Gold Seal Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument and Multi Engine Instructor. More than 7000 hours instruction given and more than 28 years experience.

Joe joins Sunstate Aviation with 28 years of flight instruction and aviation education experience and is a Gold Seal flight instructor with ATP, CFIA, CFII and CFI Multi Engine ratings. He has over 7100 hours of instruction given, including over 1000 hours of multi engine instruction given. He earned the Master CFI certification three times from the National Association of Flight Instructors. He was a full Professor of Aviation and taught aviation ground and flight courses at universities in Canada and the United States and has been very active in the University Aviation Association and other aviation organizations. He has been a Pilot Examiner and Part 141 end of course Check Pilot for Private, Instrument, Commercial Multi-Engine and CFI courses.

Originally from Trinidad, he completed his early flight training in England and obtained his Commercial Pilot, instructor certificates and ATP in Canada. His academic qualifications include a Master of Engineering degree and an MBA from the Universities of Toronto and Queens University in Kingston Ontario.

Jeff Sullivan

USAF retired, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, also experienced with Avidyne Entegra cockpit, more than 7 years experience.

Jeff comes to us from Bend Oregon and has been instructing with SunState Aviation since 2004. In 2009, Jeff was promoted to the Chief Flight Instructor position and just prior to that served as one of our Senior Flight Instructors, providing student progress checks.

Jeff has experience giving instruction in many make/model aircraft including Cirrus, Mooney, Piper Saratoga, Bonanza, Cessna 172, 182, 206 just to name a few.

"I just wanted to say that I enjoyed my stay and was impressed with the school. Jeff did a great job instructing me."

Charles C.

Matthew Gallagher

Helicopter Training Specialist, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument-Airplane, Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument-Helicopter, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, more than 5 years experience.

Matthew grew up in Ireland and England where upon graduating with a BA (Hons) in Philosophy he pursued a career as a professional Chartered Accountant working for blue chip multi-national accountancy and banking firms in the United Kingdom and Cayman Islands.

It was while in the Cayman Islands that Matthew decided to embark on a career in aviation. This bought him to central California where he trained for 12 months obtaining the following FAA Licenses. Airplane Land and Sea Single / Mutli Engine Commercial with Instrument Rating. Airplane CFI, CFII and MEI. Helicopter Commercial with Instrument Rating. Helicopter CFI and CFII.

Having obtained his FAA Licenses he then earned and obtained his European JAA (f) ATPL Licenses for both aeroplane and helicopter and his JAA FI rating at training establishments in England, Ireland and Florida.

Outside of aviation Matthew is a keen Scuba diver, holding a PADI open water instructor certificate and is a licensed Realtor^® in the State of Florida.

Terry George

Certified Flight Instructor-Instrument, FITS Trained for Garmin G1000, more than 5 years experience.

Terry is a South Florida native, born and reared in Miami. He is a graduate of the University of Central Oklahoma and a United States Air Force veteran. His professional career includes domestic and international marketing positions with Cessna Aircraft Company, Fairchild Aircraft Corporation and AlliedSignal Air Transport Avionics. Terry and his wife, Marie, make their home in Saint Cloud, Florida.

"...I need to highlight the excellent job done by Terry whose dedication and preoccupation with my training was the recipe for a successful “Check-Ride”. I will never forget that a soft field landing is always a good landing in a C172." Jose G

Michael Brant

Commercial Pilot ASEL/AMEL, Certified Flight Instructor, Instrument Flight Instructor.

Originally from New Jersey, Michael has dreamed about being a pilot since he was 7 years old. A graduate of the University of Louisiana with a BS in Aviation, then later a graduate of Delta Connection Academy, Michael now has more than 4 years of experience as a flight instructor. Michael resides in Sanford, Florida with his wife and son.

Oren Shoshan

SunState Aviation trained CFI.

Oren was bitten by the aviation bug as a young boy, and decided to pursue his dream and make it a career. Oren received most of his flight training at SunState Aviation and now has a passion for passing on what he has learned to others! We are very proud to have Oren as part of our Flight Instructor staff!

What is a Gold Seal Flight Instructor?

The FAA issues the coveted Gold Seal Flight Instructor certificates only to those instructors who give a lot of flight instruction and whose students successfully pass checkrides.

This means you can have a high degree of confidence that the training you are paying for is up to date, accurate, and efficient. Inefficient training is expensive, and having to retake a flight test can cost hundreds of dollars more. At SunState Aviation, you can expect to be given top quality flight training and to pass your check-ride on the first attempt. A Gold Seal CFI certificate is the seal of approval the FAA gives to exceptional instructors.

The SunState Aviation Advantage
We encourage you to shop around, check out other flight schools and see if they measure up. Feel free to use this handy check-list as a guide for comparison purposes.
	SunState Aviation		Flight School _______________
	Yes	No	Yes	No
FAA approved flight training syllabus	X
Standardized curriculum	X
Scenario-based training	X
Computer Based Instruction	X
Experienced, full-time flight instructors	X
One on one style training	X
Progress checks	X
New training aircraft	X
Technically Advanced Aircraft	X
Aircraft maintenance on location	X
Helpful and attentive support staff	X
Complimentary practice exams	X
Written exam on location	X
Practical test on location	X
Accommodations available	X
Pre-paid discounts available	X
Control towered airport environment	X
Multiple instrument approaches on field	X
FAA approved simulator	X
Online scheduling	X
Great weather year 'round	X
Close to international airport/attractions	X
Customized accelerated training programs	X
Old, poorly maintained airplanes		X
Classrooms full of cadets		X
White shirts and epaulets		X
Want all your money up-front		X
Hidden charges / fuel surcharges		X
Questionable and deceptive practices		X

A word about our pricing and rates: SunState Aviation's commitment to you, our students and customers is to provide the highest quality training and aircraft rental possible, combined with the very best possible customer service at the very best prices and hourly rates possible. We do not add fuel surcharges or any other hidden charges to our rental rates (a 7% local sales tax is added to non-instructional aircraft rentals), nor do we falsely inflate our rental rates in order to offer "special cut-rate deals." Our rates are competitive and our block discounts are already as low as we can possibly go. Please do not ask us to depart from our published rates. The prices and rates published on this web-site are the effective rates at the time that you viewed them and are subject to change. Thank you for your understanding.