The Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association recently bestowed flight training awards on flight schools and CFIs across the country, including General Aviation News’ own William E. Dubois.
According to AOPA officials, more than 2,500 reviews of flight schools and flight instructors were received in the 2025 annual survey.
In addition to the regional winners, one school and one instructor from each of six regions were recognized as “the best,” while dozens more schools and instructors were recognized for “distinguished” performance.
GAN’s Dubois was among those who were recognized for distinguished performance for the Eastern region.
The awards program was created to highlight best practices and help the flight training industry focus on what works, according to AOPA officials.
The awards are part of AOPA’s You Can Fly program, which seeks to attract more people to flying and keep them engaged.
The 2025 regional best instructors are:
Central Southern: John Schaffer, Texas Flight, Spring, Texas
Eastern: Madison Nugent, Aviation Adventures, Leesburg, Virginia
Great Lakes: Peg Ballou, Ballou Skies Aviation, Bucyrus, Ohio
Pacific: Mike Smith, Mike Smith Aviation, Napa, California
Southern: Tiziano Bernard, Savannah Aviation, Savannah, Georgia
Western: Jacob Peery, Flight Stars, Leopard Aviation, Scottsdale, Arizona
The 2025 regional best flight schools are:
Central Southern: In the Pattern, Denton, Texas
Eastern: Air Ventures Flying School, Smithfield, Rhode Island
Great Lakes: Ballou Skies Aviation, Bucyrus, Ohio
Pacific: Flex Air, San Diego, California
Southern: Sun City Aviation Academy, Davie, Florida
Western: Chennault Flying Service, North Las Vegas, Nevada
The national winners will be revealed March 5, 2025, at the Redbird Migration in Denver.
For more information and to see a full list of winners, go to AOPA.org.
