Darren McPherson

Interview Consultant

Senior Captain Darren McPherson has over 30 years and 18,000 hours of flying experience. He joins us as a highly valuable associate consultant through his business ACS – Aviation Consulting Services.

Starting his career as an aero club boy, Captain McPherson is an great example of what can be achieved through perseverance and dedication. He currently flies the Airbus A330 and A350 aircraft with a major international airline.

We are extremely lucky to have his wealth of knowledge on board here at Learn To Fly. Captain McPherson facilitates our Airline Interview Preparation programs and in just over 2 years has helped more than 100 students to get their first airline job.

Nick Harris

Head of Operations | Grade 1 Instructor

Originally from London, Senior Base Pilot and Grade 1 Flight Instructor Nick Harris has been flying for over 12 years. He tells us that it “seemed like a good idea at the time” to become a pilot, but we think that maybe it had more to do with growing up watching the Concorde take off over his house (um, that’s pretty awesome).

As an instructor, Nick loves seeing how excited students get after their first solo, or after passing their flight test.

He hopes to one day fly a Tiger Moth around Australia – and in fact, he’s actually building one at the moment to do just that!

Jacqui Armstrong

FIR Training Manager | Grade 1 Instructor

Grade 1 Multi-Engine IFR Flight Instructor Jacqui Armstrong has more than 15 years of experience as a pilot. Her career began in 1999 and has seen her fly a range of aircraft in both charter and regional airline roles around Australia.

Jacqui grew up in Melbourne with aviation in her veins, with her father holding a pilot licence. Her grandfather built and flew his own aircraft, which is now on display at the Australian National Aviation Museum at Moorabbin Airport. With a family of her own now, we think there’s a fair chance the tradition may continue!

As a flight instructor, Jacqui loves watching her students’ faces light up when they pass a flight test. Her ideal aviation role is the one that allows her to build her career and spend time with her family. Or the one that allows her to captain the space shuttle into orbit.

Brendan Morgan

Flight examiner | Grade 1 Instructor

Brendan Morgan is a Grade 1 Multi-Engine IFR Flight Instructor and Flight Examiner with Learn To Fly.

He has a wealth of experience in the aviation sector that includes more than 12,500 hours of flying (including flying Pilatus PC12 aircraft for the Royal Flying Doctor Service), and over 6,000 hours instructing.

Ahmed Ibrahim

Safety Manager | Grade 2 Instructor

Grade 2 Multi-Engine IFR Flight Instructor Ahmed Ibrahim has been flying for over 20 years. As a child growing up in Cairo, Egypt, he always wanted to be a pilot and loved looking down at the terrain far below every time he flew.

Ahmed has always enjoyed instructing and teaching throughout his career. 5 years ago he decided to combine his hobby and passion to become a full-time instructor.

As an ultimate pilot career goal, he would love to one day own his own flying school teaching next generation ATPLs and specialising in high-performance aircraft instruction.

Lawrence Byrnes

Grade 1 Instructor

Grade 1 Flight Instructor Lawrie Byrnes has a LOT of aviation experience, having been flying for over 50 years! He grew up in Melbourne and was always fascinated with model aeroplanes as a youngster.

It wasn’t until later on when he was being escorted around Vietnam in C130 Hercules aircraft that he truly realised that the pilot life was his calling. His career has seen him flying for regional airlines and charter in an impressive range of aircraft that includes the Mitsubishi MU-2, Douglas DC3, Cessna Citation, Beechcraft 1900 and Piper PA31 Navajo.

Lawrie loves striving for accuracy in his flying, and after his extensive career, he has turned his attention to Aerobatics, Formation and IFR. We’re thrilled to have such an experienced pilot on board to head up our Formation and Aerobatics Endorsement courses.

Hamish Smillie

Grade 2 Instructor

LTF Grade 2 Flight Instructor Hamish Smillie has been flying for 5 years now and can remember 2 distinct moments in his childhood that drew him to want to fly. The first was watching an F4 Phantom fighter jet screaming into life from 50 feet away at the 1992 Avalon Airshow, and the second was having the amazing experience of being in the cockpit of a Qantas Boeing B747 on approach and landing into Singapore’s Changi Airport!

He loves being able to share his passion with other pilots and as a Flight Instructor, he gains a huge feeling of achievement from being able to mentor students from their very first flight right through to their first solo flight, and eventually their CPL and first aviation job.

Hamish would one day love to be a Check and Training Captain with Qantas on any of their aircraft types.

Shannon Thiele

Grade 1 Instructor

Shannon was born in Sri Lanka and moved to Greymouth on the West Coast of New Zealand at age 10. He always remembers having a love for aviation, but in particular, remembers his interest in “seeing the world from a different perspective” being sparked by an unusual looking Dornier Do 228 aircraft that used to land near his house often.

Following the Christchurch earthquakes he began a plumbing apprenticeship, but soon felt the call of the sky and decided to study for a Bachelors Degree in Aviation. He first flew in a SkyFox Gazelle then transitioned over to train on Diamond aircraft, which he has been flying since 2015.

As a Flight Instructor, Shannon finds it hugely rewarding to watch eager students turn up for their first flight, progress through their training, and eventually transition into their first job in aviation. He’d one day love to become a Check and Training Captain with a major flag-carrying airline.

Cameron Mitchell

RAAus CFI | Grade 1 Instructor

Cameron Mitchell is both our Ra-Aus Chief Flight Instructor for Recreational Aviation, and a Grade 1 Flight Instructor.

Cam was allegedly fairly close to pursuing a career as a Sky Diving Instructor, and we’re glad that he changed his mind to instead teach people how to stay INSIDE the aircraft while it’s flying. His students here at Learn To Fly seem pretty happy about that as well.

Over his 9 year aviation career, Cam has built close to 2,000 hours flying planes (and not jumping out).

Alex Hartkopf

Grade 1 Instructor

Alex Hartkopf has been flying for over 12 years and has amassed close to 3500 flight hours during that time. Growing up in Melbourne, Alex was always fascinated by planes, and that curiosity grew even further when his father took him and his cousin up for a joy flight when he was 7 years old.

He loves the social aspect of working at a flight school and being in an environment where everybody shares the same passion for aviation. Alex hopes to progress his career towards becoming a Flight Examiner, and then one day flying for an airline.

Joshua Best

Training Manager | Grade 2 Instructor

Josh started his flying training at age 16 but was born with aviation in his blood. He remembers flying around the Victorian Gippsland region in Cessna 172s with his grandfather as a small child, as well as regular trips to some of the larger airports to watch the “big planes” coming and going.

As a Flight Instructor, Josh loves the fact that every day there is something different to teach. He’s also a big fan of the fact that typically, every customer or student leaves with a smile on their face after flying.

Whilst Josh would one day love to fly in a domestic passenger transport role, his ultimate goal is to join the Royal Flying Doctor Service.