Instructors — Thaden Field

“Our flight instructors are more than just teachers – they’re valuable members of the family. ”

Luke Brown
CFI, CFII

Luke grew up in the Atlanta area. He’s always had an interest in aviation, but his journey was kickstarted during a trip to Seattle. After watching a hundred seaplanes landing off the coast and commenting a hundred times to his wife on how that seemed like the best job one could have, the decision was made to leave his career in hotel management and start the necessary steps to become a pilot. He began his flight training with ATP in Chicago, and later finished his training here and joined the team. Luke’s future plans are to continue to build time and add ratings, and eventually retire with a fleet of seaplanes on a nice warm beach. Outside of being an instructor, Luke is a husband and is a father to two beautiful girls. He is quite the foodie and enjoys traveling and being out in nature.

Katrina Newman
Chief Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII

Katrina grew up in "the sticks" of Southwest Missouri. She was 8 years old and flying as a passenger on her first commercial flight when her airplane got caught in severe turbulence. Passengers were scared but, to her parents' horror, Katrina thought the turbulence was fun and giggled throughout the flight. After this experience, her family encouraged her growing passion for aviation. Kat started training in high school and trained with various flight schools until finishing her CFI training. Outside of being a CFI, Kat is an artist, most commonly commissioned to paint with acrylic. When she isn’t painting or flying, she enjoys hiking with her two dogs and traveling with her family.

Michael Bennett
Chief Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII

Michael is an Arkansas native who grew up in Fayetteville. He graduated from John Brown University with a degree in Business, but fell in love with aviation after taking a discovery flight. Knowing that flying was for him, he started working on his Private Pilot Certificate and soon changed careers to aviation. He did all of his training here at Thaden Field and now also instructs with us! When he isn't flying, Michael loves traveling, adventures and seeing new places. He also loves racquet sports, hiking, piano, kayaking, skiing, and good food.

Brett Dance
CFI, CFII, Tailwheel Instructor

Chip Gibbons
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, IGI Backcountry Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor

Chip is an Arkansas native and a long time Northwest Arkansas resident. He learned to fly at the Springdale airport while he was in high school, then with encouragement from his father and father-in-law began building time in earnest several years later. Chip is an FAA FAASTeam member and his current flying passion is backcountry aviation.

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Steve Johnson
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI, IGI, Backcountry Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor

Steve’s beginnings in aviation were decidedly unusual. Fear of flying on commercial airliners led him to confront the fear and start taking flying lessons in 1997. He had a rocky start, including an accident as a low-time pilot, but this only fueled his determination to learn all he could about flying. He is now a 6500+ hour pilot, a Gold Seal flight instructor, and a dedicated advocate of aviation and aviation safety. Steve also runs SuperCub.Org, a website for Super Cub and backcountry aviation enthusiasts which continues to grow. Steve strongly believes that through proper introduction and education, we can help others understand why backcountry aviation is viable, valuable, safe – and a whole lot of fun.

Emma Kisic
CFI, CFII, AGI

Emma is an Arkansas native who grew up in Eureka Springs. Her interest in aviation stemmed from her fascination with the sky at a very young age. Emma fell in love with flying after receiving a discovery flight for her 16th birthday, and after that Emma quickly became an airport rat by never missing an opportunity to be around airplanes. Emma started working at the airport, washing the school fleet and fueling planes as she worked on her ratings before she became one of our instructors. When she’s not instructing, Emma enjoys playing her bass with friends, being outside, climbing, and sketching.

Miles Manning
CFI, CFII

Miles grew up in Fayetteville, where he has resided most of his life. He moved to San Francisco to learn web programming, working as a full-stack web developer before he attended flight school at FlightSafety Academy in Vero Beach, Florida. His interest in aviation came from stories from his great grandfather as a pilot in WWII and as a test pilot in the Army Air Corps. His interests are water and snow sports, shooting sports, and hunting.

Josh Martin
Gold Seal CFI, CFII, AGI,
A&P

Josh became a pilot with the goal of one day serving overseas as a Missionary Pilot, helping those who can’t help themselves. He attended Liberty University and studied Aviation with a concentration in Intercultural Studies, also obtaining his A&P certificate. Before moving to Bentonville, Josh ran an outdoor leadership program in North Carolina. He currently lives in Bentonville with his wife Katie and three children. They enjoy biking, climbing, and spending time in the backyard.

Paul Maxey
ATP, Gold Seal CFI, CFII, MEI, AGI

Paul is the kid that rode his bicycle to the airport and begged for a ride in an airplane. When he finally got that ride, his passion for aviation was ignited. Paul completed his first solo flight at age 17 before training at the University of North Dakota and at the University of Southern California, where he graduated with a degree in Aviation Safety and Security. Although he now has abundant experience flying jets, his most rewarding experiences have been flying general aviation aircraft – instructing students and helping others learn the sheer joy of flying. When he isn’t flying, Paul enjoys camping, fishing, bicycling, and flying RC airplanes.

David Puryear
CFI, CFII

David grew up in Jonesboro, Arkansas where he heard stories from his grandfather about flying F4's for the Marines. David took his first flight at 17 and decided then that he wanted to continue flying for the rest of his life. He got his Private just after he finished high school, and then started up training again here at Thaden Field once he graduated from the University of Arkansas (Woo Pig!). David also enjoys pickleball, disc golf, water/snow skiing, and traveling!

Alex Ranson
CFI, CFII, MEI

After serving as an infantryman in the U.S. Army for five years, Alex decided to pursue his childhood dream of becoming a pilot. He is currently enrolled at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University Worldwide and will graduate in 2024 with a B.S. in Aeronautics. Alex received all of his primary flight training here in Bentonville. Beyond aviation, he enjoys snowboarding, rifle and pistol marksmanship, and spending time with family. Alex, his wife, and their two dogs are excited to be part of the Northwest Arkansas community, where he aims to share his love for aviation and fly any chance he gets.

Abby Scholl
Certified Flight Instructor

Abby grew up in Northwest Arkansas and originally got involved with aviation when she became a Flight Attendant for the airlines. Her passion for aviation quickly grew from wanting to serve drinks in the back to taking the controls up front. She completed her flight training in Tulsa, Oklahoma at Riverside Flight Center, and she is happy to now be able to share her love for aviation with others in her hometown. Outside of flying she enjoys spending time with friends and family and the outdoors.

Phillip Sneed
Certificated Flight Instructor, Tailwheel Instructor, A&P Mechanic

Phillip is no only a tailwheel instructor, but also one of the aircraft mechanics at Thaden Field. He started flying at a young age, soloed on his 16th birthday and received my pilot certificate the same day as his father. He received his A&P certificate anticipating going to the mission field. Phillip thinks tailwheel flying is the best type of flying there is! It’s both extremely rewarding, challenging, and just simply fun.

Kori Wilkinson
Certificated Flight Instructor

Kori started her aviation journey as a flight attendant in San Francisco. She is glad to be back in Arkansas sharing her passion for aviation with others. When she isn’t flying, you’ll most likely find her exploring the Ozarks with her bulldog, Festus.

Gary Withrow
CFI, CFII, AGI, IGI

Gary relocated to Northwest Arkansas in 1999, with his wife and two children. Having worked in the corporate world for over 30 years he was introduced to aviation by a colleague on a business trip in 2017; Gary’s wife still blames this colleague for Gary’s obsession with aviation. One discovery flight later and it was off to flight school right here, where he completed his training. Gary has been a member of FLY OZ Club (formerly OZ1 Flying Club) since 2018, serves in the Civil Air Patrol in Rogers, and joined the team as a Flight Instructor in 2022. In addition to flying, Gary enjoys spending time with his family, traveling, and scuba diving.

Noah Wright
CFI, CFII

Noah grew up in Springdale and got bit by the aviation bug during his senior year of high school. Soon after graduating he enrolled at Spartan College in Tulsa, Oklahoma. He finished up his flight training in May of 2023 and immediately began instructing. Noah is happy to be back home in NWA where he likes to hike, cook, and spend time with family.

Ethan Rushing
CFI, CFII

Ethan Rushing was born and raised in Pampa, Texas. After high school he went to college in Dodge City, Kansas where he was a hammer & weight thrower on the Track and Field team. Realizing he couldn’t sit in a classroom for another day he decided to chase after his dream of becoming a pilot. He moved to Kansas City for flight training and after grabbing dinner at Louise on a cross country training flight he knew he wanted to work here. Ethan’s hobbies include hunting, fishing, snowboarding, and flying into the grass strips around NWA.

McKenzie Moser
CFI

Mckenzie is a NWA native who grew up around aviation and has been fascinated with it for as long as she can remember. As a 5th generation pilot Mckenzie was behind the controls at a very early age. She completed her private training in Bentonville, and after graduating high school she completed her remaining training in Kansas City.

Pedro Cavallet
Certified Flight Instructor

Pedro grew up in Curitiba, Brazil, and moved here to Northwest Arkansas in 2022. He began flying in 2014 when his dad encouraged him to take a discovery flight at the age of 18, and hasn't stopped since. Pedro graduated from the Pontifical Catholic University of Rio Grande do Sul with a Bachelor's in Aeronautical Sciences, and became a Flight Instructor in 2019. He was a part-time flight instructor and contract pilot until he got a full time job as a private corporate pilot, before moving to America. Pedro likes to spend his time off camping with his wife Julianna and fishing, and has grown fond of flying into backcountry strips all around Arkansas.

Parker Cantrell
Certified Flight Instructor

Parker's fascination for aviation sparked hearing stories from his grandpa who flew B-17s in WWII. At a young age, he began working at Thaden fueling, marshaling, and cleaning airplanes. Being around airplanes fueled his passion to begin flight training and he has never looked back. Parker has enthusiasm for entrepreneurship, graduating from The University of Arkansas with a degree in Entrepreneurship and Innovation. When Parker is not flying, you will find him bringing vintage motorcycles back to life and working on cars. Parker also enjoys spending time with friends and family.