John Piekarski cuts Mitch's shirt tail after his first solo. Mitch soloed in N43839 after only 11.2 hours of dual instruction in the aircraft. He acquired his private pilot's certificate in just 39 hours in the airplane and 1.5 hours in the simulator, all in just a month and a half.

John has flown for the U.S Government (Smoke Jumpers, National Fixed Wing Specialist) for 32 years, in all sorts of aircraft including DC3s. He has over 14,000 hours and specializes in IFR proficiency, airline/simulator interview prep, and GPS navigation.