Meet Our Staff

I learned to fl y as an Air Cadet having gained an enthusiasm for fl ying from my father as a child. I soloed in a glider in 1961 at the age of 16, and gained my PPL on Austers at Luton in 1963.

I served in the RAF from 1962 to 1995 retiring in the rank of Group Captain. In the RAF much of my spare time was spent gliding and flying vintage aircraft. I was an instructor on gliders and motor gliders, and led the first RAF gliding expedition over the Andes from Chile into Argentina in 1995.

I have worked for Marshall of Cambridge since 1996 and still have an unchecked passion for flying! I have competed a large number of long distance flights including in 2000 a Piper Aztec from Cambridge to Seattle in the USA, and in 2005 to the far North of Norway.

I am current on a wide number of aircraft types, including as a company pilot in the Piper Aztec. I have over 8,500 hours on 193 different types in my logbook! I am proud and absolutely delighted to be making a contribution to one of the oldest and the finest Aero Club in the Country!

I first got the flying bug after spending many hours watching aerial crop spraying being carried out on our farm. I’ve been flying since 1985 in numerous aircraft types from single seat homebuilts to multi engined turbo props.

In all those years if there’s one thing I’ve learned, it’s that you never stop learning!

I’m now proud to be running a team of Flying Instructors and admin staff at Cambridge Aero Club, all dedicated to helping others with their learning.

I’ve always wanted to learn to fly. Yet, insanely enough, the closest I came to the aviation industry was as a passenger on a commercial airliner, and then the only “friend” who calmed me down was a – tranquiliser. So confused.

Mine is a different background altogether. I began doing admin after school, but at the ripe old age of 34, I left that world and returned to college/university to study Copywriting, where I conceptualised and created print, radio and TV adverts for various advertising agencies. I enjoyed it until I realised aging thrice as fast as is normal was …abnormal. After emigrating etc., I ended up at Cambridge Aero Club where I do enjoy my job, and I age naturally.

The excellent team I joined continues to guide me well in learning about aviation and the admin related to aircraft and other exciting things.

Our solid team makes the long summer days of flying and admin even more enjoyable and exciting.

Meeting new people from various backgrounds is fantastic and educational for this Capetonian.

CAC is a lovely workplace, and I enjoy the job and the team.

We look forward to seeing you at the club!

I’ve loved aeroplanes from a young age and gained my PPL in 2013. Afterwards, I toured the UK and Europe building experience and flying to some challenging destinations. I now fly the Boeing 737-800 short haul across Europe.

I qualified as a Flight Instructor in 2016 and enjoy passing on what I’ve learned as well as giving students the tools they need to fly safely and make good decisions.

I make learning to fly enjoyable and find it incredibly rewarding to see my students pass their PPL Skills Test.

I am a Class Rating Instructor and Instrument Rating Instructor. I specialise in training for the IMC rating (now the Instrument Rating (restricted)), Competency Based Instrument Rating and glass cockpit (G1000) training for IFR as well as complex conversions.

My wife and I have been flying a Reims Rocket for the last 18 years and have toured around most of Europe and some other parts of the world, so my emphasis is on practical ‘real-world’ flying – mentoring and instructing. I have about 3,300 hours in the air, of which 1,000 are ‘sole instruments.’

I am also a FISO licensee and can sometimes be found in the tower at Duxford, so I do have an appreciation of both sides of the radio!

Therapy dog, bouncer, food quality inspector, moral enforcer, meeter and greeter, bomb sniffer, wildlife controller, nap taker, people pleaser and all round good girl. Dusty is sure to make your visit even more delightful!

*Accepts payment in cuddles and treats.

Catch Dusty on Instagram #dustythedog

I am currently following in the footsteps of my Grandfather, who tested aircraft in the inter-war period, & my Father, who was one of the first pilots to fly jet aircraft with the Fleet Air Arm, in becoming a pilot.

I always wanted to have the chance to fly & become a pilot due to the sense of freedom & excitement I have always felt whilst in the air, whether in small aircraft in Europe, Africa & South America or in Jumbo Jets heading abroad. As a result of my desire to become a pilot, and my love of aviation, I was accepted into flight training at Oxford Aviation Academy & graduated having successfully achieved a CPL ME/IR through an “ab initio” course.

After Oxford I completed a flight instructor course at Cranfield Flying School which enables me to pass on my knowledge & passion for aviation to the customers of Cambridge Aero Club.

I always dreamt of flying and my aviation ‘career’ started as an air cadet followed by going ‘solo’ in a glider in 2001, aged 16. Like many, university and work quickly got in the way but I managed to return to aviation and gained my pilot’s licence in 2011.

I have served in the British Army since 2003 and hold the rank of Major. I have deployed on operations to Afghanistan and across the Middle Eastand more recently provided support to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Keen to share my passion for aviation with others, I qualified as a flying instructor in 2021. I also hold a Commercial Pilots Licence and I am in the process of gaining a Multi-Engine Instrument Rating. I am particularly passionate about flying vintage and tailwheel aircraft with the majority of my flying hours on tailwheel types. When not instructing I will likely be found flying my 1943 Piper L-4H Grasshopper or aerotowing gliders in a Piper Pawnee!

I feel privileged to have joined the great team at Cambridge Aero Club and look forward to helping you achieve your dream!

New to the Cambridge Aero Club Instructor team

*More info coming soon*

**More about James coming soon!**

The ‘flying bug’ hit me at the age of 6, when my mother who was BA cabin crew at the time, gave me the opportunity to sit in the flight deck of a 747-400 en-route to Australia.

From that moment on, I was hooked. At the age of 21, I went on to train for my Commercial Pilots Licence and flew all over Florida and the UK.

After obtaining my Instructor qualification at Southend, I have taught in Southend, Blackbushe and various locations in Scotland, while admiring some stunning aerial views of mountains and Lochs.

Instructing at Cambridge Aero Club is incredibly rewarding.  Whether I’m teaching you to land a plane all by yourself, breaking through the cloud on an ILS approach, or enjoying the sunset while hanging inverted in the Extra 200 – you can guarantee that I will always be doing so with a smile.

I look forward to meeting you at Cambridge Aero Club, and teaching you a new and exciting skill.

I learnt to fly as a National Serviceman in the RAF and quickly realized that flying was my ideal career and signed on for a permanent commission eventually serving 20 years in the RAF, mainly as a Cold War fighter pilot.

On leaving the RAF in 1974, I joined Marshalls as a test pilot and flying instructor.

After 12 years in Cambridge, I left to join Mission Aviation Fellowship and worked mainly in Nairobi for the next twelve years flying throughout central Africa.

When I left MAF and returned to Cambridge, the Aero Club were kind enough to take me on as a freelance instructor which I have now been doing for the last 15 years.

You may have worked out that I am now quite old but still enjoy introducing people to aviation. I like the friendly atmosphere in the club and hope to continue for a few more years.

I grew up at Royal Lochnagar Distillery in the Cairngorms, frequently attending airshows which led to a lifelong passion for aviation. I passed my PPL at Cleveland Flying School when I was seventeen, and was an active member of the University Air Squadron at RAF Leuchars.

I went on to obtain my Flight Instructor Rating in 2011 and take immense satisfaction in seeing my students gain their PPL. Now I primarily work with Titan Aviation flying their A320s full of passengers but can also be found at the Club a couple of days a week keeping my hand in with the Cessna172s!

When not flying, you can find me on the judo mat taking part in my other passion which I have been practising since five years old.

I was brought up on stories of flying from my grandfather who flew for Aden airways in the 50’s and 60’s and frequent visits to airshows at Shuttleworth and Duxford.

I gained my PPL at Cambridge Aero Club in the year 2000 expecting it would fully satisfy my desire to fly. It didn’t! After 3 years of flying with a PPL I quit my comfortable life as the Director of Training with a software company and completed my Commercial Licence (CPL/IR) in 2006. With 15 years as an Instructional Designer and Trainer, a flight instructors rating was a natural progression in my flying career. I started work as a part-time Instructor with Cambridge Aero Club, whilst spending the rest of my working time consulting & training within the IT sector.

I can be found at the Aero Club indulging my passion for excellence both in training and flying.

I had my first flying lesson in a Chipmunk as an air cadet when I was 16 years old and since then I knew all I wanted to do was become a pilot. I began lessons in earnest in 2004 whilst studying for my MSc in Safety Assessment and Aeronautics at Cranfield University and as soon as I completed my flight training, I became a flying instructor.

I have flown for numerous other operators since then, including the National Flying Laboratory Centre, flying the Jetstream 31 for Flight Test Courses and flying for a private owner on the King Air, but I have always been a flying instructor throughout and no matter what other type of flying or work that I do, there will always be time to instruct. I particularly love doing trial lessons and to see a student’s face for the first time when I hand over control of the aircraft!

Cambridge Aero Club is such a great place to be and I love the atmosphere and support that is provided to students, I feel privileged to be a part of such a great team.

From an early age I always had a fascination for how things work and gravitated towards maths and physics at school which quickly developed into a curiosity for flying. I first began my flight training in 2015 as part of my Aviation Engineering degree at Brunel University, London. From there I fell in love with the peacefulness of being in the air, and flying all over the UK, Europe and Australia.

After I finished my degree I started my commercial airline training, part of which included being a student at Cambridge Aero Club flight school. Two years and one pandemic later I gained my commercial licence as well as a full instrument and multi-engine rating. I then went on to get my instructor qualification and have enjoy teaching at CAC ever since.

After spending so much time in education I have experienced many different instructors/lecturers. I believe I have picked out the best qualities of these teachers and enjoy using my experience to teach others to achieve their dreams of flying.

(I also have a very friendly and fluffy co-pilot companion that loves treats and a good belly rub)

*Watch this space for more coming soon!*

I have come from a completely different background as a sculptor. I am a practising bronze caster by trade and I like to think my creative and practical thinking stands me in good stead for my role here on reception.

Every day is different here and there is always more to learn about aviation!  I love being part of such a varied and enthusiastic team and enjoy the challenges each day brings! Its always interesting meeting people from all walks of life doing what they love!

Looking forward to welcoming you to the club!

I joined the team in June 2019. Coming from the Hotel & Spa industry, aviation is a whole new world to me!

I’m still very much on my learning journey but with every day being different from the last, I’m continuously learning something new. It’s fascinating meeting such a diverse range of people and I enjoy being part of a team that are so kind and have made me feel very welcome.

I look forward to meeting you and welcoming you to the Aero Club!

My interest in flying came from my Dad who, when we were kids, bundled us off to airshows most weekends during Summers. Air Cadets followed and I had my first taste of flying, and aerobatics in the Chipmunk.

As soon as I could I learned to fly, and once qualified,  joined a group operating Tiger Moths. I have been privileged to fly these vintage machines for almost 30 years, enjoying the thrill of open cockpit flying, listening to the whistle of the air though the flying wires.

Aerobatics and later formation flying followed, both of these bringing never ending challenges, as there is always something new to learn and improve.

For many years I fitted my flying hobby around a day job that took me all over the world and have flown light aircraft above the beaches of Mumbai and between the skyscrapers of Dubai.

Now retired, I work at the Aero Club as an administrator one or two days a week and have also qualified as a class rating instructor providing aerobatic training on the Extra 200.