We asked our flight instructor Emin Jakupovic, CFI, CFII, about his experience and why he loves flying. Read more below!
Q: How did you get into flying?
A: I got into flying through a college tour, they were showing us the campus and when we got to the aviation building, they let some students go out on discovery flights and that was the first time I got to fly and I immediately fell in love with it.
Q: What do you think is important when choosing a flight school?
A: I feel that when a student is choosing a flight school it’s important to learn about the success of the students and how well they do, as well as learning about the aircraft availability and safety precautions that the flight school has in place. I feel that a great flight school will always prioritize safety and make that standard known to their students.
Q: What do you like most about being an instructor?
A: My favorite part of instructing is watching students’ progress. I love seeing that “Aha” moment when everything starts to click.
Q: What is your most memorable flying experience?
A: My most memorable flight experience would have to be signing off my first student for their first solo. It was great to see a student who I started from the beginning of their flying career make a huge step and get to solo. That student is currently working on their commercial certificate and it’s great to know that I have made a great impact on their flying career.
Q: What advice would you give students?
A: My biggest advice and guidance to a student would be to seek out as much knowledge and information as they can and to self-study whenever they get the time. A great instructor can take you so far, but a lot of the knowledge and success of the student really comes down to the student. When a student is self-studying their progress is rapidly accelerated and they have an easier time in their flying career.
Q: What advice would you give individuals interested in instructing?
A: I think anyone who is interested in instructing should pursue it! You learn so much about yourself and your personal ground and flying knowledge will keep growing as expanding as you work more and more.
Q: What’s next for you?
A: Currently I am not sure where my flying will take me. I know I really like teaching and instructing, and I would love to become a DPE one day. I know the journey to get there will be a long one, but I am excited to be on that path.
Q: If you could fly anywhere, where would it be?
A: If I could fly anywhere, I would love to fly a seaplane to some of the islands in the Caribbean and get to beach the plane and explore. I would also love to get to land and fly into Paro airport in Bhutan, it’s been one of the countries on my bucket list to visit and notoriously one of the hardest airports to land at and I would love to try and give it a go.
