The FAA and industry jointly grant a handful of awards for general aviation pursuits each year, and the GA Awards leadership recently announced those they have honored for 2021. The awards for National Flight Instructor, Aviation Technician, and FAASTeam Rep of the Year will be presented at EAA AirVenture at Oshkosh, Wisconsin, in July.
The recipients include: Ronald Jay Timmermans of Orlando, Florida, for 2021 Certificated Flight Instructor of the Year; Michael Colin Dunkley of Coshocton, Ohio, for 2021 Aviation Technician of the Year, and Adam Timothy Magee of Swisher, Iowa, for 2021 FAA Safety Team Representative of the Year.
Timmermans has been an independent instructor since 1998, and he has logged more than 4,000 hours of dual given, with almost 1,300 of those hours flown in the last five years. As a pilot holding certificates that include ATP-AMEL, Commercial-ASEL, CFI-IA, MEI-IA, AGI-Instrument, and Remote Pilot, he specializes in Beechcraft training in the Beechcraft Pilot Proficiency Program (BPPP) and Bonanza/Baron Pilot Training program. He is a NAFI Master CFI and Master Ground Instructor, a Gold Seal Instructor, and an American Bonanza Society (ABS) Master Aviator.
Dunkley spent his early years growing up in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia) and then undergoing an apprenticeship at Air Rhodesia/Air Zimbabwe that led to a full-time job as a technician for the airline. He began work in general aviation maintenance through his support of the Mission Aviation Fellowship, eventually moving to the Democratic Republic of Congo (formerly Zaire) and assuming the role of Director of Maintenance for a large program operating Cessna 185s, 206s, 210s and Caravans. He is currently with MMS Aviation in Coshocton, Ohio.
Magee grew up ballooning under the tutelage of his mother, Elizabeth Magee, who is a lighter-than-air instructor pilot. According to the GA Awards News site, “In 2015, he cofounded The Balloon Training Academy, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to training LTA students and providing continuing education to LTA pilots. Adam serves as president of The Academy and was responsible for creating the non-profit, drafting its bylaws, obtaining 501(c)(3) approval from the IRS, creating its website, creating the content, marketing it to the LTA community, and generally building the organization from the ground up.” He’s a commercial LTA pilot, which includes instructor privileges, and he’s an examiner for private and commercial balloon certifications.
“I am very excited to announce the selection of the National Honorees for the 2021 General Aviation Awards,” said Sandya Narayanswami, board chair for the GA Awards. “These awards highlight the important role played by these individuals in promoting aviation education and flight safety. The awards program sponsors are pleased that these outstanding aviation professionals will receive the recognition they so richly deserve before their peers in Oshkosh.”
