OUR FLIGHT INSTRUCTORS
Who We Are
Jason M. Jeffery - Owner
Airline Transport Pilot, CFI CFII MEI
Experience: Jason has been flying since 2008 and instructing since 2012. He's earned his Gold Seal on his flight instructor certificate for his high first-time pass rate for all his students.
Hobbies: Playing guitar, snowboarding, fishing & hunting, outdoor sports, shooting, recreational flying, and cooking.
Michael Ha
Commercial Pilot (Land & Sea), CFI CFII
Experience: Michael has been flying since 2009. With extensive flight instructor experience under part 141 and 61, Michael specializes in international students and accelerated training courses.
Hobbies: Outdoor activities, sound engineering, traveling, fantasy sports.
Kevin Pryor
CFI
Experience: Native to the LA area, Kevin has been flying since 2016. He fell in love with flying after his intro flight which ignited his passion for aviation. As a flight instructor, he is looking forward to passing on his knowledge to his students.
Hobbies: Golfing, gaming, wake boarding, snow boarding, playing cards, being at the beach, and exercising.
Luke Lauriano
CFI
Experience: Luke was born and raised here in Long Beach California, and he has been flying since March of 2018. He has a bachelor’s in Business-Finance from Cal State University of Long Beach, but he decided to stray away from the field of finance and accounting to pursue a dream of becoming an airline pilot. As a flight instructor, he has a passion for teaching students how to become safe and competent pilots.
Hobbies: Golfing, basketball, surfing, snowboarding, video games, board games, exercising, traveling, reading, and writing.
Amanda Villapudua
CFI
Experience: Meet Amanda. Flight attendant turned pilot. Amanda began her training in 2020 and has completed her entire pilot training from Private to CFI at Pacific Air Flight School. Having flown for a major airline and accumulated a wealth of real-world aviation knowledge, Amanda hopes to share her expertise with aspiring aviators.
Hobbies: Dancing, reading, traveling.
Eric Ramos Cervantes
CFI, CFII
Experience: Eric started flying in 2017 but his passion for flying came from a young age when his dad would take him to airshow's and watch planes take off at John Wayne. He takes pride in his students, teaching them all aspects of flying to make them safe responsible pilots. It's not about how many pilots, "The engine is the heart of the plane. But the pilot is the soul."
Hobbies: Loves paintball, video games, shooting, mountain biking, hiking, car cruises.
Brandon Hoff
CFI, CFII
Experience: I used to work in the telecommunications industry but my true passion was aviation. I started flying in 2019 and pride myself in teaching my students how to be safe and capable pilots.
Hobbies: Camping, road trips, shooting, cooking, archery, wrestling, board games
Evan Phillips
CFI, CFII
Experience: Evan’s passion for aviation started when he was young, growing up near Seattle, Washington into a family of pilots and watching the Blue Angels perform each summer. After graduating from the University of Denver with a Bachelor of Science in Business – Finance he went on to work in the aviation sector. After working closely with jet engines and airlines, Evan decided to pursue a career as a pilot, starting his training in 2021. Now a CFI and CFII, Evan looks forward to sharing his passion for flying with the next wave of aviators.
Hobbies: Playing hockey, camping, running, swimming, skiing/snowboarding, cooking, and traveling.
Blake Snyder
CFI
Experience: Blake started his flying journey in 2020 by pursuing a college degree in aviation and received his Bachelor of Science in Professional Flight. He did most of his training in Texas and enjoys the art of flying. Being local to Southern California, and now as an instructor, he wants to share his passion for flying with his students and teach them not only to be safe, but skilled and competent pilots.
Hobbies: Playing guitar, video games, hockey
Blake Phillips
CFI, CFII
Experience: Blake has lived in California all of his life and started flying in 2021. He completed all of his training here at Pacific Air. His love of aviation and flying came from his grandfather who was a test engineer on the Northrop B-2 Spirit program. As a flight instructor, Blake enjoys teaching his students how to become the best pilots they can by use of real world experience and challenging environments.
Hobbies: Video games, Motorsports, working on cars, shooting, computer building
Jackie Peterson
CFI
Experience: Jackie took to the skies at 17 years old and obtained her private pilot certificate in high school. She then earned academic & athletic scholarships to study at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, where she received a B.S. in Aeronautics with minors in Aviation Business Administration, Aeronautical Studies, and Spanish. She graduated #1 in her class as the Chancellor’s Award Recipient, Graduating Class Speaker, and Summa Cum Laude.
Hobbies: Soccer, Crossfit, Pickleball, Balloon Art, Board Games, Mexico Poverty Relief Trips
Xavier Hassard-Johnson
CFI, CFII
Experience: Xavier started flying in 2022 at pacific air flight school. His father was a Fedex captain and mother was a flight attendant so aviation has always been in his life. Now a CFI and CFII Xavier loves sharing his passion of flying with our future aviators.
Hobbies: Soccer, surfing, golfing, running, traveling
Nathan Matt
CFI, CFII
Experience: Nathan started flying in 2023. His love of aviation started the moment he took his first discovery flight over Lake Pend Oreille in Sandpoint, Idaho. He received his private pilot's license in Idaho before moving to Long Beach to attend ATP flight school. He is currently building hours towards his dream of flying a Gulfstream G700. Nathan takes a practical, no-nonsense approach to flight instruction: he starts with each student’s current knowledge base and methodically builds on it, adding new skills and techniques flight after flight.
Hobbies: Soccer, Surfing, Rock Climbing, Working Out, and Cars
