The two instructors of the European Pilot Academy, Capt. Nigel Dunkerley and Anatole Vella Gera have successfully passed their ground and flying exams to become Flight Examiners, which allows them to carry out flight exams and issue a Private Pilots Licence under European Joint Aviation Authority issued by the Department of Civil Aviation Malta.
They are the first full time in house Flight Examiners the Academy has ever had. Both Capt. Dunkerley and Anatole Vella Gera demonstrate the Academy’s success in pilot training, as they started their initial training to become private pilots over 10 years ago when the Academy was in its infancy. They climbed the aviation ladder in the years that followed, eventually becoming commercial pilots with flight instructor ratings.
Capt. Dunkerley said, “ I am elated to have achieved my examiner’s rating at this stage in my career as I believe this is a very crucial point in an instructor’s career. I am also happy for the Academy because we have grown together. We have set a bench mark in Malta’s general aviation industry and are now starting to be placed on the map in the central Mediterranean too, as more and more foreign students are starting their training at our Academy ”
Mr Vella Gera said, “I am extremely happy that I got my examiner’s rating, as this is a very important step in my flying career and will now give us much more flexibility with our training curriculum.”
Capt. Dunkerley holds two positions in the academy, one as Operations Manager of the Flight Operation Division and two, the post of Chief Flight Instructor. His experience speaks for itself; he has logged over 3,500 hours, of which 2,500 were spent training student pilots to attain their pilot’s licence. He has flown 15 different types of aircraft in the class ratings held.
He has a lot of firsts to his credit in the Maltese general aviation scene. He was the first Maltese full time flight instructor with EPA to teach in Malta and then the first recognized Maltese JAA approved flight instructor to operate in EPA since Malta joined the JAA. He was also the first Maltese Instructor to undergo a JAA Flight Instructor refresher seminar in the UK, when the company sent him over last year.
To date he is the most experienced general aviation flight instructor in Malta. He also provides an aerial vehicular traffic monitoring report when it is needed.
Anatole Vella Gera holds important positions within EPA, primarily, as a Flight Instructor and also as Aircraft Airworthiness manager. His JAA Flight Instructor Rating, with over 1700 hours of flight time of which 850 hours of flight instruction has made him an experienced local flight instructor flying a total of 12 different types of aircraft within his class ratings.
Mr Vella Gera comes from a technical engineering environment and in 2004 was given the responsibility for flight line and appointed technical operation coordinator, assuring that all aircraft are up to date with the latest maintenance schedules, and in compliance with the latest airworthiness directives. He has experienced flying in various geographical zones mainly in the United States of America, The Pacific and Southern Europe.
Capt. Zarb who is Head of Training and Chief Pilot of the European Pilot Academy as well as the first JAA Ground Examiner in Malta said, “When I established the first flight training academy in Malta 14 years ago, little did I think that the academy would continue to grow and become what it is today. I am very proud that our students today can avail themselves of four in house examiners who will cover all their requirements in the most efficient, professional and cost effective way. The continuous training of our people has paid off and we are now recognised internationally for our professionalism. Proof of this is the ever growing number of foreign students who join our academy.”