Tropicbird Instructors

Our instructors are dedicated FAA Certified Flight Instructors with many years of teaching experience and are familiar with every aspect of island flying.

Chief Instructor Pilot, Mike Lauro is a 30-year veteran pilot. The last 15 of these years were spent full time flight instructing with over 5000 hours flight instruction given.   Mike was awarded the FAA designated Flight Instructor of the Year for Hawaii in 1999.  He has been an island resident for 20 years with 7 years as a commercial tour pilot in Hawaii and a former US Air Force Captain.



Assistant Chief Flight Instructor Jon Dabel

Jon is a passionate flight instructor and a dedicated family man. He learned to fly in Hawaii with us at Tropicbird. Since receiving his wings, he has gained experience flying in California, Oregon, Arizona, and Florida. Now he is right back where he started, doing a fantastic job on staff with Tropicbird! While not instructing, he enjoys spending time with his growing family, who also enjoys flying with him!

© 2007 Tropicbird Flight Service. All rights reserved