Camarillo flight school specializes in training foreign students

Andrea Bortolon knew opening a flight school was going to be a challenge, but when he decided to start one at the Camarillo Airport and train students from India, the Middle East and Europe, a whole new set of obstacles arose.
There are the twice-a-year checks by the Transportation Security Administration, the long wait for students to get visas and the occasional suspicious eye from people wanting to know why, in a post-Sept. 11 world, Middle Eastern-looking people are here learning to fly planes.
“It’s really hard, because everyone is a sheriff now,” said Bortolon, 41, co-owner of Aviation Pacific Inc.
But since opening for business in 2005, his experience has been good running one of the roughly 100 U.S. flight schools that train foreigners — until Thursday’s tragedy. One of Bortolon’s planes crashed in Ojai, killing the teacher and a new student who had come from a small village in India to learn to fly.
Amit Ahire, 19, was one of more than 100 students at Bortolon’s school, which specializes in serving students from India. It was Ahire’s fifth flight in what would have been a year-long program, and on Thursday he was studying how to make an emergency landing and other procedures. The cause of the crash was still under investigation.
After their time in Ventura County skies, most of Bortolon’s students return to their native countries to work on commercial planes, rescue helicopters or other jobs.
Getting a license in the United States vs. overseas has many benefits, said Bortolon, who splits his time between Oxnard and his native Italy. Getting a pilot’s license in Europe can cost up to $120,000 but only about $40,000 here. English is the language of the skies, so learning in an English-speaking country is a plus. His school also teaches certification for a European pilot’s license, and California’s mild climate allows students to fly almost all the time.
“The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration pilot certifications are well-respected throughout the world,” said Jason Blair, executive director of the National Association of Flight Instructors.
But those who want to teach foreigners have a lot more hurdles, Blair said. Ever since the hijackers responsible for the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks learned to fly at American flight schools, security has been ramped up. Many schools gave up training foreigners because of all the paperwork, Blair said.
Twice a year, the TSA checks on the long list of records that companies keep on their students. Schools that only teach U.S. citizens get checked once a year.
On Friday the students, who like Ahire had come here to make a career in the skies, were on the ground mourning their friend.
11/10/09 Ventura Cointy Star, Ca, USA