Meet The Team
Alex Kelley
Owner
CFI, CFII, MEI
Alex grew up in Glen Allen, Virginia and first moved to the Harrisonburg area in 2010 to attend James Madison University. After graduating, he started his flight training. Then in 2015, he came back to Harrisonburg to be a flight instructor at Blue Ridge Aviation. In 2017 he became owner and manager of Blue Ridge Aviation and Charlottesville Flight Center. When Alex isn’t flying he enjoys spending time with his wife, their two kids, two cats, and two dogs
Braxton Via
CFI, CFII
Braxton is from Waynesboro, VA. He joined our team in 2018 as a high school intern and moved his way on up into a multi-faceted aviation career. Braxton was self-motivated and completed all of his training in house with us! He helps customers buy or sell airplanes and is a certified flight instructor. He enjoys spending time with his German Shepard named Maverick.
Harlan Walters
CFI, CFII
Harlan was born in Winston-Salem, NC and grew up in Williamsburg, VA. He enjoys flying and spending time outdoors with family and friends. His grandfather inspired him to embark on an aviation career. He flew 747 for Northwest, and Harlan's first flight was with him in an Aeronca Chief. His grandfather also raced in air shows and was a stunt pilot. Harlan completed all of his training at CFC from new pilot all the way through to certified flight instructor!
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Daniel Carr
CFI, CFII, MEI
Daniel was born in Colorado Springs, CO and lived there until 2017 when he moved to Berkely, CA. He swam collegiately and internationally for five years. After graduating, he got married and embarked on his aviation journey which culminated in them moving to Charlottesville, VA. He was inspired to start flying by both his father and father-in-law, both were pilots.
Sophia Henelius
CFI, CFII
Sophia grew up in Finland then moved to the United States for school. She worked in healthcare and did her flight training with us at CFC! She loves flying and is excited to have the opportunity to teach others!
Abigail Bang
CFI
Abigail grew up in the Shenandoah Valley and started flight training with us over at Blue Ridge Aviation at the age of 15. She completed her first solo just after turning 16 and became a Private Pilot on her 17th birthday! After finishing Instrument and Commercial, she came to CFC to get her CFI rating and we are happy to have her on the team! In addition to flying, she enjoys martial arts, cars, and hiking!
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Quinn Arbogast
CFI
Quinn was born and raised in Harrisonburg,VA. He joined the Navy at 20 years old. After finishing, he traveled the world teaching yoga. Places he traveled include France, Brazil, Costa Rica, Spain, and South Africa. After this, he attended flight school which brought him back home to Virginia where he now is a part of our CFC team.
Zach Dibblee
CFI
Zach grew up right here in Charlottesville, Virginia, and was introduced to aviation at an early age thanks to his parents, both flight attendants with United Airlines. He now works as a Certified Flight Instructor with us at CFC and is passionate about sharing his love for flying with the next generation of pilots. When he’s not instructing, he works at Signature Aviation as a Guest Experience Representative, gaining valuable insight into the industry from the ground up. Beyond aviation, he enjoys traveling and spending time with friends and family.
Marc Cutright
CFI
Marc grew up here in Charlottesville, VA. He was active in the Boy Scouts of America and worked hard to get his Eagle Scout. Marc started flying with us while finishing up his senior year at Monticello High School and completed all of his licenses and ratings with us here at CFC. He enjoys the outdoors and loves flying. When not flying, he spends time with his girlfriend and cat.
Matt Ehlers
CFI, CFII, MEI
Matt was born and raised in Northern Virginia. He attended UVA starting in 2018 and graduated with a degree in Biomedical Engineering in 2022. In 2023 he decided to begin his aviation career and completed all of his pilot ratings up through CFI in six and a half months here at CFC! He is passionate about flying and enthusiastic to have the opportunity to train others! In his spare time, he enjoys skiing and hiking.
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Brandon Galante
CFI
From Charlotte, NC. Served eight years in the Air Force and worked eight years with Air Traffic Control. Overall Aviation Enthusiast. He made aviation a focus after joining the Air Force to become a Controller and decided to see what it was like to be on the other side of the radio! He loves every aspect of both and enjoys every minute he spends in the Aviation world!​
Quinn Walker
CFI
Quinn is from Romeo, Michigan and has lived in Charlottesville for about three years. He started his flight training while still working full-time and finished all of his ratings here with us at CFC. We are fortunate to have him helping us both as a CFI and as an assistant manager in the office. When he isn't flying, he spends time with his wife and dog.
Former instructors
Halsey Green
Former Manager and Flight Instructor for Charlottesville Flight Center. Now a Captain at Mesa Airlines! Continues to have a presence at Charlottesville Airport through the Civil Air Patrol.
Alex Wilay
In April of 2024, Alex reached the next step of his aviation career by being hired by Republic Airlines! His enthusiasm for aviation made him a great member of our team!
Rachel Mackay
Former student who became an instructor with us at Charlottesville Flight Center! She worked for Meridian at Charlottesville before embarking on her career with Frontier Airlines!
Jacob Gimnich
CFI
Jacob grew up in Louisiana and came to Virginia in 2021 to attend Liberty University. He started flight training in 2020 and finished with us here at CFC. He completed his Commercial and CFI in 2024 and is now a part of our instructor team! While flight training, he worked at the airport for Signature Flight Support as a Line Service Technician where he gained valuable aviation experience. He enjoys fishing when he is not up in the air flying!
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Jovaine Atkinson
Jovaine's started his CFI career with us in 2022 where he was able to get his hours needed to make it to the airlines! He had a passion for teaching which helped him to foster the growth of several new pilots!