About Kate Bernard
Certification
- Commercial Pilot ASEL & AMEL
- Certificated Flight Instructor with Instrument Rating (CFII), single-engine
Experience
- 2,400+ flight hours
- 1,500+ hours flight instruction given
- 65+ aircraft types
- Extensive cross-country experience
Flight and Ground Instruction Specialties
- Primary instruction
- Sport
- Recreational
- Private
- Advanced instruction
- Instrument
- Commercial
- Flight instructor
- Recurrent training
- Flight reviews
- Instrument proficiency checks
- FAA WINGS program
- Transition training
- High performance aircraft endorsements
- Complex aircraft endorsements
- Glass panel avionics
- Avidyne Entegra
- Garmin G1000
- Discovery flights
- Pilot companion ("pinch-hitter") training
- Aerial photography & scenic rides
Kate Bernard is a pilot and flight instructor in northeast Wisconsin. She has been flying since 1998 and instructing since 2005. She currently works for Jet Air Group in Green Bay as a flight instructor.
Kate took her first airplane ride at age 16 in her hometown of Clintonville, Wisconsin. Eager to get involved in aviation, she began volunteering at the EAA museum's Pioneer Airport in Oshkosh soon afterward. That's where she met helpful mentors who fed her passion for flying and set her on track for an aviation career.
 At Pioneer Airport, Kate helped build three RV-6 kitplanes, interacted with visitors, promoted safety on the flight line, and helped care for the aircraft and facilities. She had exciting flying experiences such as touring with the Ford Tri-Motor and getting some "stick time" in the Spirit of St. Louis replica. She volunteered from 1999 to 2001 and served as a full-time paid intern in the summer of 2002.
Kate discovered an interest in the mechanical aspect of aviation while helping build airplanes at Pioneer Airport. In high school, she took a job at an avionics shop to earn money for flight lessons. She has also worked as an aircraft maintenance assistant.
Kate graduated with honors from the University of Dubuque with a bachelor of science degree in flight operations, as well as commercial pilot and flight instructor certificates. Flight instructing has been her main job since moving back to Wisconsin in 2005.
 In 2007, Kate instructed for the organization Able Flight, which provides flight training scholarships for people with disabilities. She taught Sean O'Donnell, who is paralyzed from the chest down, how to fly in a Sky Arrow equipped with hand controls. Sean earned his sport pilot certificate in less than a month. He has since become a spokesman for the organization and helped others with disabilities experience the freedom of flight.
When she is not instructing, Kate flies for fun and works as an on-call corporate pilot for a local company. Her favorite airplane is the G1000-equipped Cessna 182 Turbo Skylane she flies for work, but the simple and fun Ercoupe is a close second. Kate has flown in more than 65 types of general aviation aircraft and traveled throughout the United States.
As someone whose life has been positively influenced by aviation, Kate enjoys helping others pursue their flying goals. Contact Kate for more information about flight training or to schedule a flight lesson.
Kate taking off from Prickett-Grooms airfield in Sidnaw, Michigan in a Cessna 172
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