Well-known instructor, aerobatic pilot and general aviation enthusiast Luke Penner is the 2017 David Charles Abramson Memorial (DCAM) Award Flight Instructor Safety Award for his spirited contribution to GA in Manitoba. Janet Keim, an instructor at Mitchinson Flight Centre in Saskatoon, is winner of the Legacy Award for her pioneering leadership as an instructor who started in 1971 when female instructors were rare. Both awards were presented at the Air Transport Association of Canada annual meeting in Montreal in early November.

Penner is the chief flight instructor for Harv’s Air in Steinbach and St. Andrews and he adds some extra knowledge and experience as a Class 1 Aerobatics instructor and top level aerobatics competitor. He encourages all pilots to get at least some aerobatics training to give them the skills to prevent getting into trouble, or, in the worst case, get themselves out of trouble. Keim has trained hundreds of students in her 46 years as an instructor. Penner and Keim received plaques and engraved watches from Hamilton Watches by Brand Manager Thomas Sandrin. The award is given in memory of a young instructor who was killed in a crash caused by an aircraft malfunction.