Get to Know Us
Centurion Aviation is the creation of David Finstad. The business is referral generated. Energy is spent mentoring students to help them achieve their goals. He began with a Cessna 150, an unheated hangar, and his car. Now, conveniently located between Milwaukee and Chicago at Racine's Batten International Airport provides: heated hangar, simulator, offices, and a comfortable training environment.
David Finstad
CFI, Founder
With over 50 years of aviation experience, Dave Finstad had his first lesson on his 16th birthday, passed his private pilot check ride in 1969 on his 17th birthday. His interest grew. In 1988 Dave added instrument, and commercial pilot in both single and multi-engine land. To pass this love of aviation on to others, he added CFI in SEL and MEL and instrument ratings. He was also an advanced instrument ground instructor.
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With over 8,000 hours under his belt, many aircraft owners, operators, and former students refer Dave to others as the “go-to” CFI over these years. Because of this, referrals are the common method of gaining new students and clients interested in his expertise. A singularly unique achievement milestone was reached in 2019: He received the prestigious FAA Wright Brothers “Master Pilot” Award for 50 years of accident, incident, and violation free flying. Many of Dave’s students have gone on to the major air-carriers, the US military or other aviation careers.
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“Nothing has thrilled me more than to see a young person advance from being land locked, to seeing them acquire the necessary and the orderly skills to solo and become a licensed pilot!”
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Michael Telwak
Chief CFI
After taking a couple helicopter tours in New Zealand with his wife on their honeymoon, Michael started flying helicopters as a hobby. He obtained a Private Pilot license back in 2016 while living in Chicago. He transitioned to fixed wing after moving to Wisconsin and joining a flying club in 2019. He went on to get an Instrument, Commercial, and CFI/CFII ratings. He became good friends with Dave and enjoyed learning from his years of experience. Michael also occasionally flies skydivers on weekends, though he admittedly would never jump out of a perfectly good airplane. He hopes someday to teach his children how to fly and he takes them up with him every chance he gets.
Michael is currently the Chief CFI at Centurion Aviation and is happy to share his passion of flight with anyone he meets.
Brad Buntrock
CFI, Associate
Brad’s aviation journey began as a teenager in the Civil Air Patrol, where he first experienced the thrill of solo flight under the guidance of his CFI, Larry Stys. Although his career led him into the fire service, his passion for aviation never faded.
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In 2018, Brad reconnected with Larry, the same instructor who had helped him solo years earlier, and earned his private pilot’s license—reigniting his aviation path. Over the next few years, he went on to achieve his Instrument, Commercial, and CFI ratings.
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Today, Brad enjoys sharing his love of flying with others, helping them achieve their aviation goals.
Jessica Behr
CFI, Associate
Jessica has been passionate about aviation since she was young- not just flying itself, but the science and technical precision behind it. That fascination drove her to earn her Private, Instrument, Commercial, and both CFI and CFII ratings- all by the age of 18.
As a flight instructor, she focuses on helping students build real-world skills, sound decision making, and lasting confidence in the cockpit. Her teaching style is flexible and tailored to each students goals, pace, and learning style, whether they're flying for fun or working toward a professional career.
For me, the most rewarding part of instructing is helping a student reach that moment when it all clicks- when they realize “I can really do this.”
Dawn Madeja
CFI, Associate
Dawn is a second-generation pilot who started her aviation journey later in life. She loves flying so much that she completed instrument, commercial, and CFI ratings within the span of a year. She is an active member of the Ninety-Nines and Civil Air Patrol's 10th Support Squadron at Timmerman airport.
Dawn has been a registered nurse since 2011, originally starting out as an ER nurse and now working in the technical specialty of cardiac electrophysiology. She has been a trainer, preceptor, and mentor in her various nursing roles, and has trained colleagues and physicians on cardiac devices.
Whether your goals are to learn to fly for fun or a career, Dawn will happily take you through your ratings. She is available for traditional flight instruction, flight reviews, ground instruction, mock check rides, and discovery flights. Dawn is looking forward to helping you reach your goals, make memories, and have a lot of fun doing it.
Luke Buehler
CFI, Associate
Luke is a Certified Flight Instructor with Centurion Aviation. About 6 years ago, he began his journey in aviation in Minnesota where he obtained his certificates, and flew at a flying club before he began instructing in Wisconsin. After that, he spent a short time flying for a company out of state before accepting a job flying for a company in Wisconsin.
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He lives with his family in the Milwaukee area, and is very happy to be part of the instructing team at Centurion Aviation.
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Looking to learn how to fly? You found the best school for the best price. We are locally owned and operated, and here we get to know you by name. Flying is very much like any other profession, only this time instead of climbing the ladder, you’re climbing an airplane. Want an office in the sky? We are very excited to schedule your very own personalized discovery flight today in one of our aircraft, and we will be very happy to discuss the training process with you. We are looking forward to helping you find your passion in flight. Blue skies and tailwinds!
Larry Stys
CFI, Associate
Larry Stys has known and worked with Dave Finstad for years. This friendship grew in association with Centurion Aviation to provide quality flight training. In 2018, Larry became the recipient of the prestigious FAA Wright Brothers “Master Pilot” Award for 50 years of accident, incident, and violation free flying. He became a CFI and instrument CFI SEL in 1984. He has over 5000 hours of flight time. Larry taught at over 30 solo/pre-solo flight scholarship academies throughout the Mid-West over the last 15 years. Dozens of former students have flown or fly now for the US military and major air-carriers. As a Civil Air Patrol (CAP) member, he logged over 200 Air Force mission sorties ranging from search and rescue and natural disaster assistance, and homeland security.
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“It is incredible to know that young students I once soloed or got them to pass their private pilot check ride now fly for the US Air Force defending our country!”
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Larry is a published aviation writer and has written articles for Mentor magazine (National Association of Flight Instructors) and Contrails magazine (AJ Publications) and the CAP. He has served as adjunct instructor in aviation sciences for Gateway Technical College, Kenosha.
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