Nathan Ballard

The National Association of Flight Instructors is proud to announce that NAFI member Nathan Ballard has earned accreditation as a NAFI Master Flight Instructor.

Ballard began flying in 1991 and earned his private, instrument, and commercial certificates and ratings by age 18. After a career in information technology, Ballard became a CFI in 2020 and has been actively teaching ever since. He specializes in training flight instructor applicants.

Ballard is an ATP, CFII, and IGI. He teaches at KLZU and KPDK, northeast of Atlanta, Georgia. He is an FAA Safety Team Lead representative and the safety officer for his flying club.

Ballard enjoys creating safety-related content for his YouTube channel, @NathanBallardSaferFlying. Ballard focuses both his teaching method and video content on “Attacking Aviation from a Critical Angle,” offering thought-provoking aviation concepts and flying practices.

Ballard has presented for NAFI’s MentorLIVE program and was a guest on the More Right Rudder podcast. He was a speaker at the inaugural NAFI Summit on the topic of how CFIs may overcome a student who is locked on the flight controls.

In his spare time, Ballard enjoys backcountry hiking trips with his wife and attending college football games at their kids’ universities.