Meet the team

Patrick Scanlon is not your average shade tree mechanic turned flight school owner! When he could no longer deny his love for aviation he retired from a successful career as a construction operations manager and began flight instructing at Gnoss Field in 2002.

In 2005 he trained at the Cirrus factory in Duluth, MN and became a Cirrus Standardized Instructor Pilot (CSIP) eventually earning Platinum status with Cirrus.

Then in 2006 Patrick took the same passion and drive that made him successful in the world of building construction and founded Scanlon Aviation, LLC.

After earning a Part 135 Air Carrier certificate from the FAA, in 2007 Patrick started doing air charter service with his first Cirrus SR22. It was up, up and away after that, and the next year Patrick took delivery of a second Cirrus that he began using for flight instruction and as a rental aircraft.

This successful progression and Patrick’s emphasis on the business and personal side of aviation attracted the attention of the Cirrus home office because shortly thereafter Scanlon Aviation was invited by Cirrus Design to become a Cirrus Standardized Training Center.

That led to Patrick hiring his first employee to start the Scanlon Aviation Team.

Unhappy with the maintenance he was able to find led him to open his own maintenance shop in 2010 and hire Ken Robbins to run it as Director of Maintenance; thus birthed the Scanlon Aviation Maintenance Facility.

Soon after the start of maintenance operations, Scanlon Aviation became a Authorized Cirrus Service Center and, as we say, “the rest is history,” of which we strive to make you a part!

Robert got the flying bug early but had to wait until a bit later in life, when both time and money finally came together, to start acquiring ratings, certificates, and building flight time.

He currently holds an ATP Certificate with single and multiengine airplane ratings as well as type ratings in 3 different jet aircraft including the Cirrus SF-50 Vision Jet.

After several stints as a Flight Instructor and Chief Pilot at various Part 61 and Part 141 schools and academies in Florida and California, he decided to see what the elusive airline pilot world was all about so in 2016 applied to and was hired by Express Jet/SkyWest as a First Officer on the EMB-145 and ERJ-175.

But as always seems the case, life had other plans; having to commute from the West Coast, living in a crash pad with roommates, and trying to meet the demands of family and increasingly elderly parents it became clear that being closer to home would be a necessity. He returned to Scanlon Aviation in 2018 as Chief Flight Instructor

Robert is married and lives in Novato with his wife, mother in-law, a large white Samoyed named Loki and occasionally 2 twenty something sons who are both attending college in Southern California.

Tim joined Scanlon Aviation in 2019 with a commercial ticket and a CFI with an instrument add on. He currently teaches in both the Cirrus and Cessna aircraft, is a self- described “avid aviation enthusiast” and has logged over 1500 hours since learning to fly in 2009.

He co-owns and flies a 2003 Vans RV6-A that is based in Petaluma. He retired recently after a 30+ year career developing and delivering technology solutions within the health care field.

Tim’s the kind of guy who’s handy to have along with you in case something breaks or goes wrong since he has a “love of all things mechanical” having done a little bit of everything; carpenter, electrician, gardener and automotive technician.

Like many pilots he likes to go fast! In addition to tinkering with aircraft and aircraft avionics, he has restored antique motorcycles, has built and raced go-carts and motorcycles, and restored several old houses.

One of the reasons he loves flight instructing is that he gets to share the joy of flight with others…

Rick has a global reputation for aviation safety focused on the fleet of Cirrus aircraft. He brings safety insights to Scanlon Aviation in support of flight operations, simulator training, and pilot instruction.

Rick has over 3700 hours flying his SR22 all across the USA and into Canada and the Bahamas, enjoying the Cirrus Life experience for over 20 years. His interest in aviation safety began when pilots in early Cirrus fatal accidents did not utilize the Cirrus Airframe Parachute System (CAPS). Why not? That led to an effort to document Cirrus accident history and promote training interventions that enhanced safe flying. He has participated in several NTSB investigations promoting human factors and operational issues. His influence on Cirrus Approach training materials and curriculum is recognized for the improvement in fewer fatal accidents and more survivors from CAPS deployments. COPA recognized Rick’s safety efforts with their inaugural Lifetime Achievement Award in 2022.

Rick lives in Novato and jokes that he is close enough to walk to work!

Mandy is the newest instructor on the Scanlon Aviation team. She began her aviation journey at Scanlon and progressed through private, instrument, commercial and CFI checkrides.

Mandy Boyd grew up in Iowa flying around the Midwest in her Dad’s Piper Lance. She loves to fly. Flying brings freedom, fun & family/friends together. Mandy’s grandma nicknamed her “The Hornet” because when she sets her mind to something there’s no batting her away. She went from a career in fashion design to a career CFI and absolutely loves flying and teaching. 

Mandy has trained on a Cirrus SR20 & SR22 at Scanlon Aviation with over 600hrs and loves this flight school and the Cirrus airplanes. She is also actively involved with Young Eagles, Angel Flight West, & 99s Bay Cities Chapter. 

I would love to train more women, young adults, & others who want to share my passion in aviation. Here’s my favorite quote from Amelia Earhart

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure, the process is its own reward.”