Sharki Kontra - Flight Instructor
CFI, CFII, MEI
Sharki was told that "girls can't fly," as a teen along with a couple setbacks as an adult which empowered her to take flying lessons in 2011. She earned her private pilot certificate then one rating after another until she became a CFII Certified Flight Instructor. Her ratings include multi-engine land and seaplane, along with endorsements to fly complex, high performance, and tailwheel aircraft. Even though Sharki has landed in many strips in the Idaho backcountry she feels like a novice as Mother Nature changes the terrain year after year.
Prior to covid, Sharki flew contract second in command (SIC) in a BeechJet 400A Nextant for a private company and PC-12s for Jackson Jet Center, and now flies part time with the Idaho Department of Transportation Division of Aeronautics in their King Air 200 and Kodiak.
Sharki volunteers with numerous aviation organizations and STEM programs such as Ace Academy, Art & Science of Flying, Idaho 99s, Wish Granters, Angel Flights West, and the National Air Traffic Controllers Association (NATCA) National Runway Safety Team to create documentation and safety videos to reduce runway incursions.
She's an FAASafety Team Representative for the Wings Program and remedial training pilot for the Flight Standards District Office (FSDO) in Boise. Last summer Sharki participated in the Air Race Classic and plans to race again.
Persistent at applying for scholarships, she's been awarded a few and recently won the opportunity to attain a Citation type rating at CAE in Dallas. She can assist you in putting an application together, or help you write a resume.
In addition to her flying career she is an accountant, cyclist and part-time LYFT driver. Sharki raised her children as a single mom, the most valuable career of all, and hopes to inspire others to achieve their dreams of aviation, help them find interesting ways to accumulate hours, or at least fulfill a bucket list item.