Omar immigrated to the United States with his mother in 1982 after the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. Initially living in Los Angeles, he and his mother settled in the city of Irvine in 1989. At the age of 14, a freshman in high school, he started working a part-time job, saving his money to someday become an airline pilot. Officially beginning his training in 1997, he earned his Private Pilots License at John Wayne Airport in 2002. During this time, he was attending school full-time at the University of California Irvine and working a full-time job. In 2003, he earned his commercial pilots license and certified flight instructor rating and began giving flight instruction at the airport. With a strong passion for aviation, in 2003 Omar decided to immerse himself in the airline world and took a job as a cross utilized agent for SkyWest Airlines. His exposure to customer service, cargo operations, and how aircraft are dispatched at the airline, gave him valuable experience on the inner workings of a successful flight operation.
In June of 2004, Omar graduated UC Irvine with a bachelor of arts degree and started ground school at SkyWest Airlines in the EMB-120 turboprop. He spent 2 years apprenticing as a first officer, flying around the western United States. At the age of 26, he became a Captain in the EMB-120 for SkyWest Airlines, based in Palm Springs, CA. One year later, he decided it was time to explore the jet world. Omar transitioned to Captain on the Canadair Regional Jet based in Chicago’s O’Hare Airport. He spent the next 6 years flying throughout North America, visiting small Canadian cities in the winter with temperatures of -40F, to holiday beach destinations of Mexico in the summer.
In 2013, after years of warnings of a looming pilot shortage, he turned his attention to where it all started, flight training. Starting with just one aircraft, Omar started OC Flight Lessons as a Part 61 operation. Today, with a fleet of Cessna 172 aircraft, and a highly trained team of flight instructors, the school is in 141 certification with the FAA. Omar’s close attention to detail in every aspect of OC Flight Lessons has fostered a positive learning environment for the students, as well as mentorship for the up and coming flight instructors looking to move on the airline world. Omar is an Airline Transport Rated Commercial Pilot, with type ratings in the Boeing 737, Canadair Regional Jet 200/700/900, Embraer 120, Embraer Phenom 100. He has accumulated over 18,000 hours of flight time, 6000 hours as captain at a 121 airline in a Multi-Engine Jet, crew environment. He has over 5,000 hours of instruction given in numerous aircraft including: Cessna 172/182/206/P210T, Cirrus SR20/22T, Beechcraft Bonanza, Grumman, Piper 24/28/32.
In his spare time, he enjoys hiking, providing mentorship and advice to single parent kids, and spending quality time with his family.
Book a free consultation with industry veteran Omar Amin today!