Superior service, personalized attention

Welcome to Pitch Vy! (Like the v-speed). I’m David Smith. I provide aviation support and checkride services for pilots across the country, with my current home base located at the Asheville Regional Airport (KAVL) in North Carolina.

While I am the Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE) who will be sitting in the right seat with you, Pitch Vy is powered by a dedicated small team behind the scenes. Together, we focus on helping you reach your aviation milestones. We utilize streamlined, automated systems to make booking and document uploads hassle-free, and we continuously adapt our services to best suit the needs of our aviation community. From start to finish, our team works diligently to ensure you receive the highest level of professional support.

My Aviation Journey

I took a fairly non-traditional path into aviation through learning to skydive (I actually have about 100 more takeoffs than I do landings in an airplane!). My fascination with canopy flight eventually sparked a curiosity about flying the planes I was jumping out of. One discovery flight later, I decided to get my private certificate, buy an airplane, and use it to travel for my corporate job at the time. Along the way, I found flying was simply too much fun, so I left the comfort and security of a great career to pursue aviation full time. Because of my late start and the hard (but fun) work over the years, I understand that not all of our journeys look the same, and I can't wait to hear about yours.

Qualifications & Experience

I hold an Airline Transport Pilot (ATP) certificate with an Airplane Multi-Engine Land (AMEL) rating, a CE-700 type rating, and commercial privileges for Airplane Single-Engine Land (ASEL). I am also a Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) with Instrument Airplane (CFII) and Multi-Engine (MEI) instructor ratings. I have spent a lot of time in Cessna, Piper, and Cirrus products and have experience in a variety of other general aviation airframes as well.

Services Provided

I currently provide FAA Practical Exams, Administrative Services (BAE) for Certificate Limitation Removals, Ground Instructor (GIE) Issuance, Foreign Pilot Conversions, Military Competency (MCE) processing, Flight Reviews, Instrument Proficiency Checks, and many other pilot support services.

From simple to complex, don’t hesitate to reach out and let our team know how we can be of service. I look forward to the opportunity to fly with you!