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5 Answers

First Flight Lesson for a Student Pilot

Asked by: 2238 views General Aviation

Besides the flight portion for a new student pilot, what do you do on the ground? So far I can think of a brief interview with the person, going over what we will be doing in the air, requirements for his goals, books and materials needed, filling IACRA, but dont want to spend too much time on the ground. So what do you all recommend for a students first time flying?

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5 Answers



  1. ayavner on Feb 21, 2019

    Personally I would keep it to an absolute minimum on the ground, at least pre-flight. If its their first, they are probably going to be excited and possibly not paying great attention. Maybe just leave it as you’ve already stated to keep it simple, then do the flight, then in the post-flight brief they will probably have a ton of questions. At some point you’ll want to do the TSA stuff too, but maybe make the first flight just about that – the joy and excitement.

    Plenty of time to harsh their mellow with paperwork and details later 😀

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  2. ayavner on Feb 21, 2019

    … which by the way seems to imply that you passed your troublesome checkride – congrats!!! you’ll have to fill us in, been rooting for ya!

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  3. KDS on Feb 21, 2019

    Like so many things, a lot depends on the situation. You want to get a feeling for their background and their aspirations and then mold your lessons in that direction.

    I’m sure you’ve heard the old expression that there is never a second chance to make a good first impression. Since first impressions are so important, this may be the single most important training session that you give. So, set the most professional standard that you can. For example, it may be the third time that day that you have flown that particular airplane, but don’t skip the preflight inspection. At the same time, you don’t want to make a major production out of everything. It’s way too easy to overwhelm a new student with information and leave them discouraged. For example, in the preflight, do it at your normal pace. Don’t stop to explain every nut and screw on the airplane. Those are valuable lessons too, but save that for a future date. Maybe tell them to read the checklist as you do the actions. You can talk while you check, but don’t stop to explain everything.

    After the preflight, take time for a potty-break. You want to ensure nothing makes the lesson uncomfortable for the student and they may be embarrassed about speaking up part way through the lesson.

    In the talk before the flight you want to give them a thumbnail view of what you will be doing. Most likely straight and level, turns, climbs, and glides.

    At the airplane, there are a couple things I’ll go over before we ever start the engine. The most important is the transfer of controls. Personally, I do it the way the Flight Instructor Handbook and every other publication says to do it. “I have the flight controls, You have the flight controls, I have the flight controls”. More imaginative instructors like to invent other ways, but I’m just not smart like them.

    The other thing I’ll go through before starting the engine is how to do the mag check. Once that big noisy fan starts running about 70% of the student’s brain is somewhere else, so while things are calm and quiet, we go over that and practice it. I also include what do do if you accidentally shut the mags off (or encounter a dead mag) while doing the mag check.

    One other thing I cover even if it isn’t allowed in today’s politically correct world is that I’m a happily married heterosexual. The reason for that is that there are times I may put my hand over their hand (typically on the throttle). I may also put my arm over the back of their seat so I can give them more shoulder room in a Cessna 150 / 152 and I’m really not getting familiar with them in doing so. In other words, I will assure them that if I come in contact with them that it’s for the purpose of safety, training, or comfort for them.

    It’s a delicate subject, but I also emphasize that if at anytime they start to feel airsick to let me know and we will be on the ground in short order. It’s bad enough to have a mess in the aircraft, but it also can cause the student to quit or go back several steps on their training. It’s just a bad deal. At the same time, you don’t want to dwell on the subject because that plants the thought in their mind that they might get sick and fear is the enemy.

    A shorter lesson is the order of the day. Even if it seems simple and almost not like a real lesson to you, they are going to be absorbing stuff like a sponge.

    Then after the flight, review what you did, make sure every possible question is answered, give them an idea of what you’ll do on your next lesson, give them a reading assignment that will support what you just taught them and what will be on the next lesson. Then, finally (and I’m sure your boss will tell you this one), walk them over to the signup sheet and get their next lesson scheduled.

    If you think it’s appropriate, you might give them a call before the next lesson to check if they have any questions.

    Don’t worry about not being perfect. You wouldn’t believe how many flight instructors I’ve talked to who are embarrassed about the first few students they had and how they could have done better later. Even if it’s not perfect, as long as you’re sincere and putting the safety and needs of the student as a high priority, you’ll be doing a great job.

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  4. KDS on Feb 21, 2019

    In rereading what I wrote, I thought I should clarify a point. When teaching about how to transfer the flight controls, we sit in the airplane and dry run it. Hands and feet on the controls and then off or on again at the proper time. We don’t just talk about it. Same thing with the mag switch.

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  5. wheels_up on Feb 21, 2019

    Ayavner – Yes! passed the checkride haha. I had rescheduled with a different DPE and it gave me time to go over everything before the exam. He was aware of my previous disapproval and mentioned we’d go over that stuff again. Exam day came, and went through the entire oral, the lesson on the maneuver, and finally got out to the plane. Was very excited to get to that point but also drained, as 5.5 hours had already passed by. Up in the air, and we go through about the entire portion of it, until he had me teach him a takeoff. He played the role of the student and purposely veered off the runway and then gave me an unsatisfactory for not taking control of the plane. Which is a valid reason for the unsatisfactory. Came back 2 weeks later to finish up on some takeoffs and landings and passed.

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