Ask a Flight Instructor

Posts Tagged ‘Student’

Like most parents at this time of year, I’m making my daily trek to Wal-mart to buy school supplies for my kids. Even if you don’t have kids, I’m sure you can remember being sent home with a list of needed school supplies that ranged from protractors to rulers. Good times.

If you are just starting your flight or ground pilot training, you may find yourself overwhelmed by all the different supplies and accessories that are available for the beginning pilot. One look at a Sporty’s catalog or website will have you convinced that there are a lot of things you need to buy in order to become a pilot. When you get a little bit of experience under your belt, you’ll be more convinced that companies make a lot of money selling pilot supplies that are absolutely not necessary. So in my role as your online ground instructor, I’ve prepared a “Flight School Supply List.” Only the things you need and nothing you don’t. So here we go. Don’t show up to class without them:

(the items link to mypilotstore.com an affiliate of Askacfi.com)

• Good sunglasses. You can get an artifical heart, lungs, hip and just about everything else except your eyes (for now anyway). Take good care of the ones you have by investing in a good pair of sunglasses, just don’t lose them. My personal recommendation? Serengeti Salto S-Flex. Great lenses and comfortable with even the stiffest headset.
• Headset. If you are just starting out, don’t buy a headset until you solo. Until then, borrow a pair from your flight school or instructor. Once you’re ready to make that investment, don’t waste your money buying anything but the best set available. There are only two headsets I recommend, David Clark or Bose. This is not an advertisement but the advice of someone who has tried just about every pair of headset out there and has learned that Bose X is by far the quietest and most comfortable headsets I have ever worn. The runner-up and value award going to David Clark H10-13.4 The number 13.4 represents how many ounces they weigh. You can’t break em either, I’ve tried.
• Basic Logbook. Don’t get anything too fancy. Just a good basic logbook. All flight schools will have one for sale.
• Books. There are literally hundreds if not thousands of books you can purchase. Here are the 7 books you’ll need to purchase (in order of importance):
  • 2009 FAR/AIM Book
  • Private Pilot Practical Test Standards
  • Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge
  • Private Pilot Oral Exam Guide
  • Aviation Weather Services
  • Aviation Weather
  • Jeppesen Private Pilot Manual or the one used by your ground school
• Basic Aluminum E6B Flight Computer just get a plain old E6B. Learn the basics before purchasing an electronic flight computer.
• Simple Fixed Plotter (for cross country flight planning). As simple as possible.
• Current VFR Sectional for your area if you fly in a really busy area, the appropriate terminal chart would also be recommended.
• Flashlight. Don’t get the biggest, heaviest, or most expensive flashlight (you’ll lose it) just one that is small and bright enough to comfortably take with you in your flight bag. Smith and Wesson makes a nice small bright 6 LED Flashlight that is pretty good.
• Good flight bag. There are a myriad of options when it comes to flight bags. Get one that isn’t so big you’ll never use after training but one that can at least hold a toothbrush, toothpaste and a pair of skivvies for your cross-country or short overnight. The Sky High Gear Freedom VII Flight Bag is pretty well recommended.

I think that just about covers it. You’ll be tempted to add more stuff to your shopping cart, but don’t. You’ll only rack up more costs to your flight training which is getting too expensive as it is. I wish I had this list when I was going through flight school. I was the favorite customer of my local pilot store and they saw me coming from a mile away. My shelves and flight bags are still packed with all kind of useless junk like fancy kneeboards and holding computers. Just stick to the basics and as your flying expands you can slowly add to the list (but you won’t need to add much).

Feel free to comment if you think I forgot something or have a recommendation of your own.

Fly Safe.

AOPA recently released a video that contains the audio and video showing the radar on March 21 when on March 21, 2008 a F16 pilot apparently tried to successfully scare the absolute living daylights out of two general aviation pilots flying a Pilatus PC-12 and a Beechcraft Premier. Both aircraft were equipped with a TCAS II system which alerts the pilots and if necessary, provides the pilots with TAs (Traffic Advisories) and if necessary, RAs, or Resolution Advisories. If you have never had the privilege of hearing these sounds, I have provided a sample of what a TA and RA sounds like:

Traffic Advisory

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

Resolution Advisory

Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here. You also need to have JavaScript enabled in your browser.

So the question is, which one takes precedence? A Resolution advisory or an ATC clearance?

According to FAR 91.123:

When an ATC clearance has been obtained, no pilot in command may deviate from that clearance unless an amended clearance is obtained, an emergency exists, or the deviation is in response to a traffic alert and collision avoidance system resolution advisory.

Another question? Is it ok to fly through a MOA? Let’s take a look at our AIM 3-4-5. It says:

Pilots operating under VFR should exercise extreme caution while flying within a MOA when military activity is being conducted.

Another interesting point about this chapter in the AIM concerning MOAs. Did you know that the military aircraft operating in a MOA can be exempt from at least two rules 1) Aerobatic Flight and 2) Speed *they can operate above 250 knots below 10,000 feet* So, although it might be LEGAL to operate in a MOA, doesn’t sound like a real bright idea.

I uploaded the video to my youtube channel (http://www.youtube.com/askacfi) but you can’t watch it here too. (thanks to AOPA for the video)

Fly Safe (especially in a MOA)

This question comes from Mike:

I am a 60 year old comercial pilot with instrument rating with over 1200 hours. I have been a teacher and I have been working on my CFI for a year. My instructor keeps putting off my check ride for one reason or another. At what point do you fire your instructor and get another? I am fed up with the delays and the constant, “We just need to do a little bit more.” What would you advise? A finish up school or another instructor?

My first flight instructor was a Frenchman named Fredrick. Fredrick and I, let’s just say, did not see eye to eye. Believe it or not, he did not solo me because he thought I was talking to the school administration about the fact that he was dating a student (I wasn’t). I fired him and soloed within a day.

When I first started as a flight instructor, I had a older student who thought that I was being too picky, spoke too fast and that I talked down to him. He fired me. It was the first time I had been cut by a student and I had to work hard not to take it personally but as Sonny & Tom Hagen in Godfather says, “It’s business, not personal.”

Mike, you are working on your CFI and as a CFI there are going to be times when you don’t get along with a student. It is going to happen. I don’t care how nice you are, or how great your people skills are, it is a fact of life that not everybody can get along with everyone all of the time. How you deal with this challenge is very important. Let’s not forget something here: flight instruction is a business and the flight student is the customer. Flight instructors have to work to keep the client / customer satisfied even when things aren’t going as planned and as a client, you should demand that you are satisfied with your training that you are spending a lot of money on.

So how do you fire your instructor?

Talk to him. You said that he knows how you feel but maybe it is time to just say, “This isn’t working for me, could you recommend someone else?” A professional flight instructor will realize where you are coming from and do his best to keep you happy, even if it means, losing a student. If he isn’t so accommodating, then talk to his boss whether that is a chief instructor or flight school owner. This is one advantage of a FAR part 141 flight school being that you move to another instructor pretty easily. If you don’t have that luxury than just ask around the airport for a recommended CFI.

This isn’t easy. You obviously spent a lot of time together and are probably friends on some level. Try and use this as a learning experience and make the best of it and let me know what happens and always…

Fly Safe.

This question comes from John:

My 17 year old son, who last summer was working on his glider license, is now thinking about his private pilot airplane certificate. He didn’t get his glider certificate yet because he hasn’t taken the written knowledge test. Should he take the written for the glider first, or should he get his private pilot airplane and then get a glider add on?

Thanks John for your question.

My recommendation would be to go ahead have your son get his private pilot single engine AIRPLANE first before the glider. The reason? If you have a private pilot airplane certificate you DO NOT need to take the a written knowledge test for the glider add-on. However, if you have a private pilot glider certificate you will have to take an additional knowledge test for the private pilot single engine airplane. So if you get the airplane certificate first you will only need your son to study for one test, not two.

Hopefully this helps and tell your son to…

Fly Safe!