AOPA Online Members Only -- AOPA ePilot Flight Training Edition -- Vol. 6, Issue 28

GETTING BACK TO WORK
The student pilot said, "My new instructor does things much differently than my old one did. It's confusing." The July 7, 2006, Training Tips discussed how to keep the unexpected departure of your flight instructor from disrupting your training. Once you find the right replacement, the goal is for you and your new instructor to become a functioning team quickly and efficiently.

When a flight instructor takes on a student part of the way through training, he or she must approach the project differently than when working with a student he has trained from the beginning. Most understand this. The first session is often an informal ground-plus-flight review to reveal what you have learned so far, a necessary redundancy that can also introduce new skills. After that, the CFI should know how to proceed, and you may notice some differences in teaching styles from what you experienced before. This may require some adjustment, but not discomfort. It is not a flight instructor's province to "unteach" something you learned correctly from another instructor that is simply different from how the new fellow teaches it.

But isn't there "standardization" in flight training? There have been efforts to instill conformity; hence the expectation that training for certificates and ratings adhere to the appropriate practical test standards. Flight schools may have standardization programs for their instructors. Smaller operations and self-employed flight instructors usually offer much variation in style and method. See "Dreams in Motion" by Thomas B. Haines in the July 2000 AOPA Pilot for a description of one corporate school's standardization policy.

Good advice based on personal experience can be drawn from Bonnie Cole's training narrative: "Learning Experiences: Fighting for a Lifelong Dream" in the May 2002 AOPA Flight Training. "The key to success is hard work, determination, and the right flight instructor. Keep looking until you find the right one. Don't let anyone tell you that you can 'learn from anyone' or that you should 'stick it out' in a bad instructor/student relationship. Find an instructor who understands your enthusiasm and excitement. Find one who fits your personality and learning style. They are out there, and it's worth the search."

Indeed it is!

Extra-careful preflight is required for night flying. Organizing the cockpit (which includes making sure you have flashlights and plenty of fresh batteries to power them), choosing checkpoints, pondering emergency situations-the challenges are greater, but so are the freedoms. The special skills of night flying can only be acquired and maintained by taking frequent night flights. See the October 2002 AOPA Flight Training and the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Safety Hot Spot on night flying for more information.

Do you have a question? Call the experienced pilots in AOPA's Pilot Information Center at 800/USA-AOPA. They're available to take your calls weekdays 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern. As an AOPA Flight Training Member, you have access to all of the features within AOPA Online and AOPA Flight Training Online. Login information is available online.

EMBRY-RIDDLE INSTRUCTOR, STUDENT LAUNCH ON OVERSEAS TREK
How's this for a nontraditional flight lesson? An Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University flight instructor and his student were to launch July 13 in a twin-engine aircraft they'll fly from Florida to Denmark. Ben Riecken and Jean Olivier Mbog, a senior at Embry-Riddle, will pilot a Piper Seneca V from the New Piper Aircraft factory in Vero Beach, Florida, to an aircraft dealership in Odense, Denmark. The trip is planned to take 13 days, during which time they'll talk to young people along the way about flying. They'll also post daily updates in an online diary about their journey. The trip will cover 5,100 nautical miles start to finish, with the longest leg being 487 nm from Iqaluit Airport in Northern Canada to Kangerlussuaq, Greenland. "We wanted to do something different," said Riecken. "Crossing the North Atlantic still has the aura of doing it like the pioneer aviators in the early days." There is no radar coverage over the ocean, he noted, so the pair will report their position as they go and follow the contrails of airliners passing above them.

FAA PROPOSES MANDATED ADIZ TRAINING
The FAA is proposing to require mandatory training for any VFR pilot flying within 100 nautical miles of the DCA Vortac. The agency's apparent goal is to prevent further incursions into the Washington, D.C., Air Defense Identification Zone (ADIZ). But AOPA believes that the idea would effectively expand the ADIZ to engulf 117 airports. For example, a pilot flying from Northeast Philadelphia to Cape May, New Jersey, would have to have ADIZ training, even though he would be 60 nm outside the ADIZ at the closest point. In this case, the pilot wouldn't reasonably expect that he would have to be concerned about the ADIZ, according to Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice president of government affairs. "And the FAA is not planning on marking the 'training ring' on any charts," he said. "It's a 'gotcha' waiting to happen." AOPA supports training to improve pilot awareness of ADIZ operations but does not support the FAA's proposed implementation of the training requirement. For more information, see the complete story online.

ASA DONATES EQUIPMENT TO AVIATION EXPLORERS POST
Aviation Supplies & Academics recently donated a personal computer-based aviation flight training device to a Cincinnati-based youth program. ASA donated the PCATD to Aviation Exploring Post 78, which plans to provide the PCATD during meetings as an activity to introduce its members to flight instruments and controls and simulate cross-country flying in a realistic environment. The On Top PCATD meets FAA requirements for a loggable flight-training device and can provide users with up to 10 hours toward an instrument rating, plus unlimited ground training hours. Aviation Exploring is a youth development program centered on aviation careers. Post 78 is sponsored by Sporty's Pilot Shop and its FBO affiliate, Eastern Cincinnati Aviation.

ARE YOU UP TO SPEED ON AIRCRAFT PERFORMANCE?
As you progress in your flight training, understanding your aircraft's performance will become an important part of planning and executing safe cross-country trips. You'll be encountering new airports with varying runways and elevations, and you'll need to know whether you can safely get in and out of these airports, among many other concerns. The latest Sporty's Safety Quiz from the AOPA Air Safety Foundation can help. You'll learn the types of weather conditions that will improve your aircraft performance, as well as those that will hurt. You'll find out why the difference between "best power" and "best economy" is one of the most important distinctions in flying. You'll delve into the differences between true, pressure, and density altitude, and whether a tailwind will decrease or increase your landing ground roll. Take the quiz and you'll earn a chance to win a Sporty's Air-Scan V aviation radio/scanner.

UNIVERSITY OF TENNESSEE ADDS YOUTH SCIENCE CAMPS
Pleased with the response to an earlier offering this summer, the University of Tennessee Space Institute (UTSI) in Tullahoma has added two additional science camps for area students. A July 17 through 21 session for fifth and sixth graders is aimed at interesting young children in math and science, according to Bill Hofheimer, director of UTSI's Center for Laser Applications. A July 24 through August 4 session will focus on science utilizing computer simulation programs. Campers at UTSI's June camp designed and launched a straw rocket, among other activities.

KEEP THE APPROACHES, AOPA TELLS FAA
Suppose you're a certificated private pilot who is training for an instrument rating. How hard would it be for you to learn if the FAA took away the instrument approaches for your airport? That's the dilemma facing numerous pilots around the country. The FAA wants to eliminate some 129 approaches that it considers redundant or underused. "But at one airport, that would leave all of the based pilots without any way to make an instrument approach," said Andy Cebula, AOPA executive vice president of government affairs. That's because the FAA's plan would have left only a GPS approach to Sheldon Municipal Airport in Iowa, but none of the based aircraft are equipped with GPS, members told AOPA. The association has gone to bat for members at 35 other airports, where the approach cancellations would make things worse for pilots. For more details, see the complete story at AOPA Online.

HAVE YOU UPDATED YOUR AOPA MEMBER PROFILE?
To make the most of your membership and allow us to serve you better, please visit AOPA Online and update your personal member profile.

PUT FUEL SAMPLES WHERE THEY BELONG WITH GATS FUEL JAR
It used to be that you sumped a fuel sample, checked it for debris or water, and dumped it onto the ramp. Now we know better, and the Environmental Protection Agency frowns on such practices. But what to do with the sample? You can't just pour it back into the tank. Here's where the GATS fuel jar is a handy tool for the preflight. You sump the fuel into the jar, and its filter separates commingled water or debris from the fuel. You can then pour the fuel back into the tank and dispose of the water and debris without polluting soil or groundwater. The 16-ounce GATS jar is available from numerous aviation supplies retailers; we found one selling for $15.95 at SkyGeek.com.

Note: Products listed have not been evaluated by ePilot editors unless otherwise noted. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors.

Answer: As stated in Federal Aviation Regulation 91.105, required crewmembers are required to keep their seat belt fastened during the entire flight while seated at a crewmember station. The shoulder harness is only required to be worn during takeoff and landing. If the airplane you're flying is not equipped with shoulder harnesses or if you are unable to perform your required duties wearing the shoulder harness, you do not have to wear it. For additional information on seat belts, shoulder harnesses, and child restraint systems, review AOPA's subject report and an AOPA Pilot article online.

Got a question for our technical services staff? E-mail to [email protected] or call the Pilot Information Center, 800/872-2672. Don't forget the online archive of "Final Exam" questions and answers, searchable by keyword or topic.

Sioux Falls, South Dakota. The Power on the Prairie Airshow takes place July 22 and 23 at Joe Foss Field (FSD). Two full days of events and fun featuring the U.S. Navy Blue Angels, and celebrating the 60th anniversary of the South Dakota Air National Guard. Contact Wesley Nelson, 605/336-1988, or visit the Web site.

Oshkosh, Wisconsin. EAA AirVenture 2006 takes place July 24 through 30 at Wittman Regional (OSH). The world's greatest aviation celebration takes place every summer in Wisconsin! Daily airshows, exhibitors, aircraft displays, and more. For information, see the Web site.

To submit an event to the calendar or to search all events visit AOPA Online. For airport details, see AOPA's Airport Directory Online.

FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR REFRESHER CLINICS
The next AOPA Air Safety Foundation Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics are scheduled in Pittsburgh, and Memphis, Tennessee, July 22 and 23. A clinic is also scheduled in Newark, New Jersey, July 29 and 30. For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can't make it in person? Sign up for the CFI Refresher Online.

AOPA AIR SAFETY FOUNDATION SAFETY SEMINARS
AOPA Air Safety Foundation Safety Seminars are scheduled in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, July 26 through 29. Topics vary-for more details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.