Insights

You Can't Save The World

The boundless enthusiasm of a new flight instructor is remarkable. How that relates to his or her first few students deserves discussion.

In most flight schools, a new instructor is anxious to get students - but let's face it, waiting around for walk-in customers is terribly boring. A few of the other instructors see this as a golden opportunity. They might give the new kid on the block one of their students who, unknown to the new instructor, happens to be a problem child.

The reasons given are very creative: "I'll help you out. I have a student whose schedule conflicts with mine," "...who can only fly in the evenings or weekends," or "...with whom I don't get along." The real reasons are: He no-shows me, doesn't study, can't prioritize, can't stay ahead of the airplane, or is someone I can't stand.

The new instructor jumps at the opportunity and begins training in earnest. When the aforementioned problems become evident, the new instructor really digs in because he does not want to look bad. He says, "I know I can do it. I can teach anyone to fly." With no instructing experience, he does not realize that not everyone is trainable, nor does he realize the importance of establishing and enforcing training standards.

The new instructor can recognize the five hazardous personalities, but other subtleties exist. Why does this student want to fly? Some have been pressured into flying because of a spouse's or a friend's desire. In reality, they have no interest in flying. Others cannot relate to a procedural environment, divide their attention, or handle multiple tasks. With respect to aviation, they are not trainable.

The new instructor must establish and enforce training standards. Studying, honoring appointments, and understanding English are three examples. If a student shows up unprepared for a lesson, the instructor should cancel the flight and offer the student a choice: "Study the assigned material or pay me to teach it to you on the ground. Regardless of your decision, if you are not prepared, we will not fly."

If a student is consistently late for a lesson, the instructor can overlook the transgression the first time, issue a warning the second time, and cancel the flight the third time but spend the remaining time giving the student ground instruction. If a student no-shows, overlook the first time. Charge one hour for the second time, and charge for the time scheduled the third time and terminate the student.

English is aviation's universal language. If a student has poor language skills - reading, speaking, and understanding - don't even think about starting flight training until that problem has been corrected.

Be extremely cautious with foreign students. Many have backgrounds that prevent them from thinking like Americans. We are survivors. Yes, we know the rules, but when things go wrong we will do whatever is necessary to ensure the safe completion of a flight. The majority of us have good common sense, judgement, and awareness. Some foreign students who were raised in dogmatic societies would rather die than deviate from the rules, and if a rule doesn't exist, they flounder. Most Americans know that rules cannot be written to cover every conceivable situation - a fact that many bureaucrats and socialists don't understand.

The new instructor must never capitulate to a student's desires. A young instructor and an older, forceful student can lead to such a problem. The student might think that he's ready to solo or that a certain maneuver is unnecessary. The instructor must dig his heels in and say, "My way or no way. You need my signature to accomplish your goals, and that will never happen until I determine that you are qualified."

The new instructor must have checkpoints in the training process that are never passed unless the student meets every requirement at that point. Yes, there are times - admittedly infrequent - when you must say, "I am terminating you as a student."

I recently witnessed a situation where a student changed flight schools. He had accumulated more than 60 hours of flight instruction and had not soloed. After the new instructor performed an evaluation flight, he declined the student's request for further flight training. That decision should have occurred 40 hours earlier at the other school.

The student said, "But if I just keep doing this I know I'll get it." That is a sad situation, because the student did not realize that flying is a dynamic endeavor.

Every flight, from takeoff to landing, has a different twist. Pilots must be able to handle the unexpected, and believe me, the unexpected occurs on a regular basis.