Just imagine never having to hump 10 pounds of flight training books back and forth to your lessons. Sporty's Pilot Shop has made that possible with its new online training courses.
Sporty's has a reputation for producing high-quality videos, in terms of both content and production. The new online courses continue that standard. The courses contain the same information as the popular series of DVDs, but in an easy-to-use, interactive, and convenient format.
Currently Sporty's is offering online recreational pilot, private pilot, transition to private, and instrument courses. The courses are completely online, meaning no need to download or install. Each includes a section of training videos, an interactive maneuvers guide, knowledge test preparation, a training course outline (syllabus), and interactive practical test standards (PTS, shown at left). There's also a section of links and a form to fill out for a knowledge test endorsement that Sporty's will provide upon completion of the knowledge test preparation.
The course maintains the same basic format on the screen, regardless of which element is in use. That means buttons with direct links to the other sections are always present. Start with the course outline. Here you and your instructor can fill in the time spent on each task. Your progress is automatically saved. Then click on a link to the streaming video training section or interactive maneuvers guide applicable to the lesson at hand. There's also a blank window where you can takes notes and print them out at will. The interactive PTS is one of the more interesting and useful parts of the course. Student and instructor can work on the course and go through each maneuver step by step. Each entry has a direct link to the associated video section that illustrates the maneuver, making the demonstration only a click away.
For convenience, ease of use, and good information, Sporty's new online courses are a sure bet. For those who can't wait to begin learning, the best part is that you can pay today, and use today.
Price: private $199; recreational $99; transition to private $99; instrument rating $249
Contact: www.sportys.com; 800-776-7897
'Flight Guide for Success'
Listen up, aspiring career pilots. There is help out there for all your aviation career questions and issues. Karen Kahn, a captain for a major airline and regular contributor to AOPA Flight Training, just released the third edition of her book, Flight Guide for Success.
If you're a fan of Kahn's "Career Tips" in this magazine's Career Pilot section, you'll love Flight Guide for Success. After all, it's a compilation of stories written for various magazines over the past few years. In it, Kahn covers such topics as planning an aviation career, marketing, various aviation jobs, the interview, and what it's like to fly for an airline. Consider Flight Guide for Success your quick reference guide to an aviation future.
Price: $19.95
Contact: www.aviationcareercounseling.com; 805-687-9493
Wenger Aerograph series watches
For the aviator who seeks Swiss precision on his wrist, this year's new Aerograph series from Wenger offers good looks with the company's well-documented reliability and craftsmanship. The Aerograph series includes 10 different models, four of which are chronographs--which means that they can function as a stopwatch. Options include a metal or leather band, black or brown face, and even two with orange accents (vintage model with orange dial shown). All but two models feature a large, independent seconds display, and the chronograph models include a rotating bezel. A date display is standard on all models. Look to the Wenger Aerograph series for a watch that is both stylish and functional.
Price: $190 to $425
Contact: www.wengerna.com; 800-267-3577
'Damian DelGaizo's Tailwheel: 101'
Tailwheel aircraft, commonly called taildraggers or conventional gear, handle very differently on the ground than tricycle-gear aircraft. Damian DelGaizo, who specializes in tailwheel instruction at his Andover, New Jersey, flight school, understands that not only must you know this about taildraggers, but you must understand the aircraft before you climb into the cockpit of a Piper Cub, an Aeronca Champ, or a Citabria.
Barnstormer Pictures' DVD, Damian DelGaizo's Tailwheel: 101, takes you through a tailwheel endorsement, beginning--as with any good, thorough checkout--with a classroom session on the taildraggers' ground-handling characteristics. Using visual aids ranging from model airplanes and charts to an actual tailwheel and a broomstick, DelGaizo explains why taildraggers react to sloppy use of the rudder pedals, how braking differs, and how to S-taxi.
Then the action moves into the cockpit of a Cub Crafters Top Cub (a new take on the Piper PA-18) as DelGaizo and pilot Jill practice takeoffs and three-point landings, wheel landings, and crosswind landings. Each flying segment is preceded by a ground session in which DelGaizo dissects the maneuver to be performed. The aerial footage works well to build on what's taught in the ground sessions. We particularly liked the footage of a controlled ground loop to illustrate how quickly things can get out of hand. The toughest part of sitting through the 92 minutes of Damian DelGaizo's Tailwheel: 101 is that you'll wish you could trade places with Jill, particularly when she gets to fly a Stearman.
Price: $49.99
Contact: www.tailwheel101.com--Jill W. Tallman
Related Articles
