Insights

Several laws and methods pertain to most types of instruction. The three that I rely on most for flight training are the law of primacy--what is first taught leaves the strongest impression--and the teaching methods of going from the simple to the complex and from the known to the unknown. However, the effectiveness of those elements is greatly diminished if a student does not have the proper level of self-confidence.

To avoid that problem, I dispel misconceptions about flying on the first lesson, which occurs on the demonstration flight, not a subsequent flight. My demonstration flight reflects simplicity to the extreme.

Ground time is minimized, and technical explanations are avoided like the plague. For example, when asked how an airplane flies, I just say that the propeller shoves the air backward and the wing shoves the air down. When that happens, you go forward and up. Technical explanations are presented only when the student is ready to assimilate that information, which seldom occurs during the first few lessons.

As I explain my actions and the concept of airplane attitude during the preflight inspection, I continually emphasize the factors of flight safety with respect to pilot thinking and pilot actions, elements that differ considerably from what most people have done previously with their ground-based endeavors.

For the flight, I leave the flight instruments covered and explain that while the instruments are important, you can fly safely without them, provided you fully understand the relationships of airplane attitude and engine power. To properly evaluate attitude, your eyes must be outside the cockpit--which also allows you to simultaneously watch for other aircraft, a critical flight safety element.

After I point out a few scenic points of interest and let the student control the airplane, I have him stay on the controls while I slowly increase pitch attitude and perform a gentle, power-off, flaps-up approach to a stall. When the initial buffet occurs, I have him push the yoke forward. Goodbye buffet, goodbye stall. Very simple.

I then keep the engine idled, have the student control the airplane while gliding, and explain that this is exactly what would happen if the engine failed, a highly unlikely event in this era providing you do not run out of fuel. I explain that students are trained to plan flights so that suitable forced landing sites always exist. Having an option for a potential problem is a flight safety element that requires proper knowledge, good judgment, and proper planning.

After the demo flight I review four factors: Flying requires a unique mental discipline. The flight instruments are not required for basic airplane control. A stall is a benign maneuver when you understand the simple steps for recovery. And, the airplane does not fall out of the sky if the engine fails.

On subsequent lessons, we explore airplane stability. For example, with hands off the yoke and feet on the rudder for heading control, I induce a pitch oscillation and we watch the airplane recover by itself. We explore the effect of power changes and the corrections that must occur in order to maintain attitude.

Stall awareness, spin avoidance, and rudder effectiveness are easy to instill. When in a basic, single-engine training airplane, I take the yoke and have the student use the rudder to maintain a wings-level attitude while I keep the airplane in a clean, power-off stall. As the airplane porpoises about, the student immediately realizes the effectiveness of rudder during slow-speed flight, and that insight is critical for stall recovery and spin avoidance. Too many students do not understand the true importance of the rudder.

Trimming the elevator is next. I trim it for hands-off flight and then have both of us lean forward as far as possible. Initially nothing happens, but eventually the pitch attitude decreases, and we descend. Then both of us lean back as far as possible. Again, nothing happens initially, but eventually the pitch attitude increases and we climb.

This shows that it takes time for aerodynamic forces to stabilize when one or more forces have been disturbed. If the trimming process occurs too quickly--which students tend to do--it becomes a difficult task. When trimming, wait a moment or two for airspeed and power to stabilize before you fine-trim the elevator. After that adjustment, again wait for a moment or two and reevaluate the need for additional pitch trim. Usually it's required.

These simple demonstrations greatly enhance student self-confidence. Without that confidence, the instructor's efforts are impeded, because regardless of what the instructor is saying, a student's mind is dwelling on personal safety because of a lack of knowledge.

Ralph Butcher, a retired United Airlines captain, is the chief flight instructor at a California flight school. He has been flying since 1959 and has 25,000 hours in fixed- and rotary-wing aircraft. Visit his Web site.