Dear Rod:
I have a student who is cash-strapped and keeps canceling flights. This is causing an obvious financial problem for me. I’m quite frustrated because the student will reappear and fly enough to get proficient and ready to solo, then he’ll disappear again and the cycle restarts. I have explained to him repeatedly that this is causing him to spend more money than necessary, but that hasn’t seemed to help. Any suggestions?—Elizabeth
Greetings Elizabeth:
Hmmm, I’m of two minds on this issue. The logical side of my instructor’s brain says that for the instructor/student relationship to work, the instructor half of the equation has to find some value in the flight training process. You might not want to sit in the seat giving instruction if you don’t think it’s having some meaningful effect. Furthermore, any normal, caring, and compassionate person might feel a little guilty flying with someone who is clearly not progressing in any meaningful way. Why feel guilty about that when you, like any other normal human being, have so much other good stuff to feel guilty about? He’s also tampering with your income and that’s enough to rub any instructor the wrong way.
On the other hand, the emotional side of my brain says that, even though the student shows little progress toward the private pilot certificate, he is still getting something out of the flight training process. Despite being cashed-strapped, he might just enjoy taking a lesson now and then, knowing full well that he’s not progressing. As long as you’ve explained to him that he can’t make much progress at his present level of commitment, and as long as he understands this, then let him make the choice to continue or suspend his flight training. There’s very little harm that can come from this, but there’s much good to be had if he enjoys flying with you.
Dear Rod:
I’m a student pilot who is at the stage of soloing (according to my instructor), and I’m experiencing a great deal of angst over it. I honestly don’t want to solo right now but my instructor is insisting that I do. He says that it’s only normal to have these feelings and that my anxiety will disappear once I fly the airplane alone. I need some emergency advice here. What should I do? I don’t feel confident enough to fly solo right now. —Rachael
Greetings Rachael:
First things first. If you don’t want to solo, then you don’t solo. Period! The choice to solo is yours and yours only. Your instructor is not going to force you to solo by parachuting out of the airplane or falling out during the takeoff roll (if he starts wearing a parachute, then be suspicious).
Your instructor, however, is correct in saying that normal presolo anxiety is, well, normal—and it often disappears after the first few solo flights. On the other hand, you should try to discover the reason why you’re feeling anxious about soloing and convey that idea to your instructor. You want to solve this problem pronto, otherwise your cockpit confidence will wane while your cockpit dependence on your instructor increases. Neither of these is good for you.
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