We say it so often it’s practically a cliché at this point: Learning to fly is a life-changing experience. If you haven’t experienced that yet, you soon will. There are myriad reasons why, but commonly learning to fly gives learners more confidence, brings some closer to their families, and allows others to grow their businesses. It gives all of us a new way of looking at life and the world we inhabit.
I’ve been incredibly fortunate and have done things in an airplane I never dreamed of, and that’s coming from a family of pilots. But I’d venture to say most new pilots didn’t grow up this way, a fact I have great respect for. So why, then, aren’t there more pilots? It’s a question that all of us spend hours debating. And since we haven’t yet unlocked the magic door where students flood through, the debate continues. Various theories emerge, from lack of money and time, to perception of aviation as a dangerous and scary thing. My money is on two main factors: lack of awareness and our practices as flight instructors and flight schools. Lack of awareness is a marketing issue, so we’ll leave that one alone for now. Business practices of flight instructors is a bigger issue anyway.
By some estimates, the dropout rate for student pilots is an incredible 70 percent. True, some of those who leave aviation before earning a pilot certificate have legitimate health, family, time, or money issues. But the vast majority don’t. They become discouraged, bored, insulted by the flight school, get scared in an airplane, and have conflicts with their instructor. We can get people into aviation, but if we run them away after they’ve started, we’re not solving anything. So let me be as clear as possible: We as flight instructors and flight schools are quite often the problem. I’m guilty. Students have left over the years and I didn’t call to ask why or encourage them back. I could see others getting discouraged but I didn’t stop and have a heart-to-heart discussion about why. Sometimes all it takes is the instructor slowing things down, buying the student a cup of coffee, and acting like a mentor for an hour.
Let’s never forget that a flight school is a business and needs to be operated as one. The customer is always right, they need to be treated with respect, and we should be working to earn their business. The independent contractor relationship schools have with instructors creates difficulty with this, but it needs to be overcome.
Stop blaming money and the economy. Good instructors are pocketing $100 an hour, and their schedules are jam-packed packed. Good flight schools are booked solid. People pay for things they find to be worth the cost. Trust me, no one is walking through your flight school door thinking flying is cheap, but they also know they don’t want to pay thousands of dollars to be taken for granted as a customer.
This month’s issue is dedicated to learning to fly, and the joy and challenges that go along with it. It’s hopefully a reminder that above all, flying is supposed to be fun. Let’s make sure our students never lose sight of that.
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