Do it on your lunch break
Sporty’s ‘reinvents’ the intro flight
Sporty’s Academy announced a new plan for aspiring pilots to experience the joys of an introductory flight. Sporty’s Flight Experience bundles three flight simulator lessons, a Learn to Fly online course, and one hour of dual instruction in an airplane for $549.
The Batavia, Ohio-based flight school said it has “reinvented the introductory flight process by enhancing and enlarging it” for a custom experience. Each of four individual one-hour lessons is fairly short for modern consumers, Sporty’s Academy President Eric Radtke said, and the curriculum allows instructors to offer aspiring pilots a custom experience.
Rather than becoming frustrated in a moving aircraft’s noisy environment, Radtke said students rehearsing basic maneuvers in a simulator are more self-assured. The simulator precursor also serves as a comfortable learning platform during cold winters and hot summers, and leads to fewer weather-induced cancellations.
The time commitment itself “is relatable to most people,” Radtke added. “It’s kind of like a lunch break on a standard work day. We’re going to keep it light and we’re going to keep it fun.
“We’re taking the view of being more of an ambassador to flight rather than instructors,” said Radtke. “We hope this might inspire other schools that might not have an option like this, to consider it.”
ASI News
Mismanaging fuel
Know what is in your tanks
No one intends to run out of fuel, and most pilots who have dipped into their fuel reserves vow never to do it again. But at nearly 70 fuel-related general aviation accidents per year, fuel mismanagement warrants concern. The AOPA Air Safety Institute’s new Fuel Management Made Easy video offers fueling tips and explores best practices to monitor fuel consumption and manage fuel systems. You’ll learn about using personal minimums and fuel planning tools to predict actual versus planned time en route. Although the federal aviation regulations provide minimum fuel reserve requirements, ASI recommends you land with at least one hour of fuel on board for every flight. The video provides several important examples of fuel-related accidents that can serve as a reminder why safe mindsets and habits can prevent fuel exhaustion or starvation. Video brought to you by Air BP.
No dozing allowed
Don’t sleep through ground school: What you don’t know can hurt you! The AOPA Air Safety Institute invites you to come along on an interesting flight lesson with School Daze—a short and amusing video from the popular Pilot Safety Announcement series.
www.airsafetyinstitute.org/psa/schooldaze
AOPA News
BasicMed course and checklist now available
Pilots are cleared to start new medical process
After years of AOPA advocating for an alternative to the recurrent medical certification that bogs down many pilots in costly tests and special issuance documentation, Congress in July 2016 passed third class medical reform, which the FAA termed BasicMed. Now the agency has released the official BasicMed Comprehensive Medical Examination Checklist that pilots who wish to fly under BasicMed need to fill out and have completed by the state-licensed physician performing the medical examination.
The agency also published the link to AOPA’s Medical Self-Assessment: A Pilot’s Guide to Flying Healthy online aeromedical course that satisfies the requirement for pilots to complete a medical education course prior to operating under BasicMed.
Pilots may now make their doctor appointment, have the FAA checklist filled out by the physician, and complete the free AOPA online medical course. Pilots must retain the completed exam checklist with their logbook, along with the certificate of completion from the online medical course. Once these requirements are met, pilots may exercise the privileges of BasicMed. Find the checklist, the course, and information about BasicMed on AOPA’s online Fit to Fly resource page.
