June 2, 2017, issue of 'AOPA ePilot: Flight Training Edition'


VOL 17, ISSUE 22	June 2, 2017

Training Tips

Sponsored by Aircraft Spruce

Call waiting

"Radar contact, proceed on course," the departure controller says when you switch over from the tower frequency after takeoff on your solo cross-country. Now you need to contact flight service to activate your VFR flight plan. Can you change frequencies? Read more >

Flight Training News

Article

Holdshort scheduling software goes mobile

A former flight school dispatcher who sought scheduling efficiency designed his own program to coordinate aircraft, instructors, and students to maximize productivity. (Image courtesy of Holdshort.) Read more >

Podcast

Unpredictable dilemma

The AOPA Air Safety Institute's new There I was... podcast series invites you into the cockpit with pilots across the aviation community. In this first episode, U.S. National Aerobatic Champion Patty Wagstaff recounts a Cessna 185 flight in southwestern Alaska that tested her ability to keep cool under pressure. Learn about the decisions she made that got everyone back on the ground safely. Listen to her story >

Flash-based; login required

Perceiving pressure patterns

What should you expect when frontal boundaries collide? Brush up on the elements with the AOPA Air Safety Institute's Weather Wise: Air Masses and Fronts online course. Take the course >

Phillips 66 offers Young Eagles training award

Phillips 66 Aviation has announced a $13,200 flight training award that coincides with the company's ninetieth anniversary and helps support the Experimental Aircraft Association's Young Eagles program. Submissions are due by June 16. The aviation fuel company also reminded pilots who give Young Eagles flights that they can earn a $1-per-gallon rebate for Phillips fuel used during those flights.

Scholarships

Article

Flying Musicians names scholarship winners

The Flying Musicians Association has awarded four solo scholarships, including its first to a Canadian student. (Photo courtesy of FMA.) Read more >

AOPA Live

AOPA Live This Week

Fly a fighter; Earn your sea legs

Feeling the need for speed? Fly an A-4 jet fighter, and find out how you could put one in your hangar. Flying off the pavement: Learn what it takes to get your seaplane rating. Also this week, a famous actor-pilot sadly parts with his favorite ride. Watch AOPA Live This Week®, June 1 >

Training Products and Resources

Tool helps pilots twist off stuck Cessna oil dipsticks

Cincinnati high school students helped design Sporty's Pilot Shop's Dipstick Removal Tool to loosen over-tightened oil dipsticks on Cessna training aircraft. The T-shaped plastic handle provides enough torque to free sticky dipsticks, and the device only works in one direction to prevent further over-tightening. It is available online for $14.95.

King Schools offers discount for updated drone test prep

Aspiring drone pilots can take advantage of $99 introductory pricing until July 1 for King Schools' updated Part 107 Drone Pilot License Test Prep Course. John and Martha King take turns explaining airspace, aviation charts, weather, safety, and aviation concepts using their signature humorous style that has trained manned-aircraft pilots for decades.

Note: Products listed have not been evaluated by ePilot editors unless otherwise noted. AOPA assumes no responsibility for products or services listed or for claims or actions by manufacturers or vendors.

Member Benefits

AOPA Aviation Finance

Tips to determine the value of an aircraft

An aircraft seller, lender, and buyer all have different opinions on the value of an aircraft. Learn the different perspectives of each and how to establish an accurate aircraft value. Read more >

Pilot Protection Services

Over gross weight

In aircraft such as a Cessna 182, in which the landing weight is less than the takeoff weight, the FAA treats landing over gross weight because of an emergency differently from intentional operation over gross weight. Read more >

Blogs

The no-longer-annual recurrent training

Airline pilot and Flight Training blogger Chip Wright explains why more airline carriers are moving away from annual recurrent training to nine-month training cycles. Read more >

Instrument Tip

AOPA Pilot article

On instruments: How low can you go?

In the instrument environment, what's the difference between a minimum en route altitude and a minimum vectoring altitude? AOPA Editor at Large Tom Horne explains. Read more >

Plane Spotter

Trailblazing Tailwind

The late Sylvester "Steve" Wittman raced airplanes into his 80s; managed the airport in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, that now bears his name; and designed and built airplanes long before doing so was an activity pursued by thousands of individual owner/builders. Many still embrace Wittman's ideas by constructing the Wittman Tailwind, a high-wing, two-place taildragger designed for "high speed on low horsepower." Introduced in 1953 and powered by engines of 85 to 135 horsepower, Wittman's Tailwind was the first experimental aircraft certified to carry a non-revenue passenger, according to Aircraft Spruce.

Final Exam

Question

Can I complete my sport pilot training in a Cessna 152?

Answer

No. You can complete your pre-solo training in the Cessna 152, but you must transition to a light sport aircraft before you solo. You also must take your flight test in an LSA. Interestingly, if you hold a medical certificate, you can solo the Cessna 152, even though you intend to become a sport pilot. In that case, you must transition to, and take the flight test in, an LSA.

Did you know that student pilots who join AOPA are three times more likely to complete their flight training? Membership includes unlimited access to aviation information by phone (800/USA-AOPA, weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 6 p.m. Eastern time) or from AOPA Online. Got a question for our technical services staff? Contact AOPA.

Career Opportunities

AOPA career opportunities

Join the AOPA team

Ever dream of turning your passion for aviation into a career? AOPA is looking for a copy editor, IT systems administrator, product marketing specialist, legislative affairs vice president, customer service representative, airports and state advocacy vice president, flight training business support senior director, flight training technology senior director, project manager, UI/front-end developer, and legal services plan attorney. Learn more about these and other AOPA career opportunities on AOPA Online >

Education & Seminars

Flight Instructor Refresher Courses

Jun 3-4	Charlotte, North Carolina; Columbus, Ohio; and Tempe, Arizona
Jun 10-11	Lake Mary, Florida; and Santa Clara, California
Jun 24-25	Ashburn, Virginia; and Bloomington, Minnesota
Jul 15-16	Englewood, New Jersey; and Jacksonville, Florida

For a complete schedule, see AOPA Online. Can't make it in person? Sign up for the Air Safety Institute's Online eFIRC.

Safety Seminars

Jul 26-29

Oshkosh, Wisconsin

Topics vary—for details and a complete schedule, see AOPA Online.

Rusty Pilots Seminars

Jun 3	Red Lodge, Montana; Fort Worth, Texas; Englewood, Colorado; Truckee, California; Selkirk, New York; Akron, Ohio; Brainerd, Minnesota; Thermal, California; and Seattle, Washington
Jun 10	Jacksonville, Florida; Toughkenamon, Pennsylvania; Basye, Virginia; Madison, Wisconsin; Meridianville, Alabama; Torrance, California; Rochester, New York; West Chicago, Illinois; and Henderson, Nevada
Jun 11	Farmingdale, New York
Jun 17	Spokane, Washington; Moraine, Ohio; Northampton, Massachusetts; Manitowoc, Wisconsin; Forty Fort, Pennsylvania; and Princeton, New Jersey

For a complete schedule, visit the AOPA Hangar. (Log in to the AOPA Hangar using your AOPA website username and password to view these events.)

Aviation Calendar

Want something to do this weekend? Planning an aviation getaway? See AOPA's enhanced calendar of events. You can filter events, add an event, or search all events in the calendar. (Log in to the AOPA Hangar using your AOPA website username and password to search the events or to add an event.) Before you take off on an adventure, make sure you check our current aviation weather provided by Jeppesen.

For airport details, including FBO fuel prices, see AOPA Airports. AOPA does not endorse or assume responsibility for the events submitted and listed in the calendar.

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ePilot Flight Training Editors:
Alyssa Miller
Jim Moore
Dan Namowitz
David Tulis

Production Team:
Elizabeth Linares
Melissa Whitehouse

Contributors:
Mike Collins
Sarah Deener
Dave Hirschman
Tom Horne
Warren Morningstar
Jill W. Tallman
Ian J. Twombly
Julie Summers Walker

Advertise in ePilot:
Gary Brennan, 301/695-2052

Eastern and Central United States and International:
Jeff Rockwood, 301/695-2089

Western United States:
Tom Linton, 301/695-2055

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