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News & Media Membership: New online Pilot Information Center launches

Membership: New online Pilot Information Center launches

Platform replaces, enhances AOPA Hangar

May 1, 2020 By Alyssa J. Cobb
Ask just about any aviation-related question, and AOPA will have an answer and resources for you.
Preflight May 2020
Ask AOPA

Back in the saddle

Helping returning pilots to succeed in the sky

By Craig Brown

Q: I am an instructor and I am working with a 76-hour private pilot who has not flown in 30 years. I would like to let him solo so he can practice maneuvers and procedures while we are working on his flight review. Is that possible?

A: For your pilot to solo, since he is not a student pilot, he must first receive a successful flight review endorsement. However, much like a student pilot, there will come a time when you believe he can safely fly alone, but may not be quite ready to fly a long cross-country, for instance.

You are teaching a guy who hasn’t flown since George H.W. Bush was in the White House, airspace was named and not lettered, and a loran was a hot piece of navigational technology. Clearly, there needs to be some ground training that will take more than the mandated one hour, and multiple training flights that will more than satisfy the one-hour flight time requirement as well.

When you are comfortable with his flying and he is safe, give him the endorsement. Then he can fly alone to practice, and you can fly dual as you see fit to work on what you saw that needs improving. One does not have to be an ace in cross-country navigation, or instrument flying, or steep turns to solo, for example. Use those as your guide. Make sure he is safe performing all the typical presolo maneuvers and demonstrates appropriate knowledge, sign him off, and then work to get him up to speed on everything else.

Contact AOPA’s Pilot Information Center for more information at 800-872-2672, pic.aopa.org, or [email protected].

Craig Brown is a senior aviation technical specialist in the AOPA Pilot Information Center.

Now, you can get those answers easily—and around the clock—through AOPA’s online Pilot Information Center, a question-and-answer platform that replaces the AOPA Hangar discussion area. The Pilot Information Center keeps everything from the AOPA Hangar—dashboard, members area, groups, events, and marketplace—and it enhances the discussion area. AOPA Hangar users can use their existing login. Members who haven’t used the platform can log in to the Pilot Information Center with their AOPA.org username and password.

The question-and-answer discussion area is similar to Quora (a popular online platform for people to ask questions and share insights and knowledge) and will allow you to submit your own questions or browse popular categories of questions from other pilots and see the answers and resources that AOPA’s experts provided.

It’s another avenue for you to connect directly with AOPA on a personal level. You’ll interact with the experienced staff in AOPA’s Pilot Information Center—the folks you currently call, chat with online, or email—as well as other AOPA subject matter experts and editors.

You will also be able to connect with other pilots by contributing answers and resources, and voting questions and answers up and down based on how much the information helped you. Popular discussion categories focus on flight training, aircraft and equipment, legal and insurance, medical, ratings and certificates, drones, and air safety, among other topics.

“We are happy to announce our transition from the AOPA Hangar to the Pilot Information Center to better serve you—our pilot community,” said Tom Zecha, AOPA senior manager of the Pilot Information Center. “We invite you to ask questions, contribute answers, earn badges, and join our growing pilot community online.”

[email protected]

NOTICE OF ANNUAL MEETING OF MEMBERS

The annual meeting of the members of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association will be held at 9 a.m. on Thursday, May 21, 2020, at the headquarters of AOPA, 421 Aviation Way, Frederick, Maryland, 21701, located on the Frederick Municipal Airport (FDK), for the purpose of receiving reports and transacting such other business as may properly come before the meeting, specifically including the election of trustees. If you are not able to attend, but would like to appoint your voting proxy, please visit aopa.org/myaccount or call 800-872-2672. —Justine A. Harrison, Secretary

Alyssa J. Miller

Alyssa J. Cobb

The former senior director of digital media, Alyssa J. Cobb was on the AOPA staff from 2004 until 2023. She is a flight instructor, and loves flying her Cessna 170B with her husband and two children. Alyssa also hosts the weekly Fly with AOPA show on the AOPA Pilot Video YouTube channel.
Go to Alyssa J. Cobb's Profile

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