September 5 2017 issue of Flight School Business

VOL. 7-ISSUE 18-9/5/2017

TRAINING TRENDS

Finding ‘fence kids’

Airports located near residential areas are prime viewing for young people. With modern security requirements, the fence is as close as they can get. Air-Mods Flight Center in Robbinsville, New Jersey, is reaching out to those “fence kids” to bring them into the aviation community. “We always go out of our way to invite kids to the school” and come back with their parents for an introductory flight, said Flight School Director Ilissa Skinner. Many don’t come back, but “some do,” she said. “And that makes it all worth the effort.” READ MORE ›

NEWS

Hurricane Harvey deluges Texas, closes airfields

Airport closings, flooding, and storm damage from Hurricane Harvey hit the Texas general aviation community as the storm pounded the Gulf Coast with 130-mph winds, record rainfall, and mass evacuations extending through Houston. General aviation relief organizations quickly mobilized to help. READ MORE ›

AOPA files complaints over FBO fees

AOPA has filed FAA Part 13 complaints over egregious FBO pricing practices at Illinois’s Waukegan National Airport, North Carolina’s Asheville Regional Airport, and Florida’s Key West International Airport. READ MORE ›

ERAU to host webinar on flying careers

What’s the status of the pilot shortage? How can your flight school steer customers on a path to a flying career? Get your questions answered Sept. 14 when Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University hosts a webinar from 2 to 3 p.m. Eastern. Panelists include Joey Cook, manager of flight operations hiring and recruitment at ExpressJet; Chris Erlanson, president of Nashville Flight Training, and Chris Moser, director of AOPA’s Flight Training Initiative and Pilot Community Development. Register for the webinar here.

Low accident rate maintained as GA activity grows

New general aviation safety data suggest that a key accident rate remained at historic lows even as activity increased, the AOPA Air Safety Institute (ASI) announced Aug. 23. ASI said it will be reaching out to aircraft type clubs and other members of the GA community to achieve even more improvement. READ MORE ›

Eclipse draws thousands of aviators

Pilots flew to more than 240 general aviation airfields to witness the total solar eclipse that swept over the United States on Aug. 21. Airports parked the visitors on every conceivable parking spot on their ramps and in the grass. READ MORE ›

POLL

Meet the examiner

Does your flight school provide an opportunity to meet a designated pilot examiner before a practical test? Tell us in this week’s poll.

Results

In the Aug. 22, 2017, issue, we wanted to know how much you charge for an introductory flight. Here are the results:

<em>Flight School Business</em>

MARKETING

Lights, camera, action

You don’t need to be Steven Spielberg—but you do need to add videos to your flight school marketing strategy, says William Woodbury. He outlines 10 tips to get you started, even if you’ve never shot more than an iPhone video. READ MORE ›

QUICK TIP

If you hire flight instructors who will be independent contractors rather than employees, make sure they meet the definition of that term as laid out by the Internal Revenue Service. Otherwise, you could be held liable for employment taxes.

SAFETY

Tell your underwriter

Good news from the twenty-sixth Joseph T. Nall Report: The accident rate on noncommercial airplane flights has stabilized at a lower percentage, and helicopter accident rates continue to fall. Is it time to renegotiate your insurance policy? READ MORE ›

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Flight School Business Editor:
Jill W. Tallman

Production Specialist:
Sylvia Horne

Advertising Production Coordinator:
Donna Stoner

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