March 03 issue of Flight School Business

Flight School Business

VOL. 10-ISSUE 5-March 3, 2020

TRAINING TRENDS

Flight School Spotlight: Blue Line Aviation

Is it possible to consistently train high-quality pilots from zero experience through CFII in only six months? Blue Line Aviation in Raleigh, North Carolina, has set the bar high and is proving that it works. READ MORE ›

NEWS

Examiners urged to give more checkrides to cut down backlog

Flight training organizations are appealing the FAA’s 950 designated pilot examiners to take on more work this spring to ease a practical test bottleneck that has become a serious concern. The backlog is affecting the pilot production pipeline nationwide, according to Bob Rockmaker, president of the Flight School Association of North America. READ MORE ›

Georgia flight school shuts down; coronavirus cited as connection

Falcon Aviation Academy shut down its location at Newnan Coweta County Airport in Atlanta last week, the Newnan Times-Herald reported. The newspaper stated on its Facebook page that the shutdown "appears to be connected to the outbreak of the coronavirus in China." Falcon Aviation Academy trained Chinese aviation students at three locations in Georgia. Employees of the flight school said they were given no advance notice of the closure. No one answered the telephone at the flight school on March 2.

Piston trainer surge lifted GA market

Demand for piston trainers drove deliveries to numbers not seen in a decade, the General Aviation Manufacturers Association announced February 19. Business jet sales also soared to a 10-year high. The good news offset declines in turboprop and helicopter sales. READ MORE ›

CFI sets longest-distance aircraft 'wheelie'

A Virginia flight instructor kept the nosewheel of a Cessna 172 off the ground after landing long enough to set a Guinness World Record. Christopher Freeze touched down at a Southern California airport and kept rolling 14,319 feet. READ MORE ›

POLL

Coronavirus concerns

A Georgia flight school that primarily trains Chinese pilots shut down abruptly last week amid reports that the closure was connected to the coronavirus outbreak in China. Are you concerned about the coronavirus? Tell us in this week's poll.

Results

In the February 18, 2020, survey we asked whether your flight school offers in-person ground school. Here are the results.

MARKETING

The one-two punch: Facebook and webinars

Social media and network marketing are where it's at in today’s flight school world. Even the smallest flight school can get on targeting opportunities that don’t cost much and provide a potential for great return on investment. William Woodbury walks you through the process of creating, advertising, and hosting a live webinar. READ MORE >

QUICK TIP

We’re two months into 2020. Did you encounter hardships or challenges with your business in 2019? If you can learn from those situations, you'll be better positioned to grow this year. Blogger Rachel Strella shares business lessons she learned that she says can help readers do things differently in the new year.

SAFETY

Air Safety Institute releases 'Accident Case Study: Just a Short Flight'

On the afternoon of May 15, 2017, a Learjet 35A on a positioning flight from Philadelphia to Teterboro, New Jersey, crashed while circling to land at Teterboro in visual conditions. The NTSB found audio transcripts from the cockpit voice recorder that revealed dysfunctional cockpit operations between a task-saturated captain and an inexperienced first officer. The AOPA Air Safety Institute examines what went wrong in the video, Accident Case Study: Just a Short Flight.

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Flight School Business Editor:
Jill W. Tallman

Production Specialist:
Sylvia Horne

Advertising Production Coordinator:
Donna Stoner

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