July 06 issue of Flight School Business

Flight School Business

VOL. 11-ISSUE 14-July 6, 2021

TRAINING TRENDS

Flight School Spotlight: Flyt Aviation

An Atlanta flight school has thrived since beginning operation in May 2020, growing from one leased Cessna 172 and one instructor to eight aircraft and more than a dozen instructors in little more than a year despite the disruption, travel restrictions, and economic woes caused by the coronavirus pandemic. (Photo courtesy of Leigh Hubner.) READ MORE ›

NEWS

DPE reform report reflects 'clean sheet approach'

The FAA's system for managing its designated pilot examiners could be in for a 12-point overhaul proposed in a study released June 17. A surge in demand for pilots, slowed by the coronavirus pandemic, is making a comeback, and the FAA should upgrade its designated pilot examiner (DPE) program to meet industry’s needs, says a working group that was encouraged to "think with a clean sheet" about how to modernize the DPE system. READ MORE ›

Become a social media maven with help from Flight School Connector

Social media can be a powerful tool for your business if you know your audience and if used correctly. On the next Flight School Connector, join us to chat with AOPA's social media marketer to learn about some of the ways this media format can be harnessed. AOPA’s Flight School Connector will be held Wednesday, July 7, from 12 noon to 1 p.m. Eastern time. Sign up at the link to reserve your space.

Airliner, primary sims announced

Flight simulator companies Alsim and Frasca announced advanced technology designed to boost learning for career airline pilots and primary student pilots alike. Alsim's Airliner is a hybrid conventional control or fly-by-wire commercial simulator that can train pilots how to operate Boeing, Airbus, Embraer, or Sukhoi aircraft. Meanwhile Frasca International and Epic Flight Academy have developed a flight training curriculum that can save students time and money by learning and performing basic maneuvers first in a Cessna 172 flight simulator and then transferring the knowledge to an aircraft. READ MORE ›

Flight school set to open at West Virginia airport

A flight school resulting from a partnership between Yeager Airport (CRW) in Charleston, West Virginia, and Marshall University is set for an August opening. The Bill Noe Flight School includes a 10,500 square-foot classroom building, a 12,000 square-foot hangar, and an aircraft apron. A financial study from the Yeager Airport board notes the total cost of all three items is around $4.1 million, according to WCHS.com.

POLL

Block time

Does your flight school sell block time? Tell us in this week's poll.

Results

In the June 22, 2021, poll we wanted to know whether you have additional training policies for night rentals by newly certificated private pilots. Here are the results:

MARKETING

Money out, customers in

Are your marketing dollars doing their job? The only way to find out is to measure some critical variables and determine whether dollars spent in marketing affected those variables. William Woodbury shows you how to measure cost per lead, cost per customer, conversion rate, customer lifetime value, and return on investment for a specific campaign. READ MORE >

QUICK TIP

Want some free advertising? List your business on search engines so that your flight school shows up when people search for flight training on the Internet or a mobile device. According to USAToday, you can get listed free at Google, Bing, and Yelp.

SAFETY

'There I Was…' Engine failure near Mount St. Helens

On an IFR flight from Bend, Oregon, to Vashon Island, Washington, Craig Beles and his friend and CFI Truman O’Brien experienced an engine failure in their PA-28 Cherokee 140. Over vast wilderness with no ideal landing options, the pair were forced to put the airplane down in the treetops near Mount St. Helens. Listen to Episode 34 of the AOPA Air Safety Institute podcast here.

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Flight School Business Editor:
Jill W. Tallman

Production Specialist:
Sylvia Horne

Advertising and Sales Specialist:
Donna Stoner

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