The post How to pass your CFI Checkride the first time appeared first on 110knots.com.

The industry’s recent failures to acknowledge proper ground training has been a slow burning fuse on a (lack of) knowledge bomb for some time. Lighting of the fuse dates back to when “Ground School”, taught by a living breathing CFI in a hangar, transitioned to VHS video tapes. As the transition continued to “Online Ground School”, a for profit business, that takes money out of your local CFI’s wallet and endures zero accountability when it comes to taking your practical exam, was born.

Two disturbing trends have developed in the aviation training industry. First, Flight Instructors are shying away from doing any ground training and allowing “online” courses to pick up the slack. You cannot ask an online course questions in real time unless there is an instructor present online to ask. With the online training programs offered you can certainly garner great knowledge. Unfortunately, the application of that knowledge is hard to come by. This is where one on one ground training with the CFI comes in. This shift has slowly occurred since the early 80’s with the invention of the VCR and has significantly accelerated with the rapid growth over the last six years in the online offerings in the aviation training industry. Second, Flight Schools and Flight Instructors are opting for more flight training in place of proper ground training. Even more disturbing, that flight training is at a level of trial and error, rather than precisely planned instruction with precisely planned expectations of outcomes.

Part 61 specifically uses two very distinct terms to address the required training prior to making application for a pilot certificate or rating, “Ground Training” and “Flight Training”. The term “Ground School” is a marketing term to generate interest in a group-learning environment specifically to prepare for the written exam. Do not get me wrong, I am not bashing any type of ground school, I actually cherish the opportunity to teach them… in person. Unfortunately, online ground schools currently teach to the rote and/or understanding level of knowledge, not the application of that knowledge. This requires human-to-human interaction with a local CFI. Online ground schools prepare you for the written test, not the ground portion of the practical test. Although the price tag of the online ground schools seems to make the cost of training a bit less expensive for the client, lately, they remove a significant and important piece of the training puzzle to becoming a competent and safe pilot. The local CFI. Thus, driving up the local flight training costs due to lack of ground training preparation.

If you read part 61.57, 105, 107, 125, 127, 129, 186, 187… every one of them states, “…must receive and log ground training…” How have we ventured so far from what is required to become a competent and safe pilot?

As you can see, the old “ground training is not required for part 61” or “not as much ground training is required for part 61” excuses are an absolute farce. Anyone spouting these rumors needs a remedial class in the FAR/AIM. Ground training is required for all parts of Part 61 training; accomplished by a current and competent CFI (preferably the recommending CFI), on the topics listed in each of the respective sections. Where the ground training is logged is optional, preferably in the applicants logbook (usually near the back part of the logbook), and that log is presented to the examiner at the time of the exam to qualify the applicant to take the exam. Unfortunately, you cannot endorse someone for an exam if there is no record of the training received for that endorsement. Specific ground and flight topics demand coverage via ground training per the regulations. A professional educator (the CFI) should be documenting that training, in detail, in the learner’s logbook or training record. Just as if it were a flight lesson. This is what your clients are paying for! Interacting with a local CFI is the only way to allow the transition to occur from rote or understanding level, to the application level of learning (yes, I said it again).

Flight Instructors, you are the front line training manager of your client’s safety and training! I am sorry to tell you, if you attended a flight school where one on one, in-person, ground training was looked down upon or seen unnecessary, your flight school failed you abysmally! Any flight school or CFI that downplays the importance of one on one, CFI to learner, ground training should be avoided at all costs. This red flag denotes a flight school that exists solely as a revenue generating business rather than an institution of higher learning with a grasp of how to achieve desired outcomes through a proper training syllabus. At these schools, there is an over reliance on “self-study” and “online” training programs. Any flight school that is making this shift (from in-person to solely on-line) is setting their clients and business up for failure. Not just bankruptcy, but a failure in safe efficient operations leading to potential incidents and accidents.

Now, let’s do the math…

75 hrs of flight training at $250/hr = $18,750

35 hrs ground training at $50/hr ($1750) + 40 hrs flight training at $250/hr ($10,000)= $11750

As you can see, proper ground training can save a significant chunk of change on your overall cost of training! Normally, proper ground training inlaid with flight training can save up to 25-33% on overall (current) costs. Flight schools, ground training can free up resources on your flight schedule saving the cost of buying another airplane for your fleet and the operating costs associated with that additional aircraft.

Like it or not, you are going to spend time with your CFI or Learner doing ground training, and I encourage you to like it. CFI’s, you are paid the same whether inflight or on the ground (or at least you should be). Regulation and ethics demand you spend time on the ground with your learner covering the required topics in Part 61 for the certificate being sought. The topics are not difficult and are easily found in the Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge or the Airplane Flying Handbook. Yes, both books can be written better… it is what it is.

Finally, you cannot endorse someone for an exam if ground training has not been accomplished via an approved process per Part 61.

Fly safe, fly smart!

Pete

The above article was posted with permission from Vaper Global Aviation LLC.

About Vapor Global Aviation LLC

Vapor Global Aviation, LLC provides top quality flight and ground training to pilots and aircraft owners seeking to pursue continued excellence in aviation.

Established as an LLC in November of 2019 by retired Air Force Pilot, Pete Reddan, Vapor Global Aviation can provide the following ground and flight training services under Federal Aviation Regulations Part 61 and 91:

FAA Practical Exams

Spin, Upset and Recovery Training (see below) GA ASEL/AMEL Instruction

TRAINING NOW AVAILABLE

Concerned about entering a spin? Loss of Control in flight? Events occurring outside your skill set? Fear of the aviation unknown? The remedy, Vapor Global Aviation’s (VGA’s) Upset Prevention & Recovery Training (UPRT) Programs. Your instructor, US Air Force Pilot, Pete “Vapor” Reddan, Lt Col (ret). He spent nine years out of 20 teaching fellow USAF pilots aerobatics and upset recovery techniques in the T-6 Texan II and three years providing UPRT to Federal Bureau of Investigation pilots. A true spin/upset recovery specialist! VGA is currently booking UPRT single day one on one/two classes for March and early April in the greater Memphis area (M04 or KUTA). Contact us at vaporglobalaviation@gmail.com for more information. Not from Memphis, fly in, or he’ll come to you.

Website https://www.facebook.com/groups/2482993451737874/

Headquarters: Greater Memphis, Tennessee

Founded 2019

The post Where Did All the Ground Training Go? appeared first on 110knots.com.

Where our training falls short: 

Truth is, if you didn’t conduct your initial training in a mountainous area, all of your flying has likely occurred at lower altitudes (below 6000’ MSL). This can result in a huge gap in our practical training and reading dry content in a book doesn’t always drive this home. 

My experiences with Hypoxia: 

My first experience with Hypoxic Hypoxia (the altitude type) was on a flight from NJ to Oshkosh WI for EAA AirVenture back in 2009. I was flying right seat in my friend Frank’s Cirrus SR-22. My job was to run the radios. He brought along an oxygen bottle and briefed me on its use. Having never used oxygen, I thought this was a bit overkill. Heck, the FAA says we don’t need it, so we are good. Right? But after a few hours of flying at just 10’000 feet, I started missing radio calls. I didn’t realize it. I thought everything was just “GREAT”. Frank finally turned to me and asked “Mike, check your oxygen levels, Cleveland center keeps calling us”. I looked at my O2 stats on the meter and saw just 85% (I could write a post on these devices, but just know, what it reads can be much higher than your real O2 levels.) “WOW,” I thought. I turned my oxygen up on the regulator and POOF, the lights came on and I was back to myself. At the time, I was in terrible physical shape. I was overweight and did zero cardio. Now that I’m 30 pounds lighter, I’m comfortable with long flights at altitudes up to 12,000 feet, but I’m still careful.

My second experience with Hypoxic Hypoxia was on a long IFR night flight from Portland Maine back to NJ in a Cessna 172sp. I was flying with my friend, we’ll call him “Bob”. Bob is a happy guy, he is so happy, in my opinion, that he was born to be a photographer “SMILE EVERYONE!” (which is what he has done, quite successfully I might add). We were dodging thunderstorms all over the northeast and ended up being vectored to Albany until finally crossing the front. Just as we turned south, he snapped at me. “This is shit, this just sucks, this is going to take forever!” I responded “Wow Bob, I think you are hypoxic” “NO, I’m not!”. We had been flying at around 7,000 feet for over an hour. I requested a lower altitude and was soon granted a descent to 5,000 feet. A few minutes later, Bob turned to me and said “man, isn’t this great!” I responded, “welcome back.” The scary thing is that he had no recollection of the outburst. Hypoxia can have a HUGE impact on your performance and personality, even at lower altitudes. 

Video: Crew becomes Hypoxic at altitude:

What the FAA has to say about Hypoxia: 

FAR 91.211 outlines the basic requirements for oxygen use in pressurized and unpressurized aircraft (we’ll skip pressurized aircraft for this post), but we should understand that these are requirements, or in this case, minimums, and they aren’t necessarily the most conservative options. Let’s look instead at the AIM, keeping in mind my two stories above. But first a note: if you regularly fly at, let’s say 10,000 feet and run marathons for fun, you may be fine holding off on Oxygen use until the FARs kick in. But if you’ve never flown above 6,000’ and enjoy Popeyes Chicken Sandwiches on a weekly basis, I’d recommend an O2 bottle for that trip to Oshkosh in your new Bonanza. Back to business. According to the AIM, Night vision starts to drop off at altitudes as low as 5,000 feet, and functions start to drop off at 10,000 feet during the day. It’s for this reason that they recommend oxygen use above these altitudes. Everyone is different. Best practice, use common sense and err on the side of safety.  

Time at altitude is what matters: 

In FAR 91.211 they leave some room for time at altitude. For example: From above 12,500 – 14,000 feet you don’t need supplemental oxygen unless you fly up there for more than 30 minutes. Above 14,000 up to 15,000 the crew must be on oxygen. Above 15,000’ you need to provide oxygen to your passengers, but they don’t have to use it. But why the 30 minute rule? This is because the effect of reduced pressure in the lungs takes time. The higher you go, the less pressure there is, so the less time you have before feeling the effects. 

So why even allow 12,500 – 14,000 for 30 minutes? The first example I give to my students is a pilot crossing a mountain range. He or she may only need to fly above 12,500 for 10 minutes, until clear of terrain. The other example I use are skydive pilots. They spend a few minutes at these altitudes before dropping their screaming passengers out the back door. Jumpers away! So what’s so magic about 12,500 feet? Nothing really. In my opinion, if you’re flying at, let’s say, 12,000 for more than 30 minutes, you should have oxygen available. The next question that many DPS’s will ask is, can you just fly to 12,500’ for 29 minutes, and then descend back to, let’s say, 11,000’ and back up to 12,500? Legally, yes, will ATC allow it? Most likely, no. Is that the intent of the rule? No. So again, stay on the side of safety and avoid it. 

Types of Hypoxia from most common to least common: 

Hypoxic Hypoxia (the altitude type) 

As we climb, air is less dense. Simply put, for every cubic foot of air, there is less and less oxygen. You’re breathing, but your lungs can’t absorb the oxygen in the air because there is less of it. Factors can include, but are not limited to, smoking, general fitness, lack of sleep etc. Simply put, turn up your Oxygen and you should be better. Easy…. Unless you didn’t bring Oxygen. Then It’s time to get to a lower altitude! 

Hypemic Hypoxia (Think Carbon Monoxide) 

This is the reduced ability of your blood to carry the oxygen we absorb via the lungs. You can turn that oxygen bottle up, but things remain bad. It’s TIME TO LAND! ASAP! The way I explain this to my students is to imagine a conveyor belt. The empty buckets represent your hemoglobin (the part that carries the oxygen to your organs). Carbon monoxide has an affinity (attraction) to hemoglobin and BLOCKS the receptors before the oxygen can bond with it. Simply put, imagine the carbon monoxide as a blocker that fills the buckets before Oxygen has a chance to be carried. Over time, your oxygen levels drop more and more until you pass out. Then it’s over. Practically put, if you smell exhaust fumes, shut off the heat, open the fresh air vents and get on the ground. I had this happen once when I was a brand new Private Pilot. I had a splitting headache all day. Not fun, but I got on the ground right away. Other causes are anemia, hemorrhage, hemoglobin abnormalities, sulfa drugs and nitrates, but are less common in aviation. 

Stagnant Hypoxia: 

Blood flow is compromised. Most common cause? The example I use is high G maneuvers. Blood is pulled from your brain and you go night night! Other causes are exposure to extreme cold (rapid decompression in a pressurized aircraft) or the failure of your heart to pump blood effectively. In that case, you have bigger problems. 

Histoxic Hypoxia: 

Think TOXIC. Drugs and or Alcohol (this is why the FAA is so strict on what RX drugs you take). My example to my students here is a person goes drinking all night, then goes flying because they feel fine. At 10,000 feet they are drunk again. Why? The cells are impaired and can’t use the oxygen. This is also why you feel BUZZED when drinking. Same thing.   

In closing, the tricky part about hypoxia is that our bodies don’t have an adequate warning system for it. You feel great, then you feel sleepy, then it’s over. There have been many examples of tragic accidents due to this silent killer. It’s best that you understand the risks and know your warning signs. If you’d like to learn your warning signs, in a safe environment, you can attend high altitude training in a hyperbaric chamber. Here’s a link to the FAA website where you can schedule this training. Take your camera, it should make for a funny home video that you can dust off during family events.   https://www.faa.gov/pilots/training/airman_education/aerospace_physiology/

References: 

AIM Page 535 – 536 http://www.faraim.org/aim/aim-4-03-14-535.html

FAA Beware of Hypoxia By Larry Boshers https://www.faa.gov/pilots/training/airman_education/topics_of_interest/hypoxia/

FAR 91.211 https://www.law.cornell.edu/cfr/text/14/91.211

The post Hypoxia; The silent killer appeared first on 110knots.com.

At the part 141 school that I teach at, students don’t solo until nearly the end of their training program. Many have negative opinions of this practice, but rules are rules and I don’t mind the extra time to prepare my students for our busy class C airport environment. When I first started working as a CFI (part 61 school at the time), my chief would endorse most of the students for their solos. I was okay with this practice since it afforded me some protection from potential negative marks on my certificate, in the event that something went wrong. But once I started at my new school, that would ultimately change.

Do I like soloing students?

The answer is both yes and no. It is as rewarding to the instructor when a student solos as it is for the student. It is also scary as hell! When you as a student solo, you feel in control. You have been well prepared (see tips below) and you knew how you felt (mentally and physically). I, as an instructor, can’t get into the student’s head (as much as the student may say otherwise). Maybe the student is pressured by their company to “finish up”, perhaps their roommate soloed the previous day and they don’t want to look bad. Maybe he or she has a camera crew ready to celebrate their solo when they return, or maybe they were so excited that they didn’t sleep last night. Whatever it is, as a CFI, I can’t always tell.

The Day Of the Solo

Before I solo any student, I’ll sit in the airplane and brief him / her. I might say, “You are the pilot in command today, I’m just going along for the ride, show me what you’ve got!” From that point on, I don’t say a word. Did the student mess up on the radio and misread a clearance? Figure it out. Have a bad MAG check? Figure it out. Airspeed fails on takeoff (happened twice)? Figure it out. Bad touchdown or approach? Go around.

Point is, if I help, I’m putting their life at risk when I finally get out of the airplane.

My standard practice is to have the student make one normal landing on a spot (500′ markers on 9R or 27L at SFB) I wont say a thing. I cross my legs and my arms so I wont “help”. I won’t even point out traffic unless it’s a safety issue (and then the solo is in serious doubt). I’m not looking for perfect landings. I’m looking for: 1. On the mains, 2. On the center line 3. No drift left or right and finally 4. Aligned with the runway. Then it’s time to bring the airplane to a stop. I learned early on, NEVER HELP WITH STOPPING THE AIRPLANE (unless you are about to exit the runway into the grass). This is where we see most of our incidents during solo operations. Runway excursions, or in other words, demolition derby, airplane addition!

The next landing will have a twist. On upwind, I’ll request a short approach, or if the pattern is empty, I’ll ask for it at the last moment while on downwind (the only time I make a radio call). Then I’ll chop the power. I won’t say a thing, instead I’ll wait for the student’s reaction. Made a good landing? They are one landing away from solo. Totally mess it up (diving for the runway etc.) and we need to talk. Come up short? Now what? The student better say “I’ll land here sir.” I’ll always save the last landing as a “normal” landing. I don’t want the student flying a pattern that won’t work on his / her solo.

Good approaches make good landings!

We’ve all heard something to this effect, and there’s a reason. It’s as true as the word of God himself. Cross the numbers in a Cessna just a few knots fast and you’ll find yourself floating past your touchdown point by a mile. Worse yet, if you focus on your spot, you’ll drive that nose wheel into the ground followed by a high bounce as your 30+ year old training airplane screams OUCH! At this point THE STUDENT MUST GO AROUND! Make sure your student understands that he / she will be flying a lighter airplane without your fat butt aboard. 65 knots in a Cessna 172 on a solo is just too fast. 60 is better. 55 is too slow. My students don’t solo unless they can master airspeed control, but how do I teach this?

Teaching stabilized approaches

From the abeam point until you are on final, it’s all pretty much procedure (unless SFB tower has you extend your downwind miles away). Power 1500 RPM, Speed below 110, flaps 10, trim two turns nose up, speed 85, 45 degree point, turn base, speed check below 85, flaps 20, speed 75, speed 70, turning final.. Now what? When I first started teaching I’d say “pitch for airspeed, power for altitude”. The statement is still true, but I found my students pitching up and down chasing the airspeed on final. What I’ve found works better is to teach them to “fly to the numbers.” “Focus on the runway numbers and keep them in the same spot”. This results in a stable approach. When I teach it, I normally fly and talk. “I’m looking at the numbers, now I’m glancing at my speed, back to the numbers.” The final 100 feet should be by feel. No more looking inside. Everything is OUTSIDE. “Eyes outside!”

The landing

Now that you are approaching the numbers, shift your focus down the runway. Not all the way down, just about 1000 – 2000 feet. If you look too far out, you’ll round out high, if you look too close, you’ll fly it into the runway. Now let’s “try not to land”. Retard the power “little power”. Eyes OUTSIDE. “Wide vision (peripheral) for height above the runway.” Rudder to point the airplane down the runway, yoke to stay there. “Hold it off. Hold it. More, more, and, touchdown!” IT ISN’T OVER! “Yoke back, back, back, back, Breaks….. Rudder. Breaks. Almost stopped, now, turn. NEVER let anyone rush you. Eyes outside!” Check out this article from Bold Method on the subject.

Before I leave my students on their own, I remind them with the same word repeated three times. “SAFETY, SAFETY, SAFETY.” Nothing else matters!

Now it’s time. If you’re like me, this is a good time to breathe and say a little prayer. Off they go! Make sure they know: “If you have a problem on the takeoff, you have one call to make, ‘am I flying or aborting?”’ Nothing else. I once had a guy almost take out the glide-slope antenna when his window popped open on his first solo. He never made that mistake again. He actually turned out to be one of my best solo students.

Monitor the flight, especially the wind. I had one guy get caught in a strong crosswind right after his last takeoff. Three go-arounds later, he came in for a perfect crosswind landing. When I asked, “why did you go around so many times? The approach looked great.” He responded, “Sir, you said that I must be on the center line, I was a little off.” This from the guy who would argue with me that his landing was perfect as he nearly cut the grass! I love it when a student learns the importance of what we teach.

Student Tips:

• Are you scared? “Great! That will keep you safe. Just don’t let it overwhelm you. Just keep telling yourself, you know what you are doing.”
• The center line is safety. Treat it like a high wire. Stay on the wire!
• The approach should resemble a train on a track. Stay on that track all the way to the runway.
• If anything looks bad, go around! Don’t worry about anything except safety.

Instructor Tips:

• Use a handheld radio to follow them. If they are making radio mistakes, it may be a sign of stress and you might want to end the solo.
• If needed, take a second to give your student some tips after each lap in the pattern. Otherwise, a thumbs up will do! I walk up to the airplane (safely) and talk to them. “Remember, patience with the landing.”
• Make sure to give them praise. “How was that landing?” “Sir, it was hard!” “Yes, but you stayed on the center line and kept flying it all the way to a stop. Next time, just give it more time to settle in, remember, don’t land.”
• Admire the Cessna 172. That airplane can really take beating and keep on going! She is amazing.

Pre-solo checklist. Ask yourself:

1. Can my student make a go/no-go call (winds above their limits etc.)?
2. Can my student tell me where other traffic in the pattern is at any time?
3. Can my student fly a stabilized approach?
4. Can my student correct for wind drift (in the pattern and on landing)?
5. Can my student land on the mains, every time?
6. Can my student keep the airplane on the center-line?
7. Can my student tell me what he / she will do if the engine quits after takeoff and beyond the runway? Ask this while you are flying. “BANG engine failure, where are we going?” He / She better not say, “back to the airport” while 200′ AGL!
8. Communicate with ATC without your help.
9. You’ve endorsed them and made copies of EVERYTHING.

Soloing a student can be one of the most rewarding things you will do as an instructor, but only if done safely. Remember to take your time and be prepared to unsat a solo attempt if things don’t go well. Explain to the student that it just isn’t their day to solo. Heck, blame it on the weather if you have to. There is no better feeling than watching your student apply the knowledge you’ve given them when it really counts- when you aren’t there to do it for them! 

Fly safe! 

The post Soloing a Student Pilot. Tips From a CFI appeared first on 110knots.com.