Dealing With Confidence Problems!!!!

[mark8647]

I started learning to fly some time ago and have now done approx 30 hours and i have been solo, However here is my problem.

During my second solo flight i felt that i had made several errors that i shouldnt have and this shattered my confidence. I have spoke to my instructor and he has given me some great advice but i still cant seem to get myself back into the aircraft and crack on with the rest of the sylabous.

I often look up and see other GA aircraft and kick myself for not getting on with it but i still cant seem to get myself focused on finishing the coarse.

Desperatly searching for advice and other peoples experiences through their training.

Many thanks Mark8647:bored:

[pipertommy]

Confidence will grow from experience! To be safe pilot that is the main concern, safety...

Have you tried running through the flight in your head, basically Pre-Brief. This can include as much as you feel you require, such as arm chair flying, run through checks ect when you have a spare moment.

After the flight give yourself a De-Brief, write notes/points you want to improve on? Look over these notes in your own time.

This is what I do for most courses, this is like a very rough diary.

[jamie230985]

During my second solo flight i felt that i had made several errors that i shouldnt have and this shattered my confidence.

Mark, one thing you need to accept is that there is no such thing as a perfect flight, we all make mistakes you just have to learn from them.

E.G. a fellow instructor I know recently busted Heathrow TCA stopping landings for 11 minutes (costly mistake), he got taken to court by the CAA & got a fine because of it. But I bet my bottom dollar he will never make that mistake again!!

I think the problem with a lot of students is that they strive for perfection & although this is a good thing is is nearly impossible.

Have you ever wondered why you do sooooooo much solo time before you can start your CPL? Its there to allow you to make all the mistakes you are likely to make before you start getting into the serious flying!!

I remember on my first ever solo flight, I got clearance to take off & didn't put my fuel pump on.Applied full power & when checking my engine instruments as I accellerated I noticed my fuel pressure was really low so I aborted the take off skidding off a taxiway onto the grass in the process. I took the a/c back to the FTO & felt an idiot when I realised what I had done, needless to say whenever I fly a PA-28 these days that fuel pump is always on for take off!! lol

Flying is an amazing thing & you will be cool as long as you stop beating yourself up about things, be honest about your mistakes & learn from them & you will become a good pilot I guarentee it!!

[Han 1st Solo]

Really don't worry about it, the fact that you were able to spot your mistakes shows a good understanding already beyond what you should have, if you were making them without noticing then even at this stage I wouldn't worry. Nobody expects you to be perfect just safe! Everybody makes mistakes whether it be a PPL, instructor, or airline pilot. I've transitioned through all 3 and still make the occasional cock up that I chastise myself over, perfect flights are few & far between.

Don't give up, if it was easy then there'd be no satisfaction in doing it.

Hope this helps,

Han

[gc2750]

I have had similar issues to you around confidence very recently and have only recently soloed myself so I am at a similar stage of training with a similar amount of hours. Feel free to PM me as hopefully I will be able to help.

[chrisbl]

Look dont beat yourself up unnecessarily. If there are major issues your instructor will work out solutions. There is no need to invent problems that are not there.

As has been said, students often seek perfection when the requirement is to be safe and sound.

In any group of licenced pilots, there will some with above average ability and some below average but they all meet the base standard of being safe.

Dont worry, thats the instructors job. Chill out and enjoy the learning. We have all been there.

[OneIn60rule]

You nearly killed yourself I doubt there's any issue.

Bear in mind an instructor would never ever send you if he thought you'd ever ever manage to even get within 1% of that.


Great you know your mistake as opposed to have someone point that out to you. It's not brilliant if you can't even tell so kudos.

1/60

[Trans Lift]

[Bear in mind an instructor would never ever send you if he thought you'd ever ever manage to even get within 1% of that.]

This is a good point to remember. I've sent many students solo and trust me, as instructors, we don't want to be sitting there with a doubt on our mind about your ability. Remeber you are flying on your instructor's license, so its in his/her interest to make sure that you come back in one piece.
You sound like you need to relax a lot and enjoy the fact that you got to the solo stage and that you are trusted with flying an aircraft on your own. That is a pretty amazing feat in itself.
So get on with the syllabus, do some more solos and have fun. Remember that there is no such thing as a perfect flight but there is such a thing as a SAFE flight.

Fly safe!!!:ok:

[OneIn60rule]

The only time this doesn't count... is if the student is your mother in law.

In which case the 1% chance becomes 99%.


1/60

[Flintstone]

Hi Mark.

I think you'll find that most instructors and examiners will be happier with a student who makes mistakes (within reason) but then fixes them.

I remember a conversation with the CFI after a CPL flight test on one of my students who was particularly gifted but also confident to the point of arrogance. "He didn't make a single mistake throughout the test.....which is what worries me". Three months later on the first day of his first job he flew too close to an active CB and was killed.

As others have said we learn by our mistakes. My point is that over-confidence kills. You're normal, you'll be fine and your awareness of your own mortality will keep you safe(r). Get back up there. ;)

[MyNameIsIs]

Slightly off-topic but I thought it would be worth mentioning..

I didnt quite have a confidence problem during my training, my issue was rather the nervousness.
As a young kid even the most minor things made me quite nervous and this extended into my flying training. At the 100hr mark or so, which wasn't too far away from my CPL aspirations, I had a lot of thoughts about just packing the whole thing in and trying something else because i couldn't shake the feelings I had before going flying.

What happened? Im now flying for a living with over 1700hrs no worries!

Moral, your feelings will pass in time. You just have to keep plugging away at it and deal with what comes in your way in a rational manner so that something somewhere just clicks and all of a sudden you are feeling fine!

Best of luck to you Mark. You'll be right.

[mark8647]

Thankyou everyone, your replies are just what i needed to hear, i think you have all made me realise that the best thing to do is to get back up there and have some fun.:O

Thanks again
mark8647

[airgirl]

Mark,

Have PM'd you !!

[ReverseFlight]

Mark says : "I often look up and see other GA aircraft and kick myself for not getting on with it ."

My humble advice is never compare yourself against other people. The important thing is to do your best. Don't forget the other GA guys are relative newbies compared to high-time pilots and even the latter sometimes make unexpected mistakes (just look at some of the threads in "Rumours and News").

Don't be too critical of yourself. Enjoy, and it'll all come together.