Biennial Trainning Flight

[Unscheduled stopover]

As I understand it the biennial training flight, although it is a requirement for revalidation, is not a "pass or fail" flight test.

After completing the flight the ppl holder would get there licence signed by the instructor and that would be that part of the revalidation taken care of.

What would be considered reasonable grounds for refusing to sign someones logbook for this purpose?

[BEagle]

No doubt this'll flush out the usual barrack room lawyers.....

If a PPL holder operated the aeroplane in such a manner as would have hazarded the safety of the aircraft or its occupants had the FI not assumed control, then I would certainly NOT sign the logbook.

For example, if the pilot flew well below approach speed without correction, failed to recover from a stall correctly, failed to fly a successful PFL pattern.........

But fortunately far I haven't yet encountered anyone whose flying was so poor that I wouldn't sign their logbook. Incidentally, a FI cannot sign anything in a licence, that has to be done by an Examiner.

[tacpot]

Have you had an instructor decline to sign your form, or are you just worried about the possibility that your flying may not be regarded as good enough?

[Unscheduled stopover]

Thanks for the replies.
The pilot who prompted the post was particularly bad.
Before the flight I explained what we would do and asked a few questions to make sure that he understood
The intention was to do the following:-
Steep turns
Stalls
PFL
Then back to the field for three circuits, the first normal then flapless and a glide approach.
The flying was so poor that we only had time to do part of the detail but I did'nt consider him to be dangerous so I asked him to come back for another flight and signed his logbook to say he had completed a one hour flight with an instructor.

I was'nt particularly happy about signing the book but was unsure whether I could refuse and on what grounds. I Know better now.

It would be interesting to hear what standards other instructors expect for this type of flight.

[Another_CFI]

As an instructor and examiner the criteria which I apply to the one hour instructional flight is the same as I have applied for years to club checkouts. If the pilot flies to a standard where, if it were a club checkout, I would be happy to authorise him/her as “OK for solo” in a club aircraft then I will sign for the one hour instructional flight, otherwise I would refuse to sign his/her logbook and provide a clear and comprehensive debrief on the reasons for my refusal.

Since the introduction of the requirement for the one hour instructional flight I have refused to sign a pilot’s logbook only once. Interestingly the pilot owned his own aircraft, had not flown with an instructor for years and had developed a very slapdash style of flying. One of my colleagues had the same experience, again with a private owner.

Is the situation less likely to arise with a PPL who flies within a club environment since there is, at least, an element of oversight of the activities of such PPLs?

[destructor]

I agree with the statement that if the flight is of such a standard that you would not send the person solo I will not sign the log book. However I do treat the trip as instuctional and expect to have to go over parts of the flight and reteach as people forget over a two year period. I try and give the impession that the flight is help the person be a better pilot not a test he/she may fail, so if they have any particular things they want to cover/improve on please say so.

[BEagle]

Quite right, chum. Think of it as biennial continuation training and help the other pilot to progress in those areas requested....

The problem started when some ex-CAA Examiner wrote down what he thought should be the 'recommended' content of the 'dual training flight' without bothering to refer to others in the industry. It was more complex than a revalidation proficiency check and would have taken far longer than an hour to achieve! Fortunately, the content wasn't mandatory, so those with commonsense were at least able to ignore his 'recommendations' and do something beneficial.

But the fact remains that if the other pilot was dangerous enough to oblige you to take control, don't sign the logbook!

[Flyin'Dutch']

I understand that the signature only signifies that 'an hour's instructional flight was undertaken'

Nowt more and nowt less. So if that is true you can not not decline to sign it.

May be best to return to base before the hour is up! (especially if it is that bad!)

Not surprised that some of the worst experiences are with people who have been able to extricate themselves from any monitoring/guidance for years by virtue of having their own machine.

Another personal observation is that the more vociferious the pilot is about these requirements, the more they are in need of a bit of 'guidance'

FD

[Another_CFI]

I agree with both destructor and BEagle that the flight is a one hour instructional flight and not a test therefore it is totally permissible to instruct during the flight provided that by the end of the flight the candidate achieves a suitable standard.

I disagree with BEagle where he states that he would refuse to sign if he had to take control. Whilst that is absolutely true during a test and may well apply during the one hour instructional flight it is not necessarily the case in the one hour instructional flight.

Scenario – Candidate totally fouls up a spiral dive recovery and I have to take control. Following some instruction he/she performs a number of perfect recoveries. The rest of the flight is to an acceptable standard. I would sign his/her logbook.

In the above scenario had I been conducting a flight test the candidate would have failed the spiral dive recovery, which marks the major difference between the one hour instructional flight and a skill test.

I also agree with BEagle that the recommended content of the one hour instructional flight is a load of rubbish. I have some items that I include in most one hour instructional flights/club checkouts but I also always ask the candidate it there are any items which they would like to include in the flight. A large number of candidates reply “ Could we include XYZ since I have not practiced that recently”. Much better to spend some time doing XYZ than slavishly following the recommended content for the flight.