Originally Posted by
Clare Prop
Flying instructors on the whole want to do a good job, be safe and keep body and soul together, just like real people. What you are suggesting is that the instructor should take a financial hit if you get stuck in a queue for the runway, something the instructor has absolutely no control over.
No one is saying they expect an instructor to take a financial hit from changing the way in which time is recorded for billing purposes. You can still pay your instructor from engine start to shutdown even if you aren't charging the student on that basis.
A pre-determined air switch rate which approximates the 'average' Hobbs recorded time would yield the same result to your bottom line (and what you pay your instructor), whilst not making every lesson a lucky dip for which student will get a raw deal due to ground based delays.
You could even charge the student a separate hourly rate for the instructor and an air switch rate for the aircraft.
I assume you aren't paying your instructors $300 an hour while the student sits at the hold point....