Just about anyone can fly an aircraft, it's not that difficult, hence you can go solo in a plane well before you can do it in a car. However being a good instructor at anything takes aptitude and patience and no, you don't have to be the best pilot to do it. In fact those that have had to actually learn are better at understanding what is happening and relating it to new pilots than those that it comes easily to. It requires thought and study to be a good instructor, way beyond the training course provided. You have to be part pilot, teacher, psychologist, mentor and almost a parent/guardian to the student.
Using physical contact when instructing has no place and is not required, except maybe to remove a student from the controls in an emergency, but that's not normal. Physical contact and loss of calm is an instructor operating beyond their normal stress levels. Anyone hitting or berating, yelling at you is not helping you progress. If you are not progressing at the rate expected by the instructor the lesson should be cut short and a chat on the ground about what the issues are conducted in a calm and discussion based manner, no yelling, no lecturing, no berating, just facts about what went wrong, what is needed and how to get there.
Unfortunately these unsuited types are in the industry right up to airline checkers and management. If you come across them and they try this **** on you, shut the process down and request somebody else do the check/training. If it's done enough they will be removed from that position.
Remember as the trainee at any level it is your licence, career and progress that is going to suffer with the wrong match of personalities, so do not hesitate to ask for change if it's not working.
I once took over a debriefing in an airline check as the checker was demeaning the FO badly about their flying skills and not offering any constructive advice on how to fix it. I butted in and offered some ways the pilot could adjust their flying technique, the checker just stood and nodded. A few weeks later I bumped into the FO on line, he said he was about to quit until I had offered that advice as he had no idea what he was doing wrong and now after a bit of practice of the techniques I offered he was nailing it. It was pretty simple stuff like setting datums and power and attitudes to look for.
Last edited by 43Inches; 23rd Jan 2023 at 22:35.