Night Rider, thank you for your reply. Peace. It sounds as though you have had bad experiences with a few (and hopefully they are very few) dodgy grandad types, just as others have had bad experiences with a few (and hopefully these also are very few) inexperienced hour-builder types who have questionable flying skills and little or no interest in instructing. We can't generalise about what makes the best sort of instructor from experiences of these individuals. Grandad Geezers who have logged zillions of hours of straight and level in spamcans were not the blokes I had in mind when referring to the respectable Sunday afternooners, just as I'm sure that gold-barred 19 year olds were not the blokes you had in mind when referring to exam-qualified professional pilots.
[ 02 August 2001: Message edited by: FNG ]