How nervous should your instructor be?
Is it normal for an instructor to be noticeably 'edgy' when a rational but somewhat incompetent (I am a learner, after all!) student is at the controls?
Should an instructor always appear calm and serene and in control, even when they're not? Is it ok for them just to be 'aware' of traffic rather than obsessing about it and grabbing at the controls when another plane is spotted? It's not as if I'm going to fly us into them!
I understand aviation carries a degree of risk but my chap seems to be in constant fear that I'm going to kill him which I'm beginning to feel is rubbing off on me and stifling my own performance. It's possible of course that something I do as a student could result in our untimely demise but that's what he signed up for, isn't it?
Sorry if this sounds like a rant, it's not. I like my instructor, he's a good pilot, a nice guy and his teaching style is good... if perhaps a little 'by the book'. It's just when I'm paying £140/hour + VAT I don't like to feel guilty for making the guy sweat!