Originally Posted by
43Inches
Not so long ago where I started instructing the average hours for solo was somewhere just under 10 with some soloing at 6-8 hours. Basically you went from no experience to solo in that time, and that was before the advent of mass use of PC flight simulators by the beginners. I would guess since CASA mandated that Pipers and Cessnas were modified to be more difficult to fly the average hours must be around 15-20 for solo.
I've found PC flight simulators to be more of a hindrance than a help at the ab-initio stages of instruction, as student pilots tend to focus too much on the instruments than looking outside visually for the correct attitude. This might explain why it's taking longer for students to solo these days compared to the pre-computer age.
And plus, many try to land the real aircraft like they do with their PC computer game with no 'feel' for the sink and application of back pressure on the control column. They start off by trying to plonk the aircraft down three wheels on to the runway.
So, as an instructor, you start off by un-teaching bad habits where as before, back in our pre-computer days, you start off teaching students from a clean slate.