A quick rant
once again I'll say
Don't let the ground get you down!!! ---ignore the comments from the ignorant, even if they are pilots they are still on the ground WRT to you
or you can say "because I like it"
PA
Don't let the ground get you down!!! ---ignore the comments from the ignorant, even if they are pilots they are still on the ground WRT to you
or you can say "because I like it"
PA
Join Date: Apr 2005
Location: Cloud 9
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Whats with all the airline pilot bashing?! I think you'll find a lot of us instruct in our spare time because we enjoyed it so much the first time round. The difference being, back then we were in dire need of financial stability as well as access to aeroplanes so moved quickly in an airline direction.
Good on you Stumpy. You are one of a few dedicated individuals who are benefitting the flying training system in a way that few can appreciate. There aren't many dedicataed souls who are willing to forgo the lure and lucre of the better paying jobs in order to fulfil their desire to instruct and pass on their extensive skills.
There is no doubt in my mind that there is not enough experience at the grass roots of flying training. The seeds of the current situation were sown in the late 1980s when it was decreed that all instructors should be professionally qualified. The BCPL (Basic CPL) was introduced and all had to qualify at the very minimum. This led to two things. First, those who had to study for and pass a CPL then had the route to airline flying opened to them and didn't hang around. Second, those older PPL instructors who were very good at what they were doing were forced out because they didn't want to or couln't pass the BCPL. And not forgetting all those PPLs who would probably have made excellent instructors who didn't want to be a professional pilot.
The net result was a lowering of instructing standards. I was at CFS in the early 1990s and talking to the Examining Wing Instructors (who standardised the flying schools conducting RAF Flying Scholarships) and they were unanimous in their opinion that the standard of PPL instruction had fallen markedly since the introduction of the BCPL.
It's the few dedicated souls such as Stumpy who want to and continue to be GA instructors who are keeping this industry alive.
As for airline pilots flying GA aircraft, I still do. I like to capture some of the thrills of flying something that can turn upside down and doesn't require extensive SOPs and an army of people to get airborne. I'm convinced it's helping me maintain the skills lost through years of ''flying'' a FBW wonderjet. And it's a good re-introduction to aviation reality and the basic airmanship principles which are the foundation of flying. For example, when I was being checked out on a club's aerobatic aircraft earlier this year, I asked about a checklist. The answer was
"What sort of a checklist do you need for an aircraft with a fixed prop, fixed gear and no flaps?".
Good point!
There is no doubt in my mind that there is not enough experience at the grass roots of flying training. The seeds of the current situation were sown in the late 1980s when it was decreed that all instructors should be professionally qualified. The BCPL (Basic CPL) was introduced and all had to qualify at the very minimum. This led to two things. First, those who had to study for and pass a CPL then had the route to airline flying opened to them and didn't hang around. Second, those older PPL instructors who were very good at what they were doing were forced out because they didn't want to or couln't pass the BCPL. And not forgetting all those PPLs who would probably have made excellent instructors who didn't want to be a professional pilot.
The net result was a lowering of instructing standards. I was at CFS in the early 1990s and talking to the Examining Wing Instructors (who standardised the flying schools conducting RAF Flying Scholarships) and they were unanimous in their opinion that the standard of PPL instruction had fallen markedly since the introduction of the BCPL.
It's the few dedicated souls such as Stumpy who want to and continue to be GA instructors who are keeping this industry alive.
As for airline pilots flying GA aircraft, I still do. I like to capture some of the thrills of flying something that can turn upside down and doesn't require extensive SOPs and an army of people to get airborne. I'm convinced it's helping me maintain the skills lost through years of ''flying'' a FBW wonderjet. And it's a good re-introduction to aviation reality and the basic airmanship principles which are the foundation of flying. For example, when I was being checked out on a club's aerobatic aircraft earlier this year, I asked about a checklist. The answer was
"What sort of a checklist do you need for an aircraft with a fixed prop, fixed gear and no flaps?".
Good point!
Join Date: Apr 2006
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Instructing
I do agree with you. I've been instructing for 2 years now and absolutely love it. I used to work in the UK which I found was completely useless as I didn't really earn enough money to cover my expenses. I think that's the main problem really. Now I would say that I earn pretty good money for an instructor but it's not enough considering the amount that I have invested in this career and I think most people would say the same thing, which is why they want to move on.
