What would make you choose one airfield/flyingschool over another?
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I've just got my PPL, but the biggest problem I forsee is being able to hire an aeroplane for any sensible length of time from my club. At the moment it's OK because it's fairly quiet in the Winter and the weather hasn't allowed me to do much anyway, so I've just been getting a few hours in to keep myself current. Once the Spring comes tho' all the aeroplanes will be booked so I won't be able to do any long distance trips. As for flying for a weekend away, well it's just not going to happen.
The only way I can see to get some sensible flying done is to buy a share, which I can't afford at the moment, despite being well above the aforementioned average wage (how do people manage to fly on that?!). So if your club could address that that would be great!! I'm not really bothered by how new the plane is, and don't have an IMC (yet) so equipment would not be a deciding factor. I just want to use my license now I've got it!
The only way I can see to get some sensible flying done is to buy a share, which I can't afford at the moment, despite being well above the aforementioned average wage (how do people manage to fly on that?!). So if your club could address that that would be great!! I'm not really bothered by how new the plane is, and don't have an IMC (yet) so equipment would not be a deciding factor. I just want to use my license now I've got it!
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You may or may not be correct about 'decent' aircraft encouraging people to fly, but remember many people fly PFA aircraft or microlights.
'Decent' aircraft may give a good impression on a trial flight and encourage someone to begin to learn to fly.
I am not sure I agree with your reasoning about why people stop flying. I have seen many people pass their GFT and then stop flying. I cannot remember anyone saying to me or giving the impression that it's because of old aircraft. In nearly all cases it's due to lack of time, money or confidence.
'Decent' aircraft may give a good impression on a trial flight and encourage someone to begin to learn to fly.
I am not sure I agree with your reasoning about why people stop flying. I have seen many people pass their GFT and then stop flying. I cannot remember anyone saying to me or giving the impression that it's because of old aircraft. In nearly all cases it's due to lack of time, money or confidence.
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People stop flying for a myriad of reasons. But often it is that they cannot justify the expense and so lose currency and confidence.
If a club kept people interested, fly aways, air races, competitions etc. then far more people would get into and stay in aviation. Just look at the Pprune fly ins. Lots of people turn up, just because it is somewhere to go and have fun. Why don't more clubs organise that sort of thing?
Sailing clubs do this all the time, the good ones build up a community of like minded people for social events, regattas, youth events..... Members of all abilities, incomes and ages are welcomed. You learn a huge amount as well as having a laugh in the bar.
If a flying club was run on these principles it would be great!
The Pprune private flying club. Why not?
If a club kept people interested, fly aways, air races, competitions etc. then far more people would get into and stay in aviation. Just look at the Pprune fly ins. Lots of people turn up, just because it is somewhere to go and have fun. Why don't more clubs organise that sort of thing?
Sailing clubs do this all the time, the good ones build up a community of like minded people for social events, regattas, youth events..... Members of all abilities, incomes and ages are welcomed. You learn a huge amount as well as having a laugh in the bar.
If a flying club was run on these principles it would be great!
The Pprune private flying club. Why not?
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On top of that, the PPL nav syllabus is really basic and anyone with enough intelligence to do the PPL exams will realise (usually quietly, manifested by lack of confidence) how hard it is going to be to fly long routes.
If as a result of your PPL course you can fly from point A to point B over 40 miles or so perfectly reliably, why is it so much harder to fly 300 miles (give or take stopping for the loo)? - it's just flying from A to B, which you can do, then to C, which you can do, and so on. Isn't it? (This is a UK biased question. I'm not about to set off over uninhabited places like central Australia. I am aware that this poses different navigational problems.)
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Polly Gnome
I agree with the major reasons you give for why most PPLs pack it in.
But that observation applies merely to the "population" which became attracted to the decrepit PPL flying scene in the first place.
For example, if you happen to attract lots of people who can barely afford to fly, most of them will pack it in quickly because they can't afford it.
Anybody with enough brains to do the exams can pick up a self fly hire price list and add it up and see if they can afford it. They can do this before their first trial lesson. So why do so many drop out, claiming they can't afford it? They never intended to do it long-term.
Gertrude the Wombat
I would ask you how many hours you have? A fresh PPL will have 50-60. At that point, perhaps 50% of one's brain is taken up controlling the aircraft. Doing dead reckoning navigation the way one is normally taught (flying a wind corrected heading to a supposedly obvious waypoint, identifying that waypoint and then going to the next one) is pretty hard work, at that stage. It's very tiring. But I can see why e.g. a 500+hr pilot cannot see this argument, not only because you can fly with little effort but also most PPLs spend most of their time locally and they simply know the area.
That's before you get to cases where you really have to know where you are, e.g. flying from Goodwood to Duxford via the Luton/Stansted gap. You have to know where you are pretty well and there is no margin for error. There is no margin for error in many places in southern UK.
I agree with the major reasons you give for why most PPLs pack it in.
But that observation applies merely to the "population" which became attracted to the decrepit PPL flying scene in the first place.
For example, if you happen to attract lots of people who can barely afford to fly, most of them will pack it in quickly because they can't afford it.
Anybody with enough brains to do the exams can pick up a self fly hire price list and add it up and see if they can afford it. They can do this before their first trial lesson. So why do so many drop out, claiming they can't afford it? They never intended to do it long-term.
Gertrude the Wombat
I would ask you how many hours you have? A fresh PPL will have 50-60. At that point, perhaps 50% of one's brain is taken up controlling the aircraft. Doing dead reckoning navigation the way one is normally taught (flying a wind corrected heading to a supposedly obvious waypoint, identifying that waypoint and then going to the next one) is pretty hard work, at that stage. It's very tiring. But I can see why e.g. a 500+hr pilot cannot see this argument, not only because you can fly with little effort but also most PPLs spend most of their time locally and they simply know the area.
That's before you get to cases where you really have to know where you are, e.g. flying from Goodwood to Duxford via the Luton/Stansted gap. You have to know where you are pretty well and there is no margin for error. There is no margin for error in many places in southern UK.
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IO540:
Just over a hundred (of which nearly 40 during 2003). I certainly need some of my attention to fly the aircraft straight and level with some semblance of holding height and heading, but I have enough left to chat to the passenger, do the radio, look at the pretty gliders magically appearing out of nowhere and do the visual navigation, on a goodish day. Usually.
Er, yes. I'll find out whether I can do that on Saturday, weather permitting (which it looks like it probably won't).
But that wasn't my question, I was asking about longer distances: if I can find my way from Cambridge to Oxford why should I not be able to go on, bladder permitting, to Land's End?
I can think of several plausible answers to this question, eg maybe my ability to concentrate sufficiently would disappear after a couple of hours - I'd like to know which answer(s) people are thinking of when they say that PPLs can't navigate visually for longer distances. In particular I'd like to know what the problems are before I plan a long trip!
I would ask you how many hours you have?
That's before you get to cases where you really have to know where you are, e.g. flying ... via the Luton/Stansted gap.
But that wasn't my question, I was asking about longer distances: if I can find my way from Cambridge to Oxford why should I not be able to go on, bladder permitting, to Land's End?
I can think of several plausible answers to this question, eg maybe my ability to concentrate sufficiently would disappear after a couple of hours - I'd like to know which answer(s) people are thinking of when they say that PPLs can't navigate visually for longer distances. In particular I'd like to know what the problems are before I plan a long trip!
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PPL's can navigate over long distances visually. As long as you keep on top of the navigation, then there should be no problem.
The area around London is fairly congested, but it shouldn't be any problem to anybody who's been taught properly and is in current practise.
Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to be happening. On my last instructor revalidation I was told that the new CAA bug bear is PPL navigation, mostly due to the findings from OnTrack. It is something that is a problem we find on a regular basis. Navigation is a skill like any other. If you don't practise you will be rusty. Since most PPL's stay in the local area comfort zone, their nav tails off markedly over time. The concentration required if you aren't confident is very tiring and I would suggest that people build up the length of their stages. You could of course do a lands end to John o'Groats trip the day after passing your test (As long as the CAA speed up their licence issuing that is!), but it isn't really advisable to do it on your own first time.
You are doing exactly the right thing GTW in asking on another thread for some advice. I wish more people would do that rather than feeling silly and not asking as it would be an ego blow. Nobody cares what questions you ask, but we will care if you go blundering into the LTMA!
The area around London is fairly congested, but it shouldn't be any problem to anybody who's been taught properly and is in current practise.
Unfortunately, this doesn't seem to be happening. On my last instructor revalidation I was told that the new CAA bug bear is PPL navigation, mostly due to the findings from OnTrack. It is something that is a problem we find on a regular basis. Navigation is a skill like any other. If you don't practise you will be rusty. Since most PPL's stay in the local area comfort zone, their nav tails off markedly over time. The concentration required if you aren't confident is very tiring and I would suggest that people build up the length of their stages. You could of course do a lands end to John o'Groats trip the day after passing your test (As long as the CAA speed up their licence issuing that is!), but it isn't really advisable to do it on your own first time.
You are doing exactly the right thing GTW in asking on another thread for some advice. I wish more people would do that rather than feeling silly and not asking as it would be an ego blow. Nobody cares what questions you ask, but we will care if you go blundering into the LTMA!
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Indeed, it can be done. But most thinking people are bound to ask "why do we do it in such an error prone way when there is a much easier way?"
If one stands back a bit, the whole scene, with the circular slide rules etc, does look pretty ridiculous!
People have been all over the world using dead reckoning. But they were the selected few, in an age of heroes. Here we are talking about training a few thousand people every year to do it, and to do it more accurately than the aviators of the last century.
There is nothing special about flying a 3 hour trip on dead reckoning; you just get more chance to make a mistake, and if you do, a taxi back home is awfully expensive
If one stands back a bit, the whole scene, with the circular slide rules etc, does look pretty ridiculous!
People have been all over the world using dead reckoning. But they were the selected few, in an age of heroes. Here we are talking about training a few thousand people every year to do it, and to do it more accurately than the aviators of the last century.
There is nothing special about flying a 3 hour trip on dead reckoning; you just get more chance to make a mistake, and if you do, a taxi back home is awfully expensive
Why do it if it's not fun?
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Anybody with enough brains to do the exams can pick up a self fly hire price list and add it up and see if they can afford it. They can do this before their first trial lesson. So why do so many drop out, claiming they can't afford it? They never intended to do it long-term
Many times, I've been asked how much it costs to get a PPL. The wrong answer, I think, is the one which most flying schools will give you: "£5000-£6000, give or take a bit". The correct answer is "£150-£200 a week. After you get your PPL, it might go up or down depending what type of aircraft you want to fly, but that's a good starting point." If more flying schools expressed the cost of learning to fly in this way, then people would be less likely to save up until they have the "magic" amount of £5000, blow it all on a PPL, and only then consider the fact that they need more money to keep flying.
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Is it just me or are 2 different arguments going? One seems to be about the quality of PPL navigation and the other about keeping people flying in GA.
Personally I think the real 'enemy' of GA is the weather, and you can't do anything about that!
On the flying / boating front, I used to own a sports cruiser 26ft LOA, so not the biggest thing afloat and the very reason I ahven't bought a share in an a/c is down to how much money I lost on the bl**dy boat!
There are 2 good days in boat ownership, the day you buy it and the day you sell it! I'm willing to bet the same applies to a/c ownership
Personally I think the real 'enemy' of GA is the weather, and you can't do anything about that!
On the flying / boating front, I used to own a sports cruiser 26ft LOA, so not the biggest thing afloat and the very reason I ahven't bought a share in an a/c is down to how much money I lost on the bl**dy boat!
There are 2 good days in boat ownership, the day you buy it and the day you sell it! I'm willing to bet the same applies to a/c ownership
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FFF
I agree. But I come back to the sort of person who tends to be attracted to the PPL scene in the first place. Most are not particularly focussed on why they are doing it.
VFR800
It depends on how far you want to take it. If you are happy to stay with a bare PPL and dead reckoning (as many are) then you are stuck with flying on good weather days only.
I have only an IMCR but I manage to fly most weeks right through the year. My airfield does have an IAP but due to local elevations it offers no safety advantage over a visual approach. So the IMCR is being used mostly en-route, and it is pretty good. But you also need an aircraft suitable for that sort of thing. Which takes me back to attracting people who can indeed afford to take things further. You can play in this game at different levels; at the lowest level you are frustratingly limited by weather; at the next level you are less limited. If I had just a PPL I would have packed it in long ago.
You are right about 2 threads, but really the usefulness (or lack of) of officially taught PPL navigation is in my view closely tied up with people dropping out of it. It is all wrapped up in the tradition versus modernisation argument.
I agree. But I come back to the sort of person who tends to be attracted to the PPL scene in the first place. Most are not particularly focussed on why they are doing it.
VFR800
It depends on how far you want to take it. If you are happy to stay with a bare PPL and dead reckoning (as many are) then you are stuck with flying on good weather days only.
I have only an IMCR but I manage to fly most weeks right through the year. My airfield does have an IAP but due to local elevations it offers no safety advantage over a visual approach. So the IMCR is being used mostly en-route, and it is pretty good. But you also need an aircraft suitable for that sort of thing. Which takes me back to attracting people who can indeed afford to take things further. You can play in this game at different levels; at the lowest level you are frustratingly limited by weather; at the next level you are less limited. If I had just a PPL I would have packed it in long ago.
You are right about 2 threads, but really the usefulness (or lack of) of officially taught PPL navigation is in my view closely tied up with people dropping out of it. It is all wrapped up in the tradition versus modernisation argument.
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A "quality customer" is simply one who buys the product/service, pays on time, does not complain, and perhaps becomes a loyal customer in the long term.
But I come back to the sort of person who tends to be attracted to the PPL scene in the first place. Most are not particularly focussed on why they are doing it.
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Pianorak
Whether a prospective customer is attracted to modern aircraft would depend on why they are learning to fly, and also on their own lifestyle.
If someone is learning to fly with a long term view, they will go round with their eyes open, will talk to others, and will unavoidably notice the difference between modern planes and ancient ones. They will not immediately notice the difference between a 1980 C172 and a 2004 C172 – because there isn’t any unless you either know your planes or get inside and notice the leather seats and a GPS in the panel (which is why it’s pointless buying new Cessnas or Pipers to impress customers).
If our hypothetical business is to attract people who have enough liquidity to easily pay for a PPL, extra training after that, and continue flying with reasonable currency (perhaps through the purchase of a share in something nice) afterwards, one is looking at customers who have already acquired a range of good quality gadgets, from nice PDAs to nice cars and houses. People like that are generally pretty fussy about who they go around with and what sort of contraption they will climb into.
One is also looking for customers who are generally switched on – unless one is a conman, they are the best kind to have. I am not an instructor but would hope that switched on students are the best sort too. And nowadays most of those with a decent income are pretty well switched on. One can’t get away with charging them £120/hour in a piece of 20 year old wreckage – they will not get as far as the front door and this is has been happening for years… most people who end up doing a PPL today can barely afford it. One will have to tell them that they will have to learn navigation with a slide rule and a stopwatch in order to get the PPL, but afterwards there are much better ways…
Whether a prospective customer is attracted to modern aircraft would depend on why they are learning to fly, and also on their own lifestyle.
If someone is learning to fly with a long term view, they will go round with their eyes open, will talk to others, and will unavoidably notice the difference between modern planes and ancient ones. They will not immediately notice the difference between a 1980 C172 and a 2004 C172 – because there isn’t any unless you either know your planes or get inside and notice the leather seats and a GPS in the panel (which is why it’s pointless buying new Cessnas or Pipers to impress customers).
If our hypothetical business is to attract people who have enough liquidity to easily pay for a PPL, extra training after that, and continue flying with reasonable currency (perhaps through the purchase of a share in something nice) afterwards, one is looking at customers who have already acquired a range of good quality gadgets, from nice PDAs to nice cars and houses. People like that are generally pretty fussy about who they go around with and what sort of contraption they will climb into.
One is also looking for customers who are generally switched on – unless one is a conman, they are the best kind to have. I am not an instructor but would hope that switched on students are the best sort too. And nowadays most of those with a decent income are pretty well switched on. One can’t get away with charging them £120/hour in a piece of 20 year old wreckage – they will not get as far as the front door and this is has been happening for years… most people who end up doing a PPL today can barely afford it. One will have to tell them that they will have to learn navigation with a slide rule and a stopwatch in order to get the PPL, but afterwards there are much better ways…
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IO540 -
Yes, point taken. And for the sake of any business venture I hope that the category you define as <<Most are not particularly focussed on why they are doing it.>> will be a tiny one. I may have stumbled into GA quite unfocussed (via FS2002 which I got bored with) but would like to think that I am now fully focussed on what has become an important part of my life – although I strenuously refuse to adopt a lifestyle. (Sorry, only joking.)
Yes, point taken. And for the sake of any business venture I hope that the category you define as <<Most are not particularly focussed on why they are doing it.>> will be a tiny one. I may have stumbled into GA quite unfocussed (via FS2002 which I got bored with) but would like to think that I am now fully focussed on what has become an important part of my life – although I strenuously refuse to adopt a lifestyle. (Sorry, only joking.)
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From my fairly limited experience (I've been flying on and off since the mid 90's) I am not sure I agree with you.
Most people who have spare money, a good lifestyle AND like to fly seem to buy their own aircraft (if they continue to fly after learning).
I think the sort of person with money/good lifestyle who looks around for 'something interesting and exciting to do' would choose to learn to fly helicopters. This is especially so for someone who wants to use it for business. I don't think even the newest (straight-forward) fixed wing aircraft can compete with the glamorous image. (This is not to disparage helicopter pilots - I know several very nice ones.)
People I know who gave up shortly after finishing their PPL had either
- not enough confidence to cope or continue once they were on their own (even though they have been trained thoroughly)
- a change in job/family circumstances which meant not enough time or money
(Can I make a separate point, but I don't want to derail this thread. One or two people have mentioned 'attractive female students/instructors'.
It is REALLY REALLY irritating to be considered some type of airfield entertainment rather than a pilot who wants to fly.
I know of shy female pilots would not stay on the airfield and several female students who have been put off by this attitude.
Please think about how you treat us.)
Most people who have spare money, a good lifestyle AND like to fly seem to buy their own aircraft (if they continue to fly after learning).
I think the sort of person with money/good lifestyle who looks around for 'something interesting and exciting to do' would choose to learn to fly helicopters. This is especially so for someone who wants to use it for business. I don't think even the newest (straight-forward) fixed wing aircraft can compete with the glamorous image. (This is not to disparage helicopter pilots - I know several very nice ones.)
People I know who gave up shortly after finishing their PPL had either
- not enough confidence to cope or continue once they were on their own (even though they have been trained thoroughly)
- a change in job/family circumstances which meant not enough time or money
(Can I make a separate point, but I don't want to derail this thread. One or two people have mentioned 'attractive female students/instructors'.
It is REALLY REALLY irritating to be considered some type of airfield entertainment rather than a pilot who wants to fly.
I know of shy female pilots would not stay on the airfield and several female students who have been put off by this attitude.
Please think about how you treat us.)
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a change in job/family circumstances which meant not enough time or money
It is REALLY REALLY irritating to be considered some type of airfield entertainment rather than a pilot who wants to fly.
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Before commencing with this post can I define "quality" customer from a business point of view:
Not just someone who pays up on time, but someone who values quality service and goods and is prepared to pay a small, but justifiable premium for them.
Someone who will not accept second best, especially from a service point of view and who appreciates a business that will put themselves out for them, the customer.
Someone who is prepared to demand the best value for money and is not afraid to ask for it. This does not necessarily mean being a toff or t**t, just someone who demands excellence in return for spending their money. That doesn't mean they have to be overcharged and DOES NOT preclude the majority of us from the equation.
The problem lies in the fact that we are all too prepared to roll over and just accept that the situation will not change. I am not dismissing older aircraft, indeed would be more than happy to own a 1946 Cessna 120 or suchlike, but the question posed is how do we attract new blood to GA. There will always be those of us who love the older or PFA type aircraft, but we need to remember that this is about attracting those that may never have considered flying as a hobby, or have been put off by the dilapidated state of the average school aircraft.
In addition, there is very little encouragement to continue because of the discussed lack of a real club atmosphere. They are out there, but the majority of clubs I have come across are no more than a means of providing refreshment to thirsty students and tired, unenthusiastic instructors.
Something else that needs considering is that we also need to attract younger, as well as the better off, newcomers. As they grow up, kids are used to having the latest games and technology and then....... those with aspirations to fly for fun are greeted by the typical worn out/ageing school fleet of Cessna's. Hence only those with a REAL desire to fly are going to go ahead and do so.
There is a quality customer/consumer inside all of us, we just need to demand more.
How many schools/clubs actually know about marketing their product?? Judging by what I see, not many do, not in an effective manner.
This was touched on in an earlier post, and noone has seized on it. Effective marketing is the one way to raise your company profile, turnover and profits. Why else do all the major companies in the world spend so much on marketing and promotion? Because it works!!!!
With regard to promoting a flying school/club it needs to be directed to the correct market in the right way. There are so many options open to business to contact their target groups these days there can be no excuse for being able to reach them.
Directly, and in the comfort of their own homes.
And in a professional manner, offering a professional product/service that would actually atrract them to aviation rather than restricting the attraction to those of us that desperately want to fly and will therefore, it seems, put up with whatever is thrown at us. Or to those that will put up with it in order to achieve their dream of a RHS in a shiny jet.
So, yes the way ahead is for a school/club with a modern outlook, in the right area, staffed with the right people, with modern aircraft and offering much more than is currently available. And yes I believe it would make a long term profit and raise the profile of GA, desperately needed everywhere. And maybe, just maybe, when others saw that it was working, they too would make the effort and the changes neccesary to compete.
It can only be beneficial to us all.
Not just someone who pays up on time, but someone who values quality service and goods and is prepared to pay a small, but justifiable premium for them.
Someone who will not accept second best, especially from a service point of view and who appreciates a business that will put themselves out for them, the customer.
Someone who is prepared to demand the best value for money and is not afraid to ask for it. This does not necessarily mean being a toff or t**t, just someone who demands excellence in return for spending their money. That doesn't mean they have to be overcharged and DOES NOT preclude the majority of us from the equation.
The problem lies in the fact that we are all too prepared to roll over and just accept that the situation will not change. I am not dismissing older aircraft, indeed would be more than happy to own a 1946 Cessna 120 or suchlike, but the question posed is how do we attract new blood to GA. There will always be those of us who love the older or PFA type aircraft, but we need to remember that this is about attracting those that may never have considered flying as a hobby, or have been put off by the dilapidated state of the average school aircraft.
In addition, there is very little encouragement to continue because of the discussed lack of a real club atmosphere. They are out there, but the majority of clubs I have come across are no more than a means of providing refreshment to thirsty students and tired, unenthusiastic instructors.
Something else that needs considering is that we also need to attract younger, as well as the better off, newcomers. As they grow up, kids are used to having the latest games and technology and then....... those with aspirations to fly for fun are greeted by the typical worn out/ageing school fleet of Cessna's. Hence only those with a REAL desire to fly are going to go ahead and do so.
There is a quality customer/consumer inside all of us, we just need to demand more.
How many schools/clubs actually know about marketing their product?? Judging by what I see, not many do, not in an effective manner.
This was touched on in an earlier post, and noone has seized on it. Effective marketing is the one way to raise your company profile, turnover and profits. Why else do all the major companies in the world spend so much on marketing and promotion? Because it works!!!!
With regard to promoting a flying school/club it needs to be directed to the correct market in the right way. There are so many options open to business to contact their target groups these days there can be no excuse for being able to reach them.
Directly, and in the comfort of their own homes.
And in a professional manner, offering a professional product/service that would actually atrract them to aviation rather than restricting the attraction to those of us that desperately want to fly and will therefore, it seems, put up with whatever is thrown at us. Or to those that will put up with it in order to achieve their dream of a RHS in a shiny jet.
So, yes the way ahead is for a school/club with a modern outlook, in the right area, staffed with the right people, with modern aircraft and offering much more than is currently available. And yes I believe it would make a long term profit and raise the profile of GA, desperately needed everywhere. And maybe, just maybe, when others saw that it was working, they too would make the effort and the changes neccesary to compete.
It can only be beneficial to us all.
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Modern and complex aircraft are all fine if you have experience, but in a flying school you need to have some good basic trainers as well, without all the added complexities of GPS and multi mode PFD's.
Teaching people to fly is 90% phsycology. A person needs to be in the correct environment. The basic flight instruments and a VOR are all you really need to start with. Anything else is superfluous. Any decent school/club will not stop teaching you just because you have a licence. It is only a licence to learn, it does not engender any particular competence apart from the very basics.
A good set of basic trainers for PPL teaching, that leads on to more complex machines once the basics have been learnt PROPERLY. This is why I am totally against teaching GPS from the beginning. Yes it is a fantastic aid, but human nature being essentially lazy. How often would it get Surreptitiously turned on during a QXC or solo Nav? That is not the point of the exercise. COmpasses, stopwatches and even slide rules are a vital part of the armoury of experience that we all should have.
Basics first, then we will teach you how to operate the a/c and all the other systems. This causes problems because once the skills test has been passed, we very rarely get to fly with our ex-students as they want to be rid of us and get some 'freedom.' An IMC course is usually the only opportunity we get to really start showing what capabilities there are in light a/c.
Teaching people to fly is 90% phsycology. A person needs to be in the correct environment. The basic flight instruments and a VOR are all you really need to start with. Anything else is superfluous. Any decent school/club will not stop teaching you just because you have a licence. It is only a licence to learn, it does not engender any particular competence apart from the very basics.
A good set of basic trainers for PPL teaching, that leads on to more complex machines once the basics have been learnt PROPERLY. This is why I am totally against teaching GPS from the beginning. Yes it is a fantastic aid, but human nature being essentially lazy. How often would it get Surreptitiously turned on during a QXC or solo Nav? That is not the point of the exercise. COmpasses, stopwatches and even slide rules are a vital part of the armoury of experience that we all should have.
Basics first, then we will teach you how to operate the a/c and all the other systems. This causes problems because once the skills test has been passed, we very rarely get to fly with our ex-students as they want to be rid of us and get some 'freedom.' An IMC course is usually the only opportunity we get to really start showing what capabilities there are in light a/c.
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once the skills test has been passed, we very rarely get to fly with our ex-students as they want to be rid of us and get some 'freedom.'
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COmpasses, stopwatches and even slide rules are a vital part of the armoury of experience that we all should have.
I am sure many people in the business will be saying that long after most GA airfields have turned into housing estates. Not kidding - it WILL happen.
But let me take up the slide rule: what's the benefit? For wind calculations, the rule of thumb (max drift = half the wind for a 100kt plane) is more accurate than either the form 214 forecast accuracy, or the heading accuracy which a human can fly for extended periods.
For other calculations, the slide rule is just a multiply/divide device. I happen to know how a slide rule works (I used one at school in the 1960s and know about logs/antilogs and the Charles-Babbage-age maths) but all people I have met in flying don't know this, and neither do the instructors. People think it is some sort of weird magical calculation aid purpose designed for flying, when in fact all it is is a straight slide rule, bent into a circle, with extra marks in places like litre/gallon conversions. It's a great way to get confused. Why not use a calculator? That's before getting into how many of the calculations are actually necessary in flight planning.
COmpasses, stopwatches and even slide rules are a vital part of the armoury of experience that we all should have.
I am sure many people in the business will be saying that long after most GA airfields have turned into housing estates. Not kidding - it WILL happen.
But let me take up the slide rule: what's the benefit? For wind calculations, the rule of thumb (max drift = half the wind for a 100kt plane) is more accurate than either the form 214 forecast accuracy, or the heading accuracy which a human can fly for extended periods.
For other calculations, the slide rule is just a multiply/divide device. I happen to know how a slide rule works (I used one at school in the 1960s and know about logs/antilogs and the Charles-Babbage-age maths) but all people I have met in flying don't know this, and neither do the instructors. People think it is some sort of weird magical calculation aid purpose designed for flying, when in fact all it is is a straight slide rule, bent into a circle, with extra marks in places like litre/gallon conversions. It's a great way to get confused. Why not use a calculator? That's before getting into how many of the calculations are actually necessary in flight planning.