The path that leads from being a non-pilot to being a pilot goes through two very important people. Knowing what their roles are and what our options might be for dealing with each of them is critical to our timely, affordable success.
Each of us who earns the title Pilot in Command has flown beside, or in front of, or behind, a Certificated Flight Instructor (CFI) for a number of hours. The process may be thrilling. Or it may be challenging. There may be embarrassment along the way, or airsickness, or triumph. More likely than not there will be a combination of all those things.
The process of transforming ourselves from ground pounders to masters of the air takes time, effort, and money — all of which are in limited supply.
Each of us has only so much time to work with. That is true both in the macro sense, since our life spans aren’t infinite, as it is true on the micro scale, because of family and work and various other responsibilities that compete for our time.
The effort component waxes and wanes depending on a variety of factors, not the least of which is connected to our ability to get sufficient sleep. But there are other issues that affect our ability and desire to put in a good day’s work, including distractions carried over from our non-flying pursuits.
And let’s not forget the intimidation factor most of us experience at some point as it relates to high winds, turbulence, low ceilings, or freezing temperatures. All of these issues can sour our desire to get out to the airplane and aviate.
Money is the final — but by no means the least important — component of our aeronautical challenges. With inflation rising, the few dollars we had available for flight training are tighter than they were a year ago. As the Hobbs turns, our checking accounts dwindle. Sometimes it seems as if we can sense the cash leaving our grasp. That is especially true when we’re having a difficult time mastering a concept or a maneuver. But even in the best of times, we’re aware that the meter is running whenever the prop is turning.
It is the CF’Is job to help us get through these issues. That is why we pay them. It is their task to help us focus on our studies and our practice sessions with clarity.
The student, or client, or what the FAA now refers to as a learner (I’m not sure they could have picked a clumsier word to describe us) walks in on Day 1 with enough ignorance to fill a Super Tanker. While we have books and videos and online resources to make use of, it is the CFI we turn to for guidance, direction, support, and encouragement.
Those items are key traits in a CFI, incidentally. In fact, they’re so important we’ll come back to address them again just a few paragraphs from now.
The second individual most pilot applicants will have to deal with is the Designated Pilot Examiner or the Pilot Examiner. The difference is that the first is an individual selected, trained, and evaluated by the FAA who is authorized to conduct practical tests. The second is an FAA employee who is also authorized to conduct practical tests. The applicant pays the DPE for their time. The Pilot Examiner costs nothing, since the FAA already has them on the payroll. However, due to a persistently low number of Pilot Examiners, most of us go the DPE route.
The DPE and the Pilot Examiner are both flight instructors. They’re experienced professionals who, after years of training and preparing pilot applicants for their practical tests, are fully aware of how nervous most applicants are. Contrary to popular belief, they are not ogres patiently waiting for the opportunity to bust an applicant for even the most minor error. Rather, they’re looking for competency in their test subjects. Be the Pilot in Command on your checkride and you’ll probably do quite well, even if you do stumble once or twice.
The standard isn’t perfection, it is competence combined with understanding. The Airman Certification Standard includes a statement that exceeding the standards isn’t grounds for an unsatisfactory outcome. Consistently exceeding the standards is, however.
All of which brings us back to the CFI, since both the individual teaching us, and the individual testing us, are CFIs. Knowing this is a great gift. It puts the responsibility of picking a good CFI and a good flight school squarely on the shoulders of the customer, client, student, learner — it is also the gift of knowing that who we fly with is our choice, not someone else’s.
If the individual you are working with is less than supportive, rarely offers encouragement, and fails to provide specific direction about the tasks you are endeavoring to learn, it may be time to find a new CFI or a new flight school.
If your instructor rarely briefs with you before a lesson, or is too busy to sit down for a post-flight brief, you may choose to look for a CFI who is a little more dedicated to helping you find success. And if you fly with a CFI who greets you with the expression, “So, what are we doing today?” that is a clear sign that your best response should be, “I don’t know about you, but I’m going to find a new flight instructor.”
“If you fly with a CFI who greets you with ‘So, what are we doing today?’ your best response should be, ‘I don’t know about you, but I’m going to find a new flight instructor.’”
Remember, you are the customer, client, student, or learner. Whatever name you put to it, as the consumer you should be in control of your educational process. You are an individual with your own challenges to overcome and your own areas of ignorance to fill. That’s true whether you’re a student going on your first lesson or a seasoned pilot headed into your umpteenth flight review. We all have something to learn and we all need someone committed to helping us pick up new insights and skills.
Pick your CFI wisely. They work for you, after all. Hire well.
Nice helpful article Jamie and I agree 100% that not all students work with all instructors, but as an instructor I have to disagree with your perception that the instructor who asks ‘what are we doing today?’ is not invested in the student. I can’t speak for all instructors and occasions when this question has been asked and I agree there are a few bad apples in the CFI barrel but I ask that question on a regular basis to students at the beginning of a session as a part of the threshold knowledge test with very specific intentions.
When I ask ‘what are we doing today?’ I know exactly what we are doing in the lesson and what the students answer should be, I ask it to see how involved the student is with their own training experience. If the student seems uncertain then it is cause for me to asses if they are properly prepared for the lesson and potentially cancel the flight until they have done the required preparation. I also find it a useful question as it makes the student feel like they have more control of their training and it makes them feel we are a team working towards their goals rather than me just barking my demands at them.
The instructors job is ultimately to make the student independent of the teacher and if the student is not able to even take responsibility for themselves enough to know what they are doing on a flight (for which they had been briefed at the end of the previous lesson and should have done homework for) they are not demonstrating the responsibilities of a PIC and I am unlikely to want to continue to train that student if it happens too many times. The correct attitude can be taught but unfortunately not to every student.
I am sorry to say I have had a few entitled students who expected me to make them pilots regardless of their lack of effort and bad attitude. I have learned to ask the right questions to find out who these students are and save my time for the eager and willing students who do the work I assign. I learned very quickly as an instructor that a big part of the job is psychoanalytical, finding the way the student learns and adapting my teaching technique to the individual. An instructor should be encouraging and supportive when the student is struggling, but it is not the instructors job to continually motivate a lazy or arrogant student who refuses to accept the seriousness of the responsibility of PIC, the student instructor relationship is a two way street and your article fails to address this. Yes the instructor is employed by the student and as such students should be able to demand the highest standards, but the student must also respect the tremendous responsibility an instructor has for the students life and towards the aviation community as a whole. Instructors were PPL students once and know very well what efforts are required to become a pilot. I am more than happy to help any student with any issues they have and my instructions are always in a students best interests but if they are not followed I will not invest any more time in that student. Our rules are paid for in blood.
Becoming a pilot requires the proper attitude and respect for aviation and not everyone has the ability to develop that even with the very best instructor, that is why we maintain such high standards in training and examination to ensure that those who are granted the privilege of a pilots license fully understand the responsibilities it entails.
I ask ‘what are we doing today?’ to ensure the student is ready for the flight and actively engaged in their training, to develop their self analysis and to weed out the unprepared lackadaisical and languid students. It works very nicely for me and I can assure your readers that when I ask the question I already know exactly what the answer is.