Aero-Tips!
A good pilot is always learning -- how many times have you heard
this old standard throughout your flying career? There is no truer
statement in all of flying (well, with the possible exception of
"there are no old, bold pilots.")
Aero-News has called upon the expertise of Thomas P. Turner,
master CFI and all-around-good-guy, to bring our readers -- and us
-- daily tips to improve our skills as aviators. Some of them, you
may have heard before... but for each of us, there will also be
something we might never have considered before, or something that
didn't "stick" the way it should have the first time we memorized
it for the practical test.
Look for our daily Aero-Tips segments, coming each day to you
through the Aero-News Network.
Aero-Tips 11.10.06
Your choice of CFI will in large part determine how long it
takes you to complete your training (and consequently, how much
it'll cost), whether you'll complete your certificate or rating at
all, and most importantly, how safe you'll really be when you
exercise you flying privileges. So it's important that you choose
the right instructor.
Not all CFIs instruct full-time. Some people feel anything less
than a full-time CFI is something less that professional -- you
wouldn't hire a part-time lawyer, or see a neurosurgeon that only
cuts into peoples' brains as a sideline. The difference is that
teaching the art of aviation isn't a terribly lucrative profession,
and sometimes instructors simply can't survive on a CFI's pay
alone. Further, somebody who does something else for a living and
still takes the time to give flying lessons probably has a lot of
passion for teaching flying that will help you meet your goals. In
fact, those attorneys and surgeons often do make time to teach
their profession.
Of course if the flight instructor is a commercial or military
pilot he/she may bring a lot of great "real-world" knowledge to
your flying lessons. And if the CFI does teach full-time, he/she
may be a "time builder" who is teaching out of professional
necessity (the only job they qualified to get) instead of ability
or inclination.
So…full-time/part time isn't really a player in picking
the right instructor. It's more important to find someone who
teaches as well as (or better than) he/she flies, and who is
available to work with you on your schedule.
Aero-tip of the day: When choosing a flight
instructor, interview CFIs to find out what extra experience they
bring to your lessons. Teaching full time or part time isn't
terribly important if they are good teachers of aviation.