Instructors

This part of the site is intended for flight instructors. You already know how to fly the airplane, helicopter, or whatever, and now you have to show others how to do it. Here, we'll try to share some of the finer points of instruction, particularly regarding pilot judgment, mainly using the experiences of your fellow instructors.

Teaching about weather. These are the responses from a a group of Certified Flight Instructors who took part in an FAA-sponsored survey. The instructors were asked to describe: (a) Ways in which they taught weather-related decision-making to their primary student pilots. (b) Ways in which they assessed the weather-related decision-making of their primary student pilots. You may find their approaches to those two instructional problems enlightening. (Here is the complete report on the CFI survey.)

Pre-flight risk sssessment This is a form that you may use with your students to help them evaluate the risks before a flight. Feel free to add or modify the form to make it more useful. Think of it as a starting point for a discussion of the flying risks and what the student can do to manage them.

Teaching and evaluating pilot judgment. This is a report that was prepared for the FAA. It presents some ideas on how to conduct a standardized Biennial Flight Review (BFR) based upon a multi-year research program to assess objectively the skill retention levels of pilots. It includes guidance for Certificated Flight Instructors (CFIs) on the selection of specific maneuvers to be performed based upon pilot characteristics such as total and recent experience, ordering of maneuvers, standardized grading procedures based upon the FAA practical test standards, and procedures for the assessment of pilot judgment. It addresses both ground and in-flight assessment.

FAA Power Point Program Repository. This is a link to the FAA's collection of Power Point presentations on a host of aviation topics. If you need some materials on what pilots should expect from their mechanics, how to make good landings, how to improve aeronautical decision-making, or any of a large number of other topics, this is a great place to start.