Becoming a pilot requires extensive and serious training. You carry with you many lives at stake as you fly a plane in the air as a pilot.
Most training courses today are a mixture of practical exercises performed in the air. Aside from this, there is theoretical learning performed on the ground. The initial training is designed especially for beginners. Specialized trainings are done as the student advances.
Full flight simulators and flight training devices are used to train a student pilot in several conditions, at much lesser prices and danger than being airborne. Private pilot flight trainings have a minimum amount of 40 hours. However, most of the students are required to have 50 to 58 hours of flight training.
The prices of flight training classes differ largely from area to area, at around 40 to 60 flight schools for approximately 7,000 US dollar for the PPL or Private Pilot License. The CPL or Commercial Pilot License usually rates from 40,000 US dollars to 60,000 US dollars. It is taken for about 1 to 2 years. These structured training programs are eligible by the FAA to issues pilot license with reduced hours of flight training.
A full time pilot student can complete the training program in 4 to 6 months for their Commercial Pilot License. Several universities offer a 4 year Aviation Degree Program that contains flight training. The Ohio State University, Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University and University of North Dakota are several of the largest university that offers flight trainings.
Flight training can be extremely demanding emotionally, mentally and physically. Once the student made the decision to start to flight training, a student should do so with great self discipline and determination. With the training and the right resources, most people can learn to fly an aircraft at the basic level.
Tips on Training as a Pilot
Check out some local FBO or Fixed Base Operators. Flight trainings are usually done at the fixed base operator which can be found at some small airport in your area. These Fixed Base Operators are here to control hangar parking, dispense fuel and ramp usage. It usually has an aircraft you can rent out as well as numerous flight instructors that are available to train new students. Training at Fixed Base Operators are great choices for student who want to fly as a hobby and for fun.
Consider an Aeronautical University or College. Numerous universities and colleges in the United State offer full training for pilot bachelor degrees. These colleges or universities may solely emphasize on aeronautical based trainings like Embry-Riddle or may have aviation degrees within a larger umbrella like Central Missouri State University, Purdue University, the University of North Dakota and Parks College at Saint Luis University. This is a great choice for students who want to become a pilot and get a college degree.
Get an instructor. Regardless of who can make it to the flight training facility, students need a pilot instructor that well fits them. This could be one of the most significant decisions you can make throughout the flight training. Do not just accept the first pilot instructor they offer you, especially if you sense that you have different personalities.
You need to get along with this person in close quarters and be able to respect as well as trust their judgment and skills. Once you find a good pilot instructor stick with her or him. Changing pilot instructors numerous times can become confusing since they vary in expectations and techniques.
Archive for December, 2009
Flight Training Tips on Becoming a Pilot
Wednesday, December 30th, 2009Flight Training: Why you Should Get Spin Training
Saturday, December 26th, 2009Here is a perfect example of why you should get spin training when you are doing your
Flight Training:
for a pilot license.
Back in 1992, after I had been instructing for a few years, I was in the local FBO’s office where I worked. I was waiting for one of my students to come back from a solo flight. When my student came in, he looked as though he had just seen a ghost. He was shaking and sweating I asked him what happened. The answer that I got was one that most flight instructors would not want to hear: “I was practicing stalls in the practice area, and all of a sudden I was upside down, and then just spinning toward the ground I didn’t know what to do, but I heard your voice tell me to pull the power back and just let go of the control column, and the plane will stabilize. ”
If you know anything about small Cessnas, they tend to have a forward CG and will recover if you just let go of the controls for a second—that is, if you are not in a fully developed spin. So that is what the student did. Even more upsetting was when he stated the fact that, once the plane stopped spinning and the nose started to come up, the altimeter was reading about 1,800–1,900 feet.
If you fly in the Phoenix area, you know that the ground elevation is approximately 1,500 feet MSL. So my student recovered about 300 to 400 feet about the ground. This is far below normal traffic patterns. Would you like this to happen to you? Because it can happen to you. Or would you rather have an instructor go over spin entries and recoveries with you?
I was taking aerobatic flight lessons at the time and had practiced plenty of 3- to 4-turn spins, so I got the parachutes on, and up we went. I started demonstrating spins and spin entries, and he just kept saying, “Nope, that is not what happened. ” It finally dawned on me what had happened, and I asked him. Sure enough, I had hit the nail on the head.
The spin my student got himself into was one of the worst cases you could imagine. He was practicing power-off stalls, so the normal recovery procedure is to lower the nose, add full power, and start retracting flaps ten degrees at a time.
Little did my student know that the plane had started to enter the spin when he added full power. The result was a torque roll that placed the plane upside down at first, then continued to spin with the help of the full-power setting. I didn’t think that a 152 was capable of that, but sure enough, it was. So he pulled the power and let go of it, recovering about 400 feet above the ground.
I think every pilot out there should do some type of spin training. Now that I don’t have an aerobatic airplane, I do a flight that shows students how to enter and recover from the spin. This is not a full spin lesson, but it shows the student what to expect. If the student does get himself in trouble, I will let them go as long as I can.
When I had a Cessna 152 Aerobat, I would do spins and basic aerobatics with every student who wouldn’t put the plane over weight. Most students would be a little scared, but after the first of two flights, they couldn’t wait to do the second one.
If you can get up and do this before you solo, I suggest not doing it in an extra 300. Yes, it will be a fun time, but you won’t get the feel of the plane you are normally flying. If you can’t do it in an Aerobat, try to get in a Citabria or Super Decathlon. Use a plane that will be a little sluggish to simulate the plane you are training in.
Flight Training Story: Upside Down at Night
Wednesday, December 23rd, 2009Almost Upside Down at Night: With all of your flight training, there will be times when you get the notion that your instructor is mean or doesn’t know what they are talking about—perhaps not in such a bold way, but it will happen. This brings me to a story I have of a night cross-country with a student.
The flight itself is a pretty simple one and is safe for night flights. The flight goes from Mesa Falcon Field to Wickenberg, Arizona. I have personally put this flight in my syllabus for many reasons. I have gotten into many arguments with instructors who worked for me about this flight. Several of them refused to do the flight and instead ended up taking the student down to Tucson. As far as I am concerned, this defeats the purpose of the night cross-country. Following a big lit-up highway in between two bright major cities does not expose you to the real situations that can happen on a night cross-country.
Don’t let your instructor take you to an easy-to-find destination that is lit up like New York City. Go somewhere that is pretty difficult to find, at least for you, not your instructor. Yes, you want to make sure the instructor knows where he is going to land in the event of an engine failure, but you need to be on a flight that can get you into a little bit of trouble if you aren’t paying attention.
Back to my story.
I will call the student John. You know that I am totally against using all these high-tech things for private pilot training and even instrument ratings. Remember what job number one of the pilot is ? Yes, fly the airplane! I have also already stated that it will take you about 500 hours before you have this second sense stuck in you inner memory. Even then, a difficult situation will be a battle between many parts of your brain at the same time.
John called me in the afternoon about his night flight. We verified the time, and at the end of the call, John stated that he had just gotten his new Garmin 95 latest-and-greatest GPS device and asked if he could bring it along. You probably know me pretty well by now and know exactly what my answer was: “No!”
John showed up at the airport with his cross-country planned and flight plan filed, and ready to go. Before we walked out of the office, out came that shiny new Garmin box. “Fred, you need to check this out . . . this is the new Garmin 95, top-of-the–line, latest-and-greatest . . . ” This was back in 1996. Garmin was a no-name back then and was just getting into the market.
“Please, please, please can we take it with us?” After all the begging, I finally gave in. Deep in my mind somewhere, I had a little smile, and a voice just said, “Okay. ”
Before John even started his pre-flight, he set up his new Garmin 95 on the control column. I knew right then that we were in for a good time! I told John that he couldn’t turn it on until we got out of Phoenix airspace, which is right where it starts to get nice and dark. He said, “Okay, no problem. ”
We took off and headed west as planned. John was right on the money with all of his checkpoints and times. Flight plan opened at the right time. He was getting an A+ at this stage of the ball game. We got about five miles west of Deer Valley airport, where it starts to get nice and dark. (Again, don’t do a night cross-country when there is a full moon! It is nice to see the big bright moon from 4,500 above the ground, but it makes your night cross-country easier. If you are doing your first night flight as a licensed pilot with your girlfriend/boyfriend, go for it—that is the safe thing to do. )
John looked at me with those puppy eyes and asked, “Can I turn it on?” At this point, I just looked at him and said, “Yes. ” The little voice in my head spoke to me again, “Now it is time for the real lesson to begin. ”
John turned on the new greatest gift to mankind. The screen came on, and he said, “Look, Fred, isn’t this great? It tells you everything!” The little voice in my head said, “Yeah. Right. It tells you everything except what your #1 job in an airplane is. ”
John kept playing with his new toy. I learned way back in 1989 that there are times when the flight instructor’s job is to shut up and let the student go. This was definitely one of those times.
At first, John had it under control. He was following his line on the screen and was okay, but I knew that sooner or later, it was going to distract him from his number one job . . . Yes, fly the airplane!
A little while passed, and John decided to start playing with the screen options. I knew now that the big lesson had begun, so I just sat there. Slowly, his altitude started to go up and down—not very much at first, but I knew it was just going to get worse.
I looked at John, and his head was down looking right at the GPS. By the way, the time frame of this entire lesson was probably less than a minute.
John continued to look down and said, “Hm, I can’t find the screen I am looking for. ” I just sat there. Slowly, he started a right turn, only a few degrees bank, heading right into the mountains. The plane began to slowly lose altitude as the right turn started to get steeper. There was no horizon at all, so John had no clue of what was going on. Luckily, he was one of the students that took my aerobatic option before solo, so he was familiar with extreme unusual attitude. But not at night.
Slowly but surely, the plane had entered the dreaded graveyard spiral at cruise power setting. I waited and waited, hoping that the sound of the wind howling across the airplane would give him a clue, but nope—he had been trained for this many times, but he didn’t pick it up.
The plane kept going into a steeper bank. If it had been daytime, I would have let him get upside down, but not at night. Finally, it was time to open my mouth. “Anything wrong?”
John looked up, and the string of four-letter words began to flow. He got the plane under control. Power back wings level and nose level. However, he was still heading on the quickest path to meet God, right into the mountains a few miles north of the very dimly lit highway I plan as my emergency landing spot.
I said to him, “What can you see in front of you?” “He replied with, “Nothing. ” I said, “So that means . . . ?” I got the reply, “I am flying right into the ground. ” That answer was pretty much correct; with his new heading, he was flying straight into the hills. Since we lost about 1,500 feet, our altitude was perfect for the big smack.
I raised my voice slightly and said, “If you can’t see anything, you are in trouble. Find some light, start climbing, and head in that direction. ”
John got the plane under control, turned the GPS off, and we had an uneventful flight to Wickenberg and then back home to Falcon Field.
When we got back on the ground, John said, “I think I am going to learn to fly before I worry about that GPS. ” He also requested some night unusual attitude training. I also highly recommend this.
So again, the little lesson is fly the airplane! John got distracted from that job by his little GPS. If you insist on using this stuff, make sure you know how to use it, and don’t try to learn it in the plane, especially at night!
As far as disorientation goes, it can happen very quickly, and when it does, it is not going to be pretty. It has happened to me in actual instrument conditions. I had all my ratings, and it still took a few minutes before the blood pressure went down.
Just remember this little unusual attitude check, which you should be able to repeat at the bar when you are about to fall on the floor:
Airspeed High, Or, “I Hear the Wind Howling Outside the Plane”
1: Power Back
2: Wings Level
3: Nose of the Airplane Level
4: Once You Have the Plane under Control, then bring the power back in, and get back to your altitude and heading
Airspeed Low:
1: Nose Forward
2: Wings Level
3: Once you have the nose at descent attitute, then add power. Why? If you do not remember, go back to the “
Spin Training
” chapter.
If you are out on a dark night, you are going to be fighting that attitude indicator. Get some training on night unusual attitudes. Then come back a few weeks later and do it again until you automatically react, especially after some time has gone by.
Make sure you go somewhere that is not easy, and make sure it is on a dark night.
A Different Approach to Instrument Flight Training
Saturday, December 19th, 2009Any licensed private pilot who has tried to earn their instrument rating knows that traditional instrument flight training can be slow, frustrating and unnecessarily redundant. Medford, Oregon-based Certified Flight Instructor Field Morey realized long ago that he needed to get his instrument students away from the distractions of day-to-day life so they could focus on the process of learning IFR mastery.
To separate life from flight training, Morey takes two students at a time on what he calls “West Coast Adventure Flights” spanning six days flying throughout the American West. He has used this technique to teach instrument flying for over 40 years, with over 600 pilots building hours towards their IFR rating while seeing the Western United States from inside Morey’s 2008 Cessna T182T Skylane aircraft.
Morey offers three different IFR adventure flights:
The Alaska Adventure is an incredible area to spend a week of flight training while enjoying the majestic scenery and grandeur of the great America wilderness. On this once-in-a-lifetime trip, is as important as the six days of IFR flight training you’ll receive, much if it in the kind of real-world IMC that is found in Alaska.
After departure from Medford, IFR flight students cross over into Canada and clear Canadian customs using CANPASS. The flight then travels north along the British Columbia coastline, and after clearing U. S. Customs at Ketchikan, the trip has planned stops at Anchorage, Sitka,Yakutat, Cordova, Juneau, and other points of interest. If weather allows, students may also see Mt. McKinley (Denali).
For pilots seeking to learn backcountry flying and operations, Morey offers the Wilderness Adventure Flight, a six-day flight designed as an instrument refresher as well as a chance to learn the skills for operating in the Idaho backcountry.
The course begins in Medford with two flight students and Morey traveling north into Washington, Idaho and Montana to learn the “ins and outs” of operations from mountain strips as well as canyon techniques. On this adventure, pilots get time to hike, fish or just relax and enjoy the solitude of the Idaho Wilderness.
Pilot and flight student Blake Picquet of Fort Worth, TX was one of Morey’s students on this adventure a few years ago. “Never will you find another opportunity to combine a legendary instructor with the panoramic views and intensity of the Idaho backcountry. The result is a trip that will put all your skills to the test. . . commercial, instrument, and of course, fly fishing,” Picquet said.
Morey also offers the Rockies Adventure Flight, a six-day training session that combines IFR mountain techniques with beautiful scenery from the Rockies and American Southwest. After stops in Montana, Wyoming, Colorado and Arizona, the training continues in the busy Class Bravo airspace of the Los Angeles and San Francisco regions before arriving back in Medford, Oregon.
One aspect of Morey’s Adventure Flights is the a brand new Cessna 182 Skylane with glass cockpit. The turbocharged Skylane provides the additional performance needed in the mountainous areas along with additional power to climb above the icing conditions during the winter months. The aircraft has a full Garmin G1000 instrument panel and is soon to be equipped with Garmin “Synthetic Vision Technology” plus TAWS-B Terrain and Obstruction Data, GDL-69 Datalink with XM Weather and Radio, and Garmin GFC700 Autopilot, Morey has even outfitted his Skylane with Bose noise canceling headsets to create a quiet training environment.
The training program has proven to be such a success, all trips during Morey’s 2008 training season easily sold out. He has launched a new website that is sure to continue making his West Coast Adventure Flights one of the most popular IFR training programs in the country.
Flight Training – Get Up There
Tuesday, December 15th, 2009If you love heights and you simply can’t ignore the satisfaction flying can give you then enrolling in flight training is a solid choice. Basically, if you want to be a pilot someday, you have to undergo excessive flight training and proper schooling in an accredited flight school. Flight training should give you the skills on how to handle, take-off, and land a very basic aircraft or glider. You will then have to go through advanced training schools to learn how to pilot large aircraft for specific training.
1. Flight regulations
Aside from the complete procedures you will undergo in a flight training, you will also be taught on areas regarding flight rules and regulations.
2. Principles of flight
Just like any professional activity, it is also important for a pilot to know the different principle in flying. This will guide them on their quest for a career in flying.
3. Medical certificate
It is important to know the needed requirements in order to start with your flight training. There is a physical requirement to be a pilot.
4. Navigation
This refers to the proper maneuvering of the aircraft along a set course.
5. Human factors
This is to equip the trainee with proper knowledge on how human factors affect the overall flying procedure.
6. Radio Communications
Here, the student is trained on how to communicate effectively with the people situated in the control area. This is to facilitate communications with an air traffic controller so as to know the condition of the air traffic in the area.
7. Meteorology
This is also included in the flight training because it is important in understanding the conditions in mid air.
8. Flight Instruction Processes
- Preparation The basics of flight
- Advanced Flying procedures and practice flying within a certain area
- Solo Flights Must be able to fly between any of the local airports and homebase
- Specific Aircraft Advanced topics such as dead reckoning, pilotage, night flying, aeronautical charts
- Certification Exam required
Flight Training Information
Sunday, December 13th, 2009Flight Training
Take the step and have some flight training. What better thing to do than get
Your Pilot License and get behind the Airplanes controls, Navigate and
tour the world. Flying a Plane is a lot easier that you would think and a few
Flying lessons could start you on a path to a rewarding career. Contact your local Flight Training Centre and make arrangements to have a one on one Discussion and a Complementary flight with an accredited Flight Instructor who will answer all your inquires and let you take the controls while on your Complementary Flight to get the feel for flying.
There are a number of Flight Schools, Flight Training Centres and Flight Academies across the country so check them out and find the one that suits your needs.
Many of the Flight Schools specialize in Aviation Lessons such as Commercial Flight Training, Crop Spraying, Helicopter Training Schools, Charted Services as well as Accelerated Flight Training. An Accredited Flying Instructor will be employed at a Flying School who will take you through your Pilot Training and in approximately 100 hours you should achieve your Pilots License.
Your Flight Training can start as young as 13 years of age and should be able to Fly Solo at 16 years.
Take the opportunity to get to your nearest Flight Training School and advance into a Flight Academy and then on to become a Flight Instructor, then the next step could be a Career in Aviation.
Safety in the air is paramount and your Flight School will cover all aspects of safety of the aircraft. This will all be explained to you by your Flight Instructor.
All Airplanes at all Flight Schools and Flight Academies are regularly checked for safety.
You will also be able to join a Flying Club through your Flight School which will cut your learning cost down and also make new friends.
For a lot more information click on the following link: Best Flight Training