Aviation Megathread 10-9: The Kids Are All Rote

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PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

So you want to fly, eh? - About Flying in Canada

Learning to fly, and then flying in Canada works very similarly to the US, but since I'm an instructor up here, I wanted to add some things that might be important to my countrymen.

Where Should I Go To Train?

Well, unlike the US, we have relatively more restrictions on how flight training can be offered. Freelance instruction at the PPL level is only available if you own your own aircraft, or you have one in your immediate family. You should probably not buy a plane to undertake PPL training, I cannot stress this enough! So you'll be looking for a Flight Training Unit. Do your research, the same you would anywhere else.

In terms of qualifications beyond PPL, we do have college and university programs, but they tend toward the Extremely loving Expensive side, even by the standards of aviation. I already had a university degree, so I did my CPL and everything else through a normal Flight Training Unit. My conversations with other pilots going through training in Canada has informed me that the availability of advanced training is, to put it bluntly, a bit poo poo in a lot of places, so this may be something you want to keep in mind when selecting a school initially.

How is the training process different?

There are some things which are different by law and some things which are different in common practice due to different regulations. The most significant things:

There is no night hour requirement for PPL, you will be flying during the day only. Canada has a separate night rating, the details of which I won't go into because they are going to change at some point in the very near future because people keep managing to have stupid, stupid accidents while training at night.
Typically, you do the CPL right after PPL, if you're planning to fly commercially. While you can do other ratings first, we count pilot-in-command time differently than the US (it cannot be logged on an instrument training flight, specifically) so if you plan to do your instrument rating first, you will have to build up 50 hours of cross-country PIC time. Arguably not the worst idea in the world, but most people don't do it that way. Of note, CPLs not holding an instrument rating are not subject to nearly as many restrictions here as in the US, so it's even less tempting. You will still need an instrument rating, most likely, to get any decent job that's not instructing.
If you are instrument-rated, but you did the flight test in a single-engine aircraft, you will have to do the whole flight test again to extend it to multi-engine aircraft. Most people just skip the single-engine only instrument rating.
Do you want to get an instructor rating? While that certainly is an option, Canadian regulations are significantly less limiting in terms of what a freshly-minted CPL can do. Technically, you could be a first officer on... anything, provided you write a written exam on multi-crew operations or you complete the written exams toward your ATPL. In practice, you aren't going to get hired straight away at Air Canada. Or even Lynx! If you are employed as a non-pilot at one of these airlines, it changes a bit, they might give you a shot at low time, but mostly I've heard these supposed plans are mainly a pipe dream at this point. This may be subject to change in the near future, as the pilot shortage is getting pretty bad and airlines will start taking what they can get -- especially the smaller ones.
ATPL requirements are basically the same, hour-wise, as the US, I think. You write two written exams, and you have to have done an instrument flight test in a multi-engine aircraft within the past two years. I've not done this yet as I still need to meet some of the hour requirements -- total time is not a problem, but I'm still missing some night requirements.

So you want to be an instructor anyway? It's a great way to build time and experience, and it's a job I really like doing, so apart from the poo poo pay, I wouldn't try to turn anyone away from it. Our system is a bit different from the US, though; in some ways better, in other ways worse. We have a system with four classes of instructor ratings:

Class 4: New instructor, cannot freelance, must be under the supervision of a class 2 or 1 instructor. Can teach ultralight ratings unsupervised
Class 3: All of the above, no requirement for supervision, can freelance, can operate a Flight Training Unit provided they are the only instructor
Class 2: All of the above, can supervise class 4 instructors, can operate as the chief flight instructor of a Flight Training Unit
Class 1: All of the above, can teach instructor ratings

Your first step on this journey will be to find a Class 1 instructor -- easier said than done at the moment. I hope to have mine done by the end of the year, but right now, out of our whole reasonably-large FTU, we have one full-time, and two extremely-part time. There is a waiting list, and they will probably only select you if the chief instructor thinks you seem like someone he'd hire at the end of it. After that, you'll do a bunch of training and you'll come out as a brand new class 4 instructor.

This is one of the big benefits of our system: the initial rating is easier, from everything I've heard, because ultimately you are going to be a sort of apprentice afterward. A class 2 or 1 instructor will review your training plans on a regular basis, and fly with your students as necessary to make sure you're not messing up too much. To make it to class 3, you need to recommend three students who pass a flight test, send three students on their first solo, and achieve 100 hours of instructing (possibly a concern if you're being given students who are about to solo or flight test, not a concern if you're teaching three students from scratch). In practice, it was a lot more than 100 hours for me and for all of my co-workers.

To reach class 2, you'll need 10 flight test recommends (not 10 passes, 10 recommends) and 500 hours of instructing. You get to do another written exam (this one is harder, but not by much), and a flight test showing that you're moderately better at instructing than a class 3 or 4 (it's not a super-impossible standard by any means, you don't need to be flawless, just good).

To reach class 1, you'll need 750 hours of instructing, then (possibly) need to write a written exam, and pass a slightly more challenging flight test. The written exam is the same one as for class 2, but you need 80% instead of 70%. I got 83.7% on my first attempt, which means I don't have to do it again, and that makes me very well pleased. This is the only instructor flight test I haven't done yet, but the feedback I've got from people who have is: you have to be good, and the very challenging part is remembering that, at the most complex, the examiner is evaluating your ability to evaluate your instructor candidate based on the examiner role-playing an instructor candidate who is evaluating you role-playing a student. It took me five minutes to type that sentence and I'm still not sure I got it right.

Now, you'll notice I haven't mentioned anything about CFII or MEI. It's because we don't have them! This is a part of our system I like much less than the US system. To teach a multi-engine rating, you require 50 hours of multi-engine time and 10 hours on the type of aircraft used for the training. That's it! That's not even "in addition to an instructor rating" or something. You could be the world's slowest ME student, pass after 50 hours (average is about 10), and provided you hold a CPL, provide instruction in that same aircraft the next day. The situation with instrument ratings isn't much better: for an instrument rating, you have to do at least 5 hours with the holder of a flight instructor rating. The rest can be done by a flight instructor with an instrument rating, or by the holder of an instrument rating who has at least 500 hours PIC (of which 100 hours must be multi-engine to do it for multi-engine aircraft).

What about other ratings I've heard discussed?

We probably don't have them. We don't have a high-performance endorsement, we don't have a tailwheel endorsement, we don't have a complex endorsement (or requirement for CPL). Is that a bad thing? Well, probably! In practice, insurance companies will stare at you like you have three heads if you are going to try to fly any of the above without adequate instruction, but it's still legally possible.

We do, however, have a few ratings that cover things that anyone with a PPL can do in the US: the night rating is one, and the other one is VFR-Over-the-Top which allows you to fly over, but not in, cloud. I think I've seen that rating issued exactly one time, because you can exercise that privilege with an instrument rating or a commercial license anyway, and frankly it's a bit stupid to be flying over a cloud layer without an instrument rating... there's a lot of ways that could go wrong.

So you can fly anything?

Not quite. We do have a definition of high-performance, but it's different from the US. Our definition of high-performance is "anything with a stall speed in landing configuration of over 80 knots, or a maximum speed of over 250 knots" and there is no rating that covers them, you will need a type rating for each one. You will also need a type rating for anything that has a requirement for multiple pilots.

I want to fly a light sport aircraft? Can I do that?

Yes and no. We have something called a recreational pilot permit, which enables you to fly single-engine non-high-performance aircraft with a maximum capacity of 4, but with only one other person. It's vaguely ridiculous, but it comes with a lower hour requirement, and lower medical requirements. You can also get it at 16 rather than 17, which is why I have one! Fun fact: since it's not technically a license, it doesn't get superseded by a PPL or a CPL or an ATPL, so it still got printed in my most recent Aviation Document Booklet (our licenses look like passports, and you get a sticker every time your ratings, license, or medical change).

What's different about flying in Canada after you're licensed?

I've never flown in the States, so I can only tell you what I've heard. Here are some interesting differences:

Our airspace is different. Class B in the US surrounds large airports and student pilots need an endorsement to enter it. Class B in Canada is "all controlled airspace above 12,500' and below 18,000'" and you need to be on a flight plan and have a clearance to enter it, but it is available for VFR pilots. Our large airports are all Class C, and the requirements are broadly similar to Class B in the US as I understand it: you need a clearance to enter. We also have Class F, which is any airspace which is designated for special use. This can be Advisory (airspace protected for training, soaring, parachute drops, etc.) or Restricted (airspace above prisons, military areas, forest fires, etc.).
You cannot be cleared to land in sequence, you are cleared to land only when no one will be on the runway other than you.
We have different document requirements, including a Journey Log for the aircraft which is a record of where the aircraft has been and who has flown it. American pilots seems to find this, in particularly, very weird and funny. I'm not sure why.
Flight following is available in most places, but its use is much less common than in the US because we have fewer controllers. Typically, you will monitor 126.7 and make position reports, or if you own a Vans, you will not.

Show Me Your Parts

We have different regulations up here in Canada, so all the various FAA Parts don't apply.

We have:

702 - Aerial Work
703 - Air Taxi
704 - Commuter
705 - Airline Transport
406 - Flight Training Units
604 - Private Operators (required for turbo-jet aircraft*, aircraft with greater than 12566 lbs. MTOW, and turbine powered pressurized aircraft with more than six seats)

That's all I can think of right now. If anyone has Canada-specific questions I missed, let me know and I'll do my best to answer them.

PT6A fucked around with this message at 22:27 on Oct 7, 2023

# ¿ Oct 7, 2023 19:38

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 15:16

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

We have some of those programs starting in Canada. They're between $117000 and $140000, and at the end you get a guaranteed* spot as a first officer somewhere.

* If you pass the training in the time allocated, which is a massive, massive gamble.

I'm biased because I did all my training the traditional way, but that is a lot of goddamn money, and if you're dedicated enough and skilled enough to make it through one of those programs in the time and hours promised, you will do very well in any training setting and the traditional way will save you a lot of money. In essence, you're paying tens of thousands of dollars to *know* what your first job will be. It might be worth it to some people, but that's what you're paying for and that's how you should look at it.

# ¿ Oct 9, 2023 13:58

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Also � if you get a degree, for God�s sake get it in something other than aviation. Study something you�re passionate about, something that will help you be a better pilot (meteorology maybe?), something that will help you manage a business if you don�t want to go the airline route, something that will make you money if your medical craps out. Anything! Other than aviation�

# ¿ Oct 10, 2023 23:21

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

helno posted:

You missed two entire classes or aircraft and a completely separate license. I don�t have the numbers in front of me but I suspect that there are more UL permits issued than Rec.

So in Canada we do not have light sport aircraft or FAR103 ultralights. Instead we have two categories of ultralights that share a common license.

Basic ultralights and Advanced ultralights. Both require at least an ultralight pilots permit or greater (theoretically the glider pilot permit is greater but good luck getting that by your insurance company)

The UL permit is issued by your instructor with no flight test requirement much like gliders and has a more basic written exam. The only add on for a UL permit is for passenger carrying in advanced ultralights and it also requires you to go from a class 4 to a class 3 medical.

Unlike FAR103 ultralights basic ultralights can actually have substantial gross weights and top speeds in the exchange for that you need to get some flight training register your aircraft and get insurance. This class is otherwise pretty wide open as long as you meet the stall speed requirement. You cannot carry passengers unless they possess a license that would allow them to fly the aircraft.

Advanced ultralights are mostly the same but can allow an appropriately rated pilot to carry unlicensed passengers. In order to get that extra privilege the aircraft needs a letter of conformance and must be maintained according to the manufacturer�s schedule.

The numbers for basic and advanced are the same.

Maximum gross weight of 544 kg (1,200 pounds) and,
Maximum stall speed of 39 knots (45 mph) indicated airspeed

Doesn�t sound like much but you can get some European glass missiles that fit the bill.

The vast majority trend towards the slower and lighter end of things but that does not represent the entire category. I personally owned a very flying lawn chair ultralight and it was loving rad. I get that people here are working towards careers and fun is not allowed but flying doesn�t need to be all business all the time.

The other interesting privilege that the ultralight pilot permit gets you is that you can legally fly any aircraft that would qualify as an ultralight regardless of its actual category. So plenty of cubs, champs and luscombes that can be flown by ultralight pilots.

I should also write up something about gliders.

Please do so! We always have time for fun in aviation.

Thanks for the write-up, I've never dabbled in gliders or ultralights so I appreciate the input. The only advice I would give is: be extremely careful with who you use for ultralight instruction. I was teaching an ultralight instructor toward a recreational pilot permit, and frankly he was a danger to himself and others. Now, there are also plenty of ultralight pilots who know what they're doing and will teach you to be a good, safe pilot. You can't know the difference if you don't do your research.

# ¿ Oct 13, 2023 23:52

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Don't teach your son or any family member, do what my chief instructor did and just authorize the first solo after someone else has done the training.

# ¿ Oct 18, 2023 22:36

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Are there any shoe brands that have divested from Israel or is there just no ethical consumption under capitalism?

# ¿ Oct 31, 2023 05:56

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Rolo posted:

TSA still sucks. My KCM badge somehow mis-scanned today and he starts grilling me on why �my last name doesn�t match my badge� so I look at my passport and badge, ask what he means and he jumps down my throat with �what�re you trying to do man why is your name different on my screen? What did you do?�

He scanned it again and it worked the second time but he decided not to let me in anyways. Total rear end in a top hat acting like he pulled me over then getting pissy when he finds out I didn�t do anything wrong. Laaaaaame.

Literally Dr. Lexus: "why come you don't have a tattoo?"

# ¿ Nov 11, 2023 14:40

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Beef Of Ages posted:

What sort of redeye? I'm not a pilot but the mid-con redeye is to happiness as the CR2 is to the fifth concentric circle of hell. I steadfastly refuse them even if I don't have to do poo poo afterward.

If your sleep cycle and general happiness permit it, go for it.

I think this analogy needs reworking, did you write it after a mid-con redeye? Unless you mean that the CR2 should be lucky to occupy only the fifth concentric circle of hell, which is reasonable.

# ¿ Dec 6, 2023 05:16

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Kwolok posted:

The beech 18 is cool. Any thoughts on training in a piper Archer vs a Cessna 172?

I would say if you're concerned about potentially transferring to a different school at some point, do the 172 because they are the most common. I'd also say that high-wing makes visual navigation somewhat easier. That being said, I suppose I'm biased because I've flown Cessnas for like 1500 hours and Pipers for maybe 150-200 at this point, but holy gently caress there's a lot that pisses me off about the 172 at this point and not so much that pisses me off about the Seneca (which is admittedly not an Archer). The 172 is a very forgiving trainer, but that doesn't make it a good trainer if you ever plan to fly something else, and it doesn't make it a particularly good trainer even if you don't plan to fly something else. It will cover up your errors too readily instead of presenting them to you for you to see clearly.

# ¿ Dec 7, 2023 04:17

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Teaching out of a busy airport, my experience is the following: it's very, very annoying at specific times in your training, specifically in the run-up to going solo for the first time; however, if you plan to fly in and out of busy airports later on, it's not actually any more work to do it from day one, because you will spend the time getting proficient one way or the other.

I meet so many people, some with hundreds of hours, who come here and are completely overwhelmed, even scared, about flying here, and many of them are less proficient at flying in busy airspace than the bare minimum I would accept for one of my students to go solo for the first time. I'm not saying you must train at a busy airport, but if your plans for what you do with your license involve busy airports, I just want you to realize that you are going to spend time and money learning how to do it no matter when you do it.

Time spent transiting to and from the practice area is a different matter, but a good instructor can make use of those times even if you aren't doing the actual exercises, and it's still hours.

# ¿ Dec 8, 2023 21:49

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Nofeed posted:

After a significant living-on-a-different-continent delay with work, I�m finally going up for my mock PPL test on Monday. Assuming I don�t find another new and exciting way to disappoint my instructor, probably test next week too? Any last minute words of wisdom?

Don't argue with the examiner, you will lose. Before *checks notes* today I thought this would be common sense, but now everyone gets reminded!

# ¿ Dec 17, 2023 03:53

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Now is not the time to share that particular story in full. But, suffice to say, it looks like you can talk yourself from a major error into a critical error if you�re stubborn enough.

# ¿ Dec 17, 2023 14:30

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Kwolok posted:

My ultimate goal is probably just to take friends on little trips, let them fly with me and experience it as well. Sure that might wear thin eventually but I think this is a good goal. I doubt I'll ever own but there is a really great flyers club here.

1800 hours here, it never wears thin (unless you do the same goddamn trip three times in one day, in which case you may need a few days off from that specific route).

# ¿ Dec 19, 2023 06:38

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Walrusmaster posted:

I need to get some better friends, no one wants to go flying with me

If there's one thing I've learned after all my CPL time building and then working as an instructor full-time, it's that flying by yourself is the best thing ever, and it should be cherished. Get a headset with Bluetooth and just vibe while doing the coolest goddamn thing on earth. Nothing beats listening to 'Pac as you fly down one of the most beautiful valleys on earth approaching a mostly-deserted airstrip.

# ¿ Dec 20, 2023 03:02

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

I've never flown a plane that can land itself, but the GFC-500 that just got installed in our Seneca can fly a loving mint ILS/LPV to 200 AGL, for sure. I love that autopilot so, so much, it's amazing.

# ¿ Dec 26, 2023 19:17

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Sagebrush posted:

rad.

i wonder what "detuning" means in that situation. apply a little offset to the aim point that changes with every approach? deliberately add a bit of random noise to the flight controls? knock off the last digit in the calculations?

I'm also curious, but if I had to take a guess, they'd just set the aim point to a slightly different place every time. If it's that accurate, that would be the cleanest and safest solution.

# ¿ Dec 26, 2023 22:11

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Good explanation, I endorse it as an instrument-rating instructor.

I would just add, because I think it's interesting, there are some instrument approaches that essentially get you on a specific path down to flying VFR, at which point you are essentially VFR until you land, rather than providing a straight-in approach to a specific runway. This may happen if you have a reason to land on a runway not served by an instrument approach (as happens at my home airport where only 17/35 have instrument approaches, but we frequently get strong winds from the west that would necessitate landing on 26) or in mountainous areas, where you might only get down to 2000 or 2500 above ground on the instrument phase of the approach.

For additional context, I'd also add that a big difference in categories of ILS approach is reliability. Your bog-standard Cat I ILS installation could probably be used to conduct an automatic landing safely 99% or the time or more, but Cat II and III have higher standards for error detection and reliability.

# ¿ Dec 26, 2023 23:10

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

By Canadian regs, single pilot IFR in commercial service is only allowed with an autopilot (among other things). And if you're forbidden from doing something in commercial service but not privately, the implication is "we don't care if you kill yourself doing this dumb poo poo, but you aren't allowed to take paying passengers with you."

# ¿ Dec 27, 2023 00:17

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

hobbesmaster posted:

Are you sure it isn�t because

No I don't think it's that.

Only registered members can see post attachments!

# ¿ Dec 27, 2023 02:05

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Rolo posted:

Ugh I might be calling out on new years reserve while still on probation.

I think someone went and got me sick.

3/4 supervisors at work (including myself) are down with colds this week, two of my students last week were sick when I cancelled on them because I was sick. I don't know if this is COVID or what the gently caress is going on right now, but it's very bad at the moment. I don't love masks, but I hate losing most of a paycheque and feeling like trash so I might just go back to wearing them until people learn to keep their sick, gross selves inside until they're well.

# ¿ Jan 2, 2024 03:11

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

One of my former co-workers once landed at a tiny, uncontrolled airport, took an urgent poo poo on the runway, and then left.

The worst experience I've had personally was as a passenger arriving to Hell (also known as Pierre Elliot Trudeau International Airport), on a flight from Purgatory (also known as South Florida). The night before, we'd had dinner at a Mexican joint that my cousin swore was "the best." The seatbelt sign went on for descent, and I'm like "oh gently caress, this isn't good. I can make it 'til we're on the ground, I think." And I did. But because the Quebecois are a cursed form of human life, there were no bathrooms between the jetway and passport control, so there's another ~20 minutes. I got through passport control, I saw the bathroom sign. I nearly made it!

[scene missing]

Cabbie: "Why are you wearing swim trunks? It's fuckin' -20"

Me: "SHUT UP AND DRIVE THE CAR, I don't want to talk about it!"

# ¿ Jan 3, 2024 00:01

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Sagebrush posted:

What's the code for that in the runway METAR?

Runway friction is reported in the NOTAMs and I sincerely hope it would've covered less than 10% of the runway, and therefore gone without being reported.

# ¿ Jan 3, 2024 04:35

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

One thing I've come to grips with is that, for younger students, it might be their first time navigating -- period, in any context -- without active GPS assistance. It's not just relying too much on GPS in planes, it's being fundamentally weak at the skill of knowing where you are, or using a map that doesn't indicate exactly where you are at any given time. It's our job to recognize that and bridge the gap appropriately, not just blame the shiny GPS for being too easy.

# ¿ Jan 12, 2024 23:36

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Rolo posted:

If your student cannot understand old school navigation, it isn�t because they�re children, it�s because you aren�t teaching it to them.

Oh yeah, just to be clear, that's exactly my take on it. But I think it's possible we have a tendency to overlook just how much we have to teach in some cases, which makes us all the more responsible to do it properly. For example, if you have a student who remembers navigating driving-wise with paper maps, you need to teach them how to use a VFR chart. If you have a student who has never used a paper map for anything, then you need to teach them the basic skills of orienting oneself with a paper map, and then teach them how to use a VFR chart. If you have a student who lacks even basic directional awareness (like, where is "West"), then you need to teach them that, then how to use a paper map, then how to use a VFR chart. What I'm saying is that you can't assume that students, in this case but also more generally, have the background knowledge you simply assume everyone has. It's not to condescend to them or blame them, it's just part of being a good instructor. If you don't know the difference between fuel or oil, or that you shouldn't sniff gasoline, we'll get you across the line, but it's important we fill in those gaps along the way. Yes, those are all examples I've dealt with personally. I don't assume a goddamn thing any more.

# ¿ Jan 13, 2024 01:05

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

It's always interesting to discuss how to bring up this subject with students. The bottom line is: if you gently caress up bad enough as a pilot, the consequence is you will die and you will take your passengers with you. There's really no two ways about that. And I've certainly dealt with students who need the message: you need to take this poo poo seriously, because if you don't, it will cost human lives. Stop loving around immediately or find another job/hobby.

Yet I've also dealt with another sort of student, who is so focused on perfection as a result that they miss the forest for the trees, which is to say (to use an example of one of my students): if you handle a runway change at a busy controlled airport on your second solo perfectly, and then you have one bounce on landing which is safely corrected, and we discuss what you could do to prevent that next time.... you can't beat yourself up about it, and you need to know that I don't loving care and that ain't what keeps me awake at night.

Worst case scenario, the absolute worst that's going to happen there, is that you have a really bad porpoise, gently caress up the recovery and total the plane and come out with some bruises. Obviously, I would not like that to happen. But if it does, it's not the end of the world. What scares me is the idea of one of my students, one who has passed a flight test, getting into a plane with their spouse and/or kids, and taking off into bad weather and going VFR into IMC, or not looking outside and having a midair, or getting confused by clearances and doing exactly the wrong thing in a busy airspace.

I had a student recently on his third solo, which under our syllabus is the first flight the instructor is not in the plane at any time, and we de-briefed the flight and he said "I went around two times, I didn't feel good about the approaches." I said "sounds like you made at least two excellent choices, don't ever stop going around!" This student is not god's gift to aviation, by a long shot, but I don't worry about him.

# ¿ Jan 13, 2024 04:35

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Kwolok posted:

Realistically, if I'm just a basic GA pilot who isn't allowed to receive payment from my passengers, do you ever get in trouble for things like, "yeah I didn't accept payment from my passengers but they bought me lunch and dinner" kinda thing?

If it's some random person, then maybe. If it's a friend or family member who would conceivably buy you lunch and dinner "just because" then the FAA really, really doesn't care that much. Or to put it differently: no, taking someone flying does not mean you are forbidden from ever accepting money or favours from them again, but try to avoid situations where there's a specific "deal."

# ¿ Jan 14, 2024 20:29

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Kwolok posted:

But I don't want to risk it having seen what leaded gas did to an entire generation.

I think the leaded gasoline hypothesis is just far too convenient an excuse for that poo poo. I don't think lead is good for you, obviously, but I doubt it turned a very specific subset of one generation into raving lunatics. That theory exists because we don't want to accept that mee-maw and paw-paw are just fuckin' PRICKS of their own volition.

# ¿ Jan 25, 2024 05:51

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Here4DaGangBang posted:

There is also that one along the lines of: how surprising is it really that a generation raised by a generation with PTSD turned out to be arseholes?

Well, there's also many people who were raised by people with PTSD, and breathed all the leaded gas fumes, and didn't turn out to be pricks, or are stereotypical boomer assholes only in one or two aspects of their life/worldview.

# ¿ Jan 25, 2024 15:25

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Arson Daily posted:

pilots cant "ground" airplanes. only maintenance can do that. pilots can, however, not fly an airplane they deem unsafe to fly

Sure we can, at least in Canada. Write a defect in the journey log and it�s grounded until maintenance looks at it and signs off, by law.

# ¿ Jan 28, 2024 04:03

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Compare that to the experience of being Toronto-based, which is apparently so hellish my former coworker moved back to Calgary and commutes.

# ¿ Mar 9, 2024 03:00

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

There's a posting at work for pilots with 600 PIC and Cessna experience, offering $5000/month plus per diem and additional money per flying hour, and then $10k per month to captain a Jetstream on a rotational basis. Housing provided. You just have to be cool with being in Fort Smith quite a bit.

I don't think, Kraft, you're being entirely fair to the state of the industry of Canada. It's not quite as bad as you make out, by a long shot.

# ¿ Mar 12, 2024 16:03

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Nofeed posted:

Well, after even more weather and work delays, I flight tested yesterday and am now a private pilot! Now writing a sternly worded letter to The Minister admonishing them on having standards low enough to let me in the club.

Congratulations, we'll have to get the first post updated.

And while e.pilot is there, he can adjust my status, because I'm now Flight Instructor - Class 1, after a successful flight test today! First bit of weather luck I've had all year, for the most part...

# ¿ Apr 11, 2024 21:36

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# ¿ May 21, 2024 15:16

PT6A: Jan 5, 2006; Public school teachers are callous dictators who won't lift a finger to stop children from peeing in my plane

Wombot posted:

I'm also in a C172 - I'm over 6 foot and a lot of it is torso. I didn't truly appreciate the John Glenn quote about the Mercury capsule, "You don't ride in it, you put it on," until I first tried to clamber into the C172.

Now try a 152.

I checked out on one during my CPL timebuilding because I was like "hey, saving $20/hour sounds pretty good" and afterward I was like "nah, I'll just pay the money."

# ¿ Apr 17, 2024 20:06

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Aviation Megathread 10-9: The Kids Are All Rote