Instruction

General:

• Plateau(s):
• 5 learning plateaus, and how to solve them.
• Dealing with pilot progression plateau. (AOPA vid)
• 5-Step Teaching Process (Rob Machado)
• Identify the BIG PICTURE
• Define the objectives in behavioral terms
• Simulate Experience
• Identify/share the clues you use
• Critique behavior not the student (avoid "you")
• 6 hardest maneuvers to teach as a CFI.
• 6 tips to becoming a good CFI.
• 6 ways to help someone become a pilot.
• 7 times you should cancel a flight lesson.
• Always teach a correlation so there's a "why".
• BAD INSTRUCTORS: how they behave and why you should know.
• Coaching vs Teaching. (NAFI).
• Creative Teaching Techniques - J. Schappert.
• Defensive positioning: What to do when you fly with another pilot.
• Do no harm - the moral imperative of instruction. (NAFI).
• Flying with good and bad pilots—what I’ve learned as a new CFI. (Air Facts).
• From the locker room to the cockpit. (NAFI).
• How to learn from your mistakes.
• I have the flight controls - my airplane. (NAFI).
• Leveraging Decision Models. (NAFI).
• Mindful Flight Instruction. (NAFI).
• Owning your errors.
• Rote learning. Get the ROT out of ROTE. (NAFI).
• Students, in general
• Encourage nervous students
• Identify and overcome challenges specific to each student
• Nervous students
• They’re nervous when they don’t know what is going to happen
• Share a common goal with students
• Student knowledge versus memorization
• Teaching the Type-A overachiever. (NAFI).
• Those returning to flying
• It’s best to evaluate where they are yourself (vice a handoff)
• Students, successful traits
• Self-awareness
• Aware of their strengths and weaknesses
• Proactivity
• Understand they can control the outcome of a situation
• Perseverance
• Those who can adapt methodology of attaining goals, vice giving up
• Goal setting
• Effective support systems
• Establishing PRORELs with students is important
• Emotional coping strategies

Briefs/Debriefs: - separate page.

Endorsements / Logbooks:

• FAA Circular.
• Logging time (instrument training)
• Log something to the effect of "Sim IMC w/ VLD for 61.129(a)(3)(i)". This will save people a headache down the road if they try to get a commercial rating.
• Solo
• Understanding basic solo requirements.
• Understanding solo cross-country requirements.
• Sporty's and NAFI's Instructor Guide to Endorsements.

Flight Reviews:

• Conducting effective Flight Reviews and IPCs. (Turner video).
• See also Flight Reviews.

Private:

Instrument:

Commercial:

• 6 things you need to know about common carriage.
• Six things to learn from the best commercial pilots.

CFI:

• CFI Syllabus, 2015 (ASA)

CFII:

Maneuvers:

• Base to final turn. (NAFI).

MEI:

Systems / Equipment:

• Guide to Better GPS Instruction. (Gary Reeves, NAFI Vid)

Visual Flight:

• How to enforce it (in MET).

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Mountain Flying

I will teach you mountain flying if so desired.  You can contact me directly, use the "Contact me" form on each page, or go through Springs Aviation.  My availability is always on my AvCal which can help you plan your flight/visit.

If you want to fly in your own airplane, I fully support it, and think it's a better choice.  We've had people fly in from out of state to take the course so don't hesitate to do the same.

These are the academics normally provided:

• The brief, "Mountain Flying Ground Knowledge" (PPT or PDF, used by Springs Aviation)
• This is the version I use, PPT or PDF.
• And two handouts: AWOS stations and Suggested Route.
• Colorado Airport Directory.

This is the typical route:

Landing:

• How can I land better at high altitude airports? (Vid 1).
• Mechanical turbulence: landing at a mountain airport. (Vid 4).

Weather:

• 3 reasons microbursts are more hazardous in the mountains.
• AM or PM - which is better for mountain flying or summer mountain flying?
• Mountain wave(s):
• 3 reasons why they are more common in the fall and winter.
• Why it's less common in the summer. (Vid 35).
• Why it's more common in the fall. (Vid 38).
• 3 ways to identify mountain waves from forecasts.
• 4 ways to recognize mountain wave from the air.
• Case study: Mountain wave today in Boulder, CO.
• Dangers of it, and how to avoid it.
• Does it still happen in the spring? (Vid 45).
• Flying through it. (Vid 25).
• How do they form? (Vid 42).
• How to identify mountain wave risks. (Vid 43).
• The two types. (Vid 22).
• Turbulence
• Where you'll find it in flight.
• Where you find it, and how to avoid it.
• Mountain weather. (vid from BM).
• Slope winds:
• 4 ways mountain airports are affected by slope winds.
• What are slope winds? (Vid 48).
• Thunderstorms:
• 3 ways thunderstorms form in the mountains.
• Managing mountain thunderstorms in the spring. (Vid 30).
• Winds in the Columbia River Gorge. (Vid 5).
• See also Weather.

Weather Resources:

• Monarch Pass AWOS:  719-539-4436
• Salida (KANK) AWOS:  719-539-5268
• Bald Mountain AWOS:  303-512-4419
• Buena Vista (KAEJ) AWOS:  719-395-2599
• Leadville (KLXV) AWOS:  719-486-8441
• Aspen (KASE) ASOS:  970-205-2482
• Glenwood Springs (KGWS) AWOS:  970-524-7386
• Eagle County (KEGE) AWOS:  970-524-7386
• Copper Mountain AWOS:  970-968-1715
• Wilkerson Pass AWOS:  303-512-4418

• FAA Aviation Weather Cameras
•  https://avcams.faa.gov/
• It defaults to Alaska…just drag the map to Colorado

Other resources:

• AOPA Mountain Flying Course (I do not think membership is required)
• Lee eddies, flying through them. Vid 39.
• Mountain Flying.
• Mountain Flying Basics. (AOPA).
• Mountain Flying in a Cirrus (video from COPA).
• Mountain Flying Tips. (Sportys vid).
• Recreational Aviation Foundation (RAF).
• Tips on Mountain Flying (fly8ma)
• Trent Palmer on mountain flying.  Not a CFI, but knowledgeable.

Flying is great...improve every flight!

Tailwheel Training

Tailwheel aircraft open a new world of experiences and challenges.  A tailwheel will help you respect where your flight controls are and the environment (the wind).  Without doubt, tailwheels will make you a better pilot no matter what you fly.  I can help you get your tailwheel training and endorsement. 

Availability: On my AvCal - read-only but gives good insight to my overall schedule. 

Criteria (for endorsement):

• My criteria for the endorsement is performance, not hours.  There is no minimum time required even though schools will often set one.  If you handle a tailwheel well, you will require less time.
• Typically, it takes 7-12 hours (mostly traffic patterns).

Pricing:

• I am still finding the right price. I don't want cost to be a barrier to improving your flying skills.
• Currently, I charge...
• $250/hour for flight training (includes me and the airplane).
• $50/hour for ground training.
• If you use your own airplane, flight training remains at $50/hour.

References/Links:

• Great FAQs by Rich Stowell (suggest reading)
• Practice tailwheel skills in a nosewheel airplane. (Plane & Pilot)
• Taildraggers.com

Syllabus (these are rather generic but will be discussed pre-flight): 

• FIG Spin card
• FIG Tail card
• FIG Tail Handout

Videos

• Landing, how to (Patty Wagstaff).
• Tailwheels and crosswind - Part I
• Tailwheels and crosswind - Part II
• Taming the Taildragger (quite old, but valid) - Larry Bartlett

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