First things first...don't ever get into a pissing match with your POI. Remember the rule about never wanting to offend the secretary at the company where you want to work because she holds your career in her hands? So does your POI. If you're seeking certificate approval, the POI may administer the program or require whatever he or she feels is necessary. You are the begger here, not the chooser.
The FAA is under no obligation to accept a training manual from another company, including companies which professionally prepare certiifcation documents such as GOM's.
The beauty of seeking certificat approval as a Part 121 or 135 operator is that you can make up the regulation as you go, and to you, it is the law. Want something on your MEL that isn't on the MMEL? No problem, add it in there. If you can show reasonableness and gain approval, you're golden. Want to change your maintenance program or customize it to include things that aren't in the manufacturers program? No worries...design it well, show your homework, walk away with approval. Once you get that approval, you're legal and official.
Put a policy in your GOM that your pilots will all have handlebar moustaches and wear black ties with orange trim? The FAA expects you to comply, because that approved document is the standard by which you'll be judged. Want FSI to be your training provider? Not a worry, so long as your traning program passes muster and you can show full training and compliance for all the maneuvers, proceedures, etc, for which you are authorized.
Putting together a manual isn't an easy task. You should always plan on a year to get through the approval, and that's making the assumption that you have your act together and know your material. And have used professional products such as GLN compliance documents. (You might try GLN for your training program if you haven't, yet).
When people design the training manual, too often they try to incorporate a duplicate of a flight training manual. That's the wrong way to go about it. Think about what the FAA wants to see. You're trying to show compliance with the regulation, just as you are when writing your Operations Manual (GOM). With this in mind, go over the regulation one line at a time, and write your manual from that to show compliance, then flesh it out by showing in simple terms how you are going to comply with the regulation.
One doesn't necessarily need to have diagrams of each maneuver and spell out the speeds and power settings to produce a steep turn...but one does need to include the standard to which the turn will be taught, and assign a syllabus for the training. In other words, show how you intend to comply. Showing a diagram from a FSI book with a picture diagram of the steep turn with little markings around the turn showing bank and so on is dandy...but what about leaning more toward the PTS? That's an approved document, and a good place to go to build both a training manual and a syllabus. If you want to include details such as diagrams, then fine, but remember that just like the moustache and the tie, you're held accountable for every extra bit of information you put out there.
FSI or Simuflite should be able to help you design something within their own framework for compliance...they do it all the time. Even then, your POI may or may not accept it. The person to please is your POI. Don't forget. Don't argue.
POI's are people too. Robot people. With mismatched socks. And laser beams in their eyes. And hearts made of melted glass. Not the good glass, but the recycled kind that comes from things people don't want any more. Some have the heart of beautiful child. In a jar. On their desk. Respect that jar. It's your connection to certification, and ultimately the nirvanesque state of mind in which you finally get to go fly, instead of type. Good luck!
The FAA is under no obligation to accept a training manual from another company, including companies which professionally prepare certiifcation documents such as GOM's.
The beauty of seeking certificat approval as a Part 121 or 135 operator is that you can make up the regulation as you go, and to you, it is the law. Want something on your MEL that isn't on the MMEL? No problem, add it in there. If you can show reasonableness and gain approval, you're golden. Want to change your maintenance program or customize it to include things that aren't in the manufacturers program? No worries...design it well, show your homework, walk away with approval. Once you get that approval, you're legal and official.
Put a policy in your GOM that your pilots will all have handlebar moustaches and wear black ties with orange trim? The FAA expects you to comply, because that approved document is the standard by which you'll be judged. Want FSI to be your training provider? Not a worry, so long as your traning program passes muster and you can show full training and compliance for all the maneuvers, proceedures, etc, for which you are authorized.
Putting together a manual isn't an easy task. You should always plan on a year to get through the approval, and that's making the assumption that you have your act together and know your material. And have used professional products such as GLN compliance documents. (You might try GLN for your training program if you haven't, yet).
When people design the training manual, too often they try to incorporate a duplicate of a flight training manual. That's the wrong way to go about it. Think about what the FAA wants to see. You're trying to show compliance with the regulation, just as you are when writing your Operations Manual (GOM). With this in mind, go over the regulation one line at a time, and write your manual from that to show compliance, then flesh it out by showing in simple terms how you are going to comply with the regulation.
One doesn't necessarily need to have diagrams of each maneuver and spell out the speeds and power settings to produce a steep turn...but one does need to include the standard to which the turn will be taught, and assign a syllabus for the training. In other words, show how you intend to comply. Showing a diagram from a FSI book with a picture diagram of the steep turn with little markings around the turn showing bank and so on is dandy...but what about leaning more toward the PTS? That's an approved document, and a good place to go to build both a training manual and a syllabus. If you want to include details such as diagrams, then fine, but remember that just like the moustache and the tie, you're held accountable for every extra bit of information you put out there.
FSI or Simuflite should be able to help you design something within their own framework for compliance...they do it all the time. Even then, your POI may or may not accept it. The person to please is your POI. Don't forget. Don't argue.
POI's are people too. Robot people. With mismatched socks. And laser beams in their eyes. And hearts made of melted glass. Not the good glass, but the recycled kind that comes from things people don't want any more. Some have the heart of beautiful child. In a jar. On their desk. Respect that jar. It's your connection to certification, and ultimately the nirvanesque state of mind in which you finally get to go fly, instead of type. Good luck!
