Just a fun story from the other day.
My IFR student and I were flying home at night from a long X-C when the alternator failed. Here are few gems I picked up that night.
"What are the next two things?" is a very vague statement. My student learned best with "Where are you now?" "Where are you going" "How are you going to get there?" "How will you know once you get there?" "How long will it take you to get there?" "Where are you going from there"...Repeat the questioning.
The warning light didn't come one until after we had a heavy battery bleed. Who knows how long we were operating on battery only.
Transmitting uses 3x the energy than monitoring.
Keep that POH at hand during all phases of flight.
We had one flashlight with weak batteries, one's bulb burned out, another one's batteries died, and two that held faithful. I'm never taking off with fewer than five flashlights handy.
Think before you speak. Aviate, Navigate, THEN Communicate. I allowed myself to get in such a rush that ATC was having trouble understanding my requests.
ATC is there to help. They worry about you so make sure you speak to them with confidence so they know you are all right. This allows them to handle other aircraft at the same time. If you sound worried, or are not speaking clearly they put a lot aside to help you, so be sure to help them back.
ATC authorized us to shut off the master and just report every 3min. We kept on NAV/COMM 1, Transponder, Nav lights, Beacon. (while we checked in that is.)
With a Mag compass and a six pack (Less turn coordinator) my student had to fly a STAR checking his position only once every 3 minutes on a single VOR)
Keep in control as the instructor. This was a wonderful experience for us both. By keeping myself aware and in control I was able to delegate to my student all authority for the flight knowing that I would be able to help him in any way he needed. Had I not been ready for such a challenge we would have diverted to the nearest airport only a half hour flight from home. Our wives would have had to come pick us up, and the plane would still have had to be flown back for repairs.
I hope this is enjoyable reading.
My IFR student and I were flying home at night from a long X-C when the alternator failed. Here are few gems I picked up that night.
"What are the next two things?" is a very vague statement. My student learned best with "Where are you now?" "Where are you going" "How are you going to get there?" "How will you know once you get there?" "How long will it take you to get there?" "Where are you going from there"...Repeat the questioning.
The warning light didn't come one until after we had a heavy battery bleed. Who knows how long we were operating on battery only.
Transmitting uses 3x the energy than monitoring.
Keep that POH at hand during all phases of flight.
We had one flashlight with weak batteries, one's bulb burned out, another one's batteries died, and two that held faithful. I'm never taking off with fewer than five flashlights handy.
Think before you speak. Aviate, Navigate, THEN Communicate. I allowed myself to get in such a rush that ATC was having trouble understanding my requests.
ATC is there to help. They worry about you so make sure you speak to them with confidence so they know you are all right. This allows them to handle other aircraft at the same time. If you sound worried, or are not speaking clearly they put a lot aside to help you, so be sure to help them back.
ATC authorized us to shut off the master and just report every 3min. We kept on NAV/COMM 1, Transponder, Nav lights, Beacon. (while we checked in that is.)
With a Mag compass and a six pack (Less turn coordinator) my student had to fly a STAR checking his position only once every 3 minutes on a single VOR)
Keep in control as the instructor. This was a wonderful experience for us both. By keeping myself aware and in control I was able to delegate to my student all authority for the flight knowing that I would be able to help him in any way he needed. Had I not been ready for such a challenge we would have diverted to the nearest airport only a half hour flight from home. Our wives would have had to come pick us up, and the plane would still have had to be flown back for repairs.
I hope this is enjoyable reading.
