Career questions and becoming a CFI

[cookmg]

I'm looking for some advice from those of you have been there and done that. First let me start by saying I just passed the IR checkride last Friday. It was such a thrill to earn that ticket. What awesome responsibility comes with that rating!! My goal is to fly professionally and make my career out of flying. Specifically I would love to someday be a cheif pilot, cheif flight instructor, regional captain, corporate captain, or if the industry ever turns around become a major airline pilot. In the short run, I have more specific goals. I am going to be graduating this June and would like to be employable as a flight instructor as soon as possible after that. I live in southern california now and don't have too many contacts here. In northern california, the small flight school that I got my private at has expressed interest in having me instruct for them. With this background in mind, I have the following questions:

1) At 185tt, should I devot the next part of my training to flying in the IFR system and developing greater proficiency there before I begin training for the commercial? (part 61)

2) Should I begin work on the commercial and CFI simultaneously and train for them so that upon reaching 250 hours and I might be ready to take both rides? As a new instrument pilot, it seems strange that I would jump right in to the next step, but many career pilots, particularly 141 guys do this all the time right?

3) How can a newly minted CFI make it as a freelancer? Is a lot of luck required?

4) Should I jump at the first chance to work at a school even if it means mostly training primary students, low pay, and literally no multi time?

Thanks so much.

Mike

 

[JediNein]

More Questions

I asked these questions 7 years ago. I'm asking them again, on this forum. All answers are appreciated.

What does one need to learn in order to instruct? (FAR 61 requirement, Flight Training Handbook, PTS, what else?)

Or, how does one make that transition from the learner to the teacher?

How do you handle the little trainers can have 15 min of fuel with you and your student? (Overweight or don't go?)

What can I learn in the next 50 hours that might be critical in flight later on?

How can I teach a student properly so that 3 years down the road he makes the right decision to not fly because the weather is questionable?

How can I pass on good judgement?

How can I help a student experiencing the learning plateau to overcome it, and not drop out of flying?

What is the most important thing I can learn about operating the multiengine aircraft?

How do you prevent overconfidence without being so scared that you give up?

Why do most of the instructors I see have mild to major cases of burnout?

Why do the ones that are not planning on go for any airline (i.e. time-building) still burning out?

How do you prevent burnout?

Before I take that step, how can I be a decent flight instructor?

Why does one feel like wanting to go for the majors and being a flight instructor are conflicts of interest?

Is there one instructor out there who enjoys instructing and is happy where they are?

Even the airline pilot I'm friends with says that flying has lost its sparkle. I want to know why. . . so somehow I don't make the same mistakes.

Am I in this for the wrong reasons?

Are there any right reasons?

Or is this just the pursuit of happiness (getting paid for flying and passing the ring on to the next generation?)

Fly SAFE!
Jedi Nein

 

[bobbysamd]

Answers to questions

I appreciate Jedi's questions. She provides some great food for thought that you should ponder along with your questions.

I would finish my ratings and take up the school on its offer. These days, it is not easy to find a school that would be willing to put you to work after you earn your ratings with it. So many new instructors languish while finding that first job when they should be flying. Finding the first job is never easy under any circumstances, so you really should jump on the opportunity so that you can build experience. A significant number of low-time pilots think that they can be choosy. Maybe it is arrogance, or lack of knowlege of the business, or being snowed by a school recruiter. Low-time pilots cannot be choosy.

It certainly wouldn't hurt for you to file and fly IFR to gain a little more experience. I had flown some in the real world before I instructed. Just the same, you can acquire that experience as an instrument instructor taking your students on IFR cross-countries. You should have plenty of opportunities to fly in safe IFR in Northern and Southern California.

Finish your ratings one by one. You're right; 141 guys start preparing for their CFIs right after getting their Commercial-Instrument-Multis. Don't worry too much about preparing for them simultaneously because, in effect, you are. They encompass the same basic body of knowlege. You have learn the FOI and prepare for its written. After you finish Commercial-Instrument you will be extremely proficient and jumping into the right seat shouldn't be that serious a transition. Your orals for CFI will be tough and require a great deal of preparation. Your instructor, if he/she is doing the job, will ensure that you are prepared.

Finally, Jedi does raise a good point about instructor burnout. It helps if you enjoy the job. It also helps if you have motivated students. The ones that make you want to quit flying are the ones whom you have to spoon-feed constantly. Especially those who have the ability but who don't apply themselves or complain constantly. On the other hand, the good ones make you look forward to going to work.

Hope these points help. Good luck with your plans.

 

[TheAmazingRando]

I agree with Bobbysamd with regard to what you should do to get your ratings. I've known people who have trained for multiple ratings at the same time and all have said that it would have been easier if they had trained for them individually. As for Jedi's question about getting burned out as an instructor and ways to avoid it, here's my two cents: Do what you like when it comes to instructing, some people like teaching primary students while others enjoy teaching instrument or commercial students.

Try it all and find what kind of instructor you would like to be. Once you figure that out, once the day is done, GO HOME AND DO SOMETHING UNRELATED TO FLYING. Most people (my self included) want nothing to do with flying once the work day is over. Go to a gym, read, go to a bar, whatever, just leave work where it's supposed to be, at work. Instructing is one of the hardest jobs in aviation. The trick is to make it work for you. And remember: sooner or later you will make it to your dream job. Good luck.

 

[greyhound]

Jedi Nein

I'm going to take a shot at some of your Q's.

1. Learning plateu?
Explain to your students that if they begin to feel stuck on one subject not to worry, there will be others that they grasp quickly.
From experience, as a student I would get frustrated if I couldn't understand something, I felt I was not making progress(important for motivation which leads to learning). Motivate them by saying," so what if you need extra time to learn how to read a METAR, tomorrow you will breeze by the lesson on regulations" take it one step at a time.

2.Instructor burn-out?
Could be caused by financial problems.
Strict boss!
Lazy students.
Or trying to use just one approach to teach. Might not work for everybody.Leads to frustration.

3. Passing on good judgement/not hearing about students 3 years later going into bad weather?
Head this problem off "NOW", by telling your student that a situation like that "WILL" occur down the road. When that time does come, the student will remember your warning and should raise a red flag in their head making them think twice before taking foolish chances. Teach them the proper antidote for that Macho or invulnerable attitude.

4.Right reasons to become a CFI?
To teach others how to be safe and enjoy flying!
Time building is incidental,hours will slowly but surely build-up
Don't focus on fattening your logbook. Focus on reaping the reward of knowing someone is a better pilot because of you.

and finally
5. Why people say flying has lost it's sparkle.
Although the profession isn't what it used to be, those who will adapt to this fact and not expect to make 200K's a year will fair better than those who only went into this for the money. Of course I feel pilots should make a decent living,but some people can't stay afloat even if they make 10 grand a month.
In conclusion, if you know how to live within your means, enjoy to fly, and have other extra hobbies for what little time off you have. You might be happier. If you wan't to retire rich, become a casino.

Don't depend on others in order to enjoy "your" career. If some are disgruntled, investigate Why? you might find their expectations were way off base.

My opinions.
"Skywest bound......

 

[80/20]

Congratulations on your IR Cookmg!
Good questions Cookmg and JediNein! Asking the right questions is the first step on the way to good solutions.

Should you become and instructor? Why do pilots become instructors?
I see three kinds of CFI's:
One is the lifetime instructor who is so motivated that he or she would like to teach for many years. Another is the line pilot who enjoys flying so much that he or she would like to work in the training department. The last and largest category is the "time builder". The "time builder" may look at the instructor stage as an undesirable stepping stone that must be used to get to the final goal. A point worth mentioning is that this attitude tends to change because teaching is an integral part of every aviation job. As an example, good instructor skills are needed on the line when working with new colleagues.

How do you prevent burnout?
Anyone enjoying instructing out there?
When can flying loose its sparkle
I have been in the industry for many years and love my job. It seems to me that the motivated "happy" students (and experienced pilots) know how to motivate themselves. They do this by finding new goals in training or at work. Cookmg lists several such goals. Many professional pilots combats burnout by working at the training department, doing union work and some will even write on this forum! I think the ideal situation is to be able to mix. As a new CFI you can vary between teaching ground school and hopefully get at least some mix between basic and advanced flight instruction.

Full time instructor or airline pilot?
Main problem with instructing is pay and benefits. Few if any full time instructor position can compete with the high paying airline pilot jobs (unless you are an airline instructor pilot). There are however some good instructor jobs with a good salary and benefits.

How to help a student through learning plateaus, prevent drop outs, and handle transition from the learner to the teacher?
Teaching can be compared to fighting a battle; if you are unable to enter the castle through the front door then you must try attacking from another side. Try the side or back entrance or keep hitting different walls until you find a crack. In teaching, if one explanation or demonstration does not work then find another. Some aviation instructors only use the same books as their students. Few books offer a complete and easy-to-understand coverage of all topics. Various references can give you inspiration and different explanations. You should constantly be collecting good explanations. Do this while you read, watch videos or while listening to other instructors. Veteran instructors have large collections of stories, examples and explanations - this is called experience. But don't fall into the trap of the old saying: "He who can does. - He who cannot, teaches". Flying is a practical job. Your goal should be that you never ask a student to do something you couldn't do yourself. With this in mind, Cookmg, I would use the hours for commercial to get as good as possible at all the maneuvers in the PTS that you plan to teach.

How can I pass on good judgement?
How can I be a decent flight instructor?
Developing good decision making skills is far more difficult than developing good flying skills.
It is difficult for me to remember the names of all my old students, but I do remember my instructors, not by their words but by their personality and manners. Be aware of your actions because your students will detect and remember many details. A significant part of what a person learns occurs through imitation. It is natural for students to observe others, primarily you - the instructor, and to imitate your behavior. New "want-to-be" pilots are easily influenced by aviation professionals and especially by their instructor. They look up to their instructors with great admiration and observe every detail in their actions. From your student's viewpoint you have unlimited wisdom, knowledge, proficiency and a level of expertise that they can only hope to reach. This is why it is so important that you present a good role model for your students. As a role model you are not only teaching knowledge and skills, you also have a great influence on attitude, character and discipline. Be aware of your actions and provide a positive example to help your students imitate a safe attitude and desirable behavior. Being a good role model means paying attention to your actions and how they express what you believe in. Your attitude and behavior often have a greater impact on your students than your words. Statements such as, "do as I say and not as I do" have little effect because learning takes place all the time even when you do not want it to. Students will be impressed when you avoid shortcuts under difficult circumstances. Your credibility will be reinforced if you live by your values even in a stressful situation. It is difficult to define and measure airmanship, expertise and how safely a pilot conducts his or her tasks. Experience alone without discipline is no guarantee against failure. Current research suggests that realistic attitudes can improve pilot's abilities to handle difficult situations. The suggested role model is someone who recognizes their personal limitations, accepts that they can make mistakes and have realistic expectations of personal performance when stressed. As instructors it is not always easy to be a good role model. You must be sincere; otherwise your students will feel that you are two-faced and lose confidence in you. You might struggle with bad habits that you do not want to pass on to your students. As in other operations there are internal and external pressures such as schedules and examination deadlines. Everyone can say that they support safe operations when talking in the hangar. Not everyone will show this in action. The ability to handle pressures is a matter of self-discipline and character. I always like to quote an old instructor who used to say: The greatest skill a pilot can learn is to know when to say "no" - some never do.

Career strategy
Can't give you any statistics but a large portion of the civilian trained professional pilots have gone through the instructor stage. Many employers do pay attention to how you got your first hours. Airlines can choose from many applicants and will require relevant experience. Specific requirements vary, but they all want multi time, often 121 or 135 multi crew experience on aircraft larger than the typical light trainers. Instructor time is certainly still valued by employers as an extra additional experience.

Which type of school should you choose?
Bobbysamd is right, beggars can't be chooser, take what you can get - but keep in mind that it can take a long time to build CFI hours at a small school. I have noticed that instructors that have worked at larger 141 schools have been able to build time fast. Especially schools that have foreign students because they come to the US with money to pay for the entire training and will study full time. Many foreign students can not stay as instructors; this leaves more instructor work for US instructors. You might consider to do some of your training at the school where you would like to work. This will allow you to show how serious you are and to build a relationship with the management. Most schools like to hire their own "products" first. Watch out for false promises. Ask ex-students who have followed the route you are considering.

What about multi time?
Most schools have an insurance policy that will not allow you to instruct on twins before you have a bit more experience. Multi instruction is often reserved as a "reward" for the senior instructors.

Last advice:
Have realistic goals. There will always be someone who will have it better then you. Bigger plane (if that is a goal), more pay, better seniority and so on. Manage you personal life. Most of those that love flying, but don't make it, drop out because of money or family matters.

Don't quit your day job prematurely (or go and get one), be prepared to pay your dues and don't give up. Those that have done this have and will succeed.

Sorry I wrote so long, didn't have time to shorten it!

 

[bobbysamd]

Professional CFIs

Discovery Channel-Flight on cable had an excellent program last night about two career instructors. Deanna Strand in Grand Junction, Colorado and Terry at Norcal Aviation in San Andreas, California. Sorry, I don't remember Terry's last name. The program featured both of these gals. It showed them instructing and featured interviews with them. It was apparent that both of them love what they do. Watching them reminded me of my enthusiasm for flight instruction.

Watch your TV listings and watch the program if you want to see two career flight instructors who clearly enjoy being flight instructors.