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Freelance instruction

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flyf15

Well-known member
Joined
Jul 13, 2004
Posts
548
I used to instruct through a school and have since gotten enough requests by aircraft owners that I've decided I'm going to get into freelance instruction. Have a few things I'm curious about...

1) Whats the story on insurance? I assume that I need to be named on their policies as well as purchasing my own liability insurance. Is it necessary to purchase aircraft liability insurance for myself as well?

2) How do freelance CFIs conduct ground school/lessons? All of the airports in this area either do not have FBOs or have FBOs that are run by flight schools which would not welcome freelance instructors.

3) Are there any things I should know that are important but wouldn't necessarily be obvious?

Thanks much guys
 
I'll tackle #2 and #3.

#2. Meet at a restaurant and charge ground at say $12 an hour plus dinner, lunch, etc. Cheaper for them and you get a free meal out of it. Or the local library could work.

#3. Charge what you're worth! When I do freelance stuff, I charge quite a bit more than what I make at the FBO I work for...but also not more than the FBO charges for owner aircraft instruction. If you do that, then they have no reason to go to you privately.

Good luck! Freelance is a great way to meet people and put food on the table!

-mini
 
Good luck! Freelance is a great way to meet people and put food on the table!

It is ok, but you won't have the chance to be with, fly with, and be honored enough to be in the presense of Captain Les Benson the VP of Flight Operations of the most respected charter department in the history of aviation. Come on mini, you finally have the chance to fly with the next "God of aviation".
 
Get Insurance through AOPA its pricey but your gonna need it. If anything happens someone is going to sue your ass off. Your insurance company will flex all kinds of muscle (with loads of lawyers you cant afford) to prevent paying any money. You dont have any money to loose (unless you did something other than flying before becoming a CFI) so I'm guessing your not worried about loosing a house or something. However the counter suit will keep your record clean - so you can do something other than starve to death.

I have both the insurance and the legal services plan.
 
flyf15 said:
1) Whats the story on insurance? I assume that I need to be named on their policies as well as purchasing my own liability insurance. Is it necessary to purchase aircraft liability insurance for myself as well?
You only need to buy your own insurance if you want insurance to protect you.

Here's the bottom line: when giving instruction in someone else's aircraft, the owner's policy does not protect you. This has been asked often enough that it bears repeating.

when giving instruction in someone else's aircraft,
the owner's policy does not protect you

Period. No iffs, ands or buts. And no matter if you are "on the policy" or what they call you.

"Named pilot" protects the owner from a claim that the pilot was not authorized to fly the airplane.

"Named insured" or "additional insured" may protect you, but only as a pilot flying the airplane for yourself, =not= for acting as a CFI in it (almost all private aircraft policies contain an exclusion for commercial activities and, under the insurance contract, teaching for compensation is a commercial activity)

"Waiver of subrogation" comes closest. It protects you from the owner's insurance company if you bend the airplane, but not from anyone else.

Now those last two are good things to insist on, but you can see that they are limited. If you want to be insured, buy your own.
 
350DRIVER said:
It is ok, but you won't have the chance to be with, fly with, and be honored enough to be in the presense of Captain Les Benson the VP of Flight Operations of the most respected charter department in the history of aviation. Come on mini, you finally have the chance to fly with the next "God of aviation".

...how could I forget :rolleyes:

-mini
 
ToiletDuck said:
AOPA has great insurance. However, wouldn't what you are wanting to do constitute "holding out" which would make you have to operate under different regulations?
Huh? You lost me. What do the rules about holding out have to do with flight intruction services?
 
ToiletDuck said:
wouldn't what you are wanting to do constitute "holding out"

You are confusing "Commercial Operations" with "Flight Instructing". Being paid for instructing is not a "commercial operation" to the FAA. A commercial operation is carrying a passenger for hire from one point to another. That requires operation under other regulations such as 121 or 135. That is using the commercial privilege of your commercial pilot certificate. Instructing is not using your commercial pilot certificate for commercial operations. You are using your flight instructor certificate to teach aviation knowledge and skill. It is not considered a commercial operation.
 

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