Students doing a before landing checklist

[FlyingBuckI]

I teach checklists religiously, but not when we're in the pattern for an hour. During a XC checklists become a must, especially on an IFR flight. In the pattern, though, I use teach the use of flows (ie. GUMPS or similar on downwind, double check at 300agl)

They physically refer to it and do it item by item.

This is another thing I'm fanatical about...I make my students touch every item as it's read verbally, and check it visually. If you get into the habit of just spitting items off, chances are you're missing something.

 

[Flyin Tony]

makes good habit when they get into retractable gear planes later on

Im going to have my CFI on the 20th I hope. And the gear horn dosent work in my plane I was thinking flying around in 150s all day is going to make me screw up one day and not put the gear down on my plane. I went to radio shack and got a little horn that is sooo loud I can still hear it it comes with a dumb STC of course

 

[avbug]

Dumb STC?

I agree that checklists are VERY IMPORTANT, as they pretty much make you idiot proof.

They do not. The only way to accomplish that is to send the airplane aloft without a pilot.

Checklists are important and I use them religiously. But I credit my 1200 hours dual given, where you're sitting in the right seat (looking out the window more or less) as what made me the pilot I am today.

Don't say that too loud in an interview.

In my CFI days, I would teach my students to use the checklist, but after they soloed, I would introduce flying without the checklist.

The FAA knows this? Again, don't go saying that too loud. Bad idea.

 

[nosehair]

To all you folks who say you don't want your student's head down in the cockpit reading a checklist while in the pattern, and a simple memorized flow is good enough for the simple training airplane: You are the ones who are training us NOT to use a checklist.

Yeah, you don't want your student actually taking the time to look down at a list, find the place on the list, read & interpret the item, look up or over at the item, accomplish the item, bla,bla,bla.

You want your student to be able, from memory, to accomplish the checklist, then bring the checklist into his organized scan. A quick look to confirm that the items have been accomplished.

It's all about the training, Man. All of us can be trained to include the checklist into our outside scan. Look down for a second. If you can't find the item in one second, then you need to "dry-fly" until you can look down at your checklist which is on a knee-board strapped to your leg, and look straight at the checklist item, just like you take a quick glance at your airspeed or altitude. Look back up outside, keep flying, look inside at the checklist item, confirm it is completed, and continue in this fashion.

Of course, it takes practice. Practice, practice, practice. Just like it takes practice to scan the instrument panel without comprimising safety. The checklist is one more item to include into the scan.

If we learn to do this from the start, it becomes a natural habit. It does not require having your head down in the cockpit.

It becomes a bothersome task when we are trained NOT to use a checklist in our primary days of going around the pattern 10 or 12 times WITHOUT using a checklist.

Never mind that you can safely memorize and execute a pre-landing checlist on a 152 - the act of including it in your scan is what you are training.

Remeber that you are always training. If you are not using a physical checklist, then YOU are teaching your student to NOT use a checklist.