Blog Elements : Flight Training Central

Half Sized Blog Element (Single Author Style)

Half Sized Blog Element (Multi Author Style)

8 times you should say no as a pilot

July 11, 2016/in Tips and technique/by studentpltnews

As much as we like to press the push-to-talk button and calmly proclaim “wilco,” sometimes you simply have to say no – even when it’s uncomfortable. It’s not being lazy or being a bad pilot, it’s prioritizing safety over convenience.

Airman Certification Standards (ACS) – a pilot report

June 1, 2016/in Regulations/by studentpltnews

A new, enhanced version of the Practical Test Standards (PTS) is coming mid-June, 2016 for Private Pilot Airplane and Instrument Rating Airplane. The ACS is a good and necessary evolution of the PTS that’s sure to bring about greater synergy across all phases of certification by integrating the applicable components.

8 times you should say no as a pilot

July 11, 2016/in Tips and technique/by studentpltnews

Airman Certification Standards (ACS) – a pilot report

June 1, 2016/in Regulations/by studentpltnews

Full Sized Blog Element (Big Preview Pic)

8 times you should say no as a pilot

July 11, 2016/in Tips and technique/by studentpltnews

Being a student pilot is a lot like being an 8th grader: sometimes you just want to fit in. Since I learned to fly at a towered airport, I was especially worried about being a bad teammate: making a mistake on the radio, breaking some unwritten rule or upsetting air traffic control (ATC). Whenever possible, I wanted to say yes and fit into the flow.

I suspect most pilots are the same way. After all, we are typically the can-do type who view “no” as a sign of weakness. But as much as we like to press the push-to-talk button and calmly proclaim “wilco,” sometimes you simply have to say no – even when it’s uncomfortable. It’s not being lazy or being a bad pilot, it’s prioritizing safety over convenience.

Here are 8 times it’s not just advisable but required to say no:

You can tell him no – he’ll forgive you.

Say no to a takeoff clearance if you’re not ready. “Cessna 12345, cleared for immediate takeoff, traffic on 1 mile final.” It happens all the time at busy airports, but this scenario is packed with subtle pressure to start moving – now. Resist the urge to rush. No matter how much you want to help out, you’re not doing your job as pilot in command if you take off before you’re ready. In fact, the deadliest accident in aviation history can ultimately be blamed on a 747 taking off before both pilots were ready.

Say no to “max forward speed” on final if you can’t safely do it. If there’s a Learjet or a Boeing behind you for the runway, you may hear ATC ask you to fly as fast as you can on final in order to keep the spacing acceptable for him. If you have 500 hours in the airplane and can do it, by all means, comply with the request and make everyone’s life easier. But if you’re on your first solo cross country, you’re under no obligation to accept this request – and it is a request. You might have to turn off final or do a 360, but that’s better than arriving at the threshold high, fast and unstabilized.

Say no to land and hold short if you’re unsure. So-called LAHSO operations are pretty rare these days, but you might get issued this instruction at a bigger airport with intersecting runways. If you’re not absolutely certain you can land and hold short of the crossing runway, and if you haven’t previously studied the chart and briefed the procedure, don’t say yes. Sure, the controller may not be happy, but he’ll be a whole lot less happy if you accept but can’t do it.

If you don’t have the airport in sight on a hazy day, don’t lie.

Say no if you really don’t have the airport in sight. This is another situation where ATC often exerts a subtle pressure on pilots: “Clermont County Airport is 12 o’clock, 5 miles, report it in sight.” The controller would love for you to call the airport in sight and get rid of you. Some pilots fudge this, assuming that since the GPS shows the position of the airport, they can simply say yes and keep navigating until right on top of the airport. This trick will probably work 90% of the time, but the one time it doesn’t, you’ll really wish you were still talking to ATC. If you don’t have the airport in sight, the answer is no. Simple as that.

Say no to an approach clearance if you’re not stabilized. For instrument pilots, the start of an approach is a critical time: the airplane is descending towards terrain and obstacles without visual reference. If you’re not certain of your position – and if the airplane isn’t configured and slowed down properly – accepting an approach clearance and chasing the needles will not make things better. Ask for a delay vector and go back out to re-intercept the final approach course. Good landings are the result of good approaches, so insist on starting them the right way.

Say no to a crossing restriction you can’t make. Another concern for IFR pilots, and occasionally VFR pilots, is when ATC asks you to pass a certain waypoint at or below a certain altitude. Often this is a simple clearance to comply with, but sometimes ATC asks for the impossible. If you do the math (hint: your GPS’s VNAV function saves a lot of time) and find out you’ll need to maintain 2000 ft/min down, you probably need to let ATC know it’s not possible. This isn’t the end of the world – just be honest and let them come up with a plan B.

You are PIC – if you can’t do it, say no.

Say no to a more experienced pilot when you’re uncomfortable. Not all pressure comes from ATC; sometimes other pilots are guilty too. Years ago, as a brand new Private Pilot, I was staring intently at the weather maps at the airport as I tried to figure out a way to fly home. A much more experienced pilot, in an effort to be helpful, leaned over my shoulder and gave some advice: “looks worse than it really is – I think you’ll be fine.” I ended up taking off, but I shouldn’t have. I had let the older pilot’s opinion influence me, substituting his personal minimums for mine. Never again. Your decision is your decision, and sometimes that means politely thanking another pilot and saying no to yourself.

Say no to pushy passengers if the weather is marginal. Passengers can also offer their opinion, even if you don’t want it. This is tricky, especially with friends and family, since we love to show off our piloting skills and “get the job done.” But general aviation flying is supposed to be fun, and if the weather doesn’t look fun it’s your job as PIC to say no. It may be disappointing, but it’s the right call – no matter who the passenger is.

Fitting in is a good thing most of the time and there’s no virtue in being a nuisance, so use your PIC authority wisely. But if you’re ever unsure or uncomfortable, you have every right to say no. In fact, most good controllers will tell you that they expect it.

Airman Certification Standards (ACS) – a pilot report

June 1, 2016/in Regulations/by studentpltnews

A new, enhanced version of the Practical Test Standards (PTS) is coming mid-June, 2016 for Private Pilot Airplane and Instrument Rating Airplane. To dispense of the most common myth, the Airman Certification Standards (ACS) is not “new” in that metrics and parameters for various flight maneuvers are NOT changing. The ACS is a good and necessary evolution of the PTS that’s sure to bring about greater synergy across all phases of certification by integrating the applicable components.

ACS offers a more cohesive set of standards

The PTS contains the standards from which pilots are evaluated during the practical examination. It not only provides the tasks and elements to perform in the airplane, but also the specific metrics used in the examiner’s evaluation (e.g. altitude +/- 100’, heading +/- 10°, etc.).

The PTS also contains special emphasis areas provided within a dedicated section of the publication that may or may not apply to each maneuver. While the intent of special emphasis areas was sound in drawing our attention and “emphasis” to areas with the greatest opportunity for profound impact on safety, its success is debatable and many believe certain emphasis areas remain largely disconnected from training and evaluation due to a lack of context.

ACS offers a more direct coding system for knowledge testing

But perhaps most conspicuous in its absence from the traditional PTS are standards related to knowledge testing. Standards for knowledge testing have never existed and this omission has resulted in a testing element to certification that is, in many ways, disconnected from how we fly and train.

The good news is that the proposed ACS is a vast improvement in bringing all of the components related to certification into one cohesive document – knowledge, skills, risk management and performance metrics. The ACS will help students, instructors and examiners better understand how these various elements are connected and apply to each task.

ACS began as a project to improve knowledge testing and I’m optimistic the system will drive the industry toward continuous improvement in this area. The ultimate creation of the ACS was a collaborative effort of stakeholders including advocacy groups, flight Instructor associations, academia, manufacturers, and course training providers. The resulting ACS will offer a clear and more concise description of what pilots must know, consider, and do to earn a certificate.

Central to this cohesive effort is a new coding system introduced in the ACS that will help bridge knowledge and practical testing. The new codes replace the notoriously vague Learning Statement Codes that are used on airman test reports. The codes will ensure test questions are rooted in the certification standards and provide more effective guidance for training.

Additionally, FAA has created an ACS Exam Review Board that includes subject matter experts from multiple FAA offices and one non-FAA representative who has extensive experience in the test development field. The ACS Exam Review Board is using the ACS codes as a tool to review and revise knowledge test questions for the knowledge tests and ensure each test question has a purpose and link to the standards.

Sporty’s courses are ACS aligned

From a student preparation perspective, applicants can use the ACS document to clearly understand what they must know, consider and do. For those choosing Sporty’s courseware for ground school, flight preparation and learning beyond the certificate, the ACS very much aligns with the holistic approach Sporty’s has always has emphasized in its training. In other words, train how you will fly the airplane in the real world environment.

Sporty’s course users also have access to the ACS document with cross-references to the video-based training. While updates are being made on a continual basis to written test preparation components, the ACS philosophy will better link knowledge testing to the core, video-based training component.

In speaking with some active designated pilot examiners, it’s not anticipated that one would notice significant change in how checkrides are administered as the ACS does not change the performance metrics. The ACS should result in a more focused checkride as the ACS should reduce subjectivity and increase standardization.

ACS offers much-needed enhancements to standards and the opportunity for a cohesive certification process. The enhancements should improve system-wide consistency and application. If you’ve not already done so, I’d encourage all stakeholders to review the ACS at FAA.gov. We should embrace the improved system and do our own personal part to ensure a smooth transition.

Additional resources:

ACS PRIVATE PILOT

ACS INSTRUMENT RATING

ACS BROCHURE

ACS FAQs

SPORTY’S LEARN TO FLY COURSE

SPORTY’S INSTRUMENT RATING COURSE