Originally Posted by
Bill Greenwood
Bob, If one of the very first things the CFI and the student focus on is the nav lights on a sunny very day for a noon flight then what does the student concentrate on? What does he learn first? That flight safety if mostly a matter of a small light that you don't use anyway in the daytime? Seems to me that when you walk up to a plane, especially one flown in a flight school, there are 3 real things you want to see. First and foremost, how much fuel is in the plane? On every flight you use and need fuel and that is the one item that changes with every flight. Nav lights, static ports, even tire pressure and oil level are not likely to change much after the previous hour flight. Maybe it is because I have flown across the U S and Canada, and to the Carib, some of it in planes with limited range; that I want the student to be concious of fuel, and oil. Item 2 is to drain the fuel sumps, and 3 is the normal walk around that includes all the hinges pitot cover, control locks and surfaces etc, in other words the things you see on a normal visual inspection.Now some CFIs may say that spending I 1/2 hours on preflight is good, affter all the student needs to know how to do it, and soon he will be doing it solo. But he also needs to know how to do weight and balance, would you spend the majority of the first lesson having him learn and calculate that also?There has to be some common sense, some sense of proportion.What are the risks of a first flight? There is not really much danger of crashing, the record with the CFI discovevery flight is very good. Young Eagles has done over I 1/2 million and I think there has been only one fatality last time I heard.The other risk is that the student get some bad habits. To me, being casual about the fuel on board is one of these, and giving equal importance to a light you are not going to use with fuel is silly.But really THE BIG RISK of a first flight, Discovery or lesson is that the student is bored and won't come back or tell his friends how much fun and how easy it is.A lot of flight school have closed over the years, a lot of CFIs out of a job or at best a subsistence living. Used to be most every airport and most FBOs had a flight school. Not anymore. Why did they fail? Sure wasn't because a nav light was not given enough attention on a CAVU day. The real risk is the CFI and school going out of business because their marketing and people skills are bad. Of course the economy and cost of flying are part of it , maybe the biggest part. By the way, I think your brief exposure of the student to the weather is good. I am not sure how much he learns from that , but at least he gets the idea there is one. Before solo and final test is the time to go deeper into this subject which for me is most of what I need for a safe outlook. Finally, you and I and I and CFI s know the student CAN LEARN, CAN become a pilot. BUT THE FIRST TIME STUDENT DOES NOT KNOW THAT. In fact he may have some big doubts,and if the first lesson does not leave him with some positive feeling he may not continue. I think I have read 40% of students drop out, is that about the facts?