Two Sides to Learning

As the holidays draw to a close, I'm sure that there are a good number of potential pilots who will be going up for their first flights in the coming weeks.  I definitely looked forward to the gift certificates my family got for me at my flight school around this time of year.  For those of you who are, or know someone who is about to start taking lessons soon, one of the most important things to do is make sure to get everything out of each lesson.

When you first begin flying, your flight instructor may seem to be at the pinnacle of aviation knowledge, and I'm sure many of them strive to be, but that doesn't mean you shouldn't ask for clarification when you need it.  Part of becoming an instructor is learning the Fundamentals of Instruction (FOI), which is essentially the background theory of learning. One of the points that is made is that many instructors - both in and outside of aviation - stop teaching at the application level.  What that means is that many instructors teach you how to do something, but often neglect the reasons behind the action.  Some instructors are really great at making sure this is all explained, but nobody is perfect.

Having been an instructor of the information technology sort, I can say that sometimes it's simply an issue of forgetting to mention it.  Other times, I got so excited to show someone something, that the details got lost in the process.  Going against that grain, I'll now give you the reason why I'm telling you this: your learning is both the responsibility of the instructor and of yourself.

When I began training, my first flight instructor taught me how to fly power on and power off stalls to the point where I could do them flawlessly.  While it's good that I could fly them flawlessly, it was quite some time before I made the connection that power on stalls were training for recovering from stalls on departure, and that power off stalls were to recognize full stalls and to perfect your landing flare technique.  Had I thought to ask the reasoning behind it all, I would have likely known a lot earlier.

Despite what it may seem, there's often a reason behind all of the maneuvers the FAA asks you to be able to demonstrate on the checkride.  You're flying them in training because they're on the checkride, and they're on the checkride because they show you have control of your aircraft in varying conditions.

Power on, or departure stalls: recognizing control mush and stalls on departure.

Power off stalls: recognizing proper recovery for a fully stalled condition, and perfecting your flare.

S-turns, and turns around a point: properly adjusting for wind over a set ground track (think traffic pattern).
Simulated instrument time: limited training to help you out just in case you end up in clouds.

There are likely several more, but always remember that many of the things you'll be asked to do in training have a reason behind them.  If you don't understand why you're doing something, always ask!  If you're intimidated you ask your instructor, feel free to ask here.  If I don't know it, I'll go find the answer.

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