Took a friend up in a rented Cherokee a couple weekends ago. Nothing ambitious, just a local sightseeing flight. Weather was good, visibility was great, and I figured we'd be back in about an hour.

About 20 minutes in we started getting some afternoon bumps. Nothing particularly uncomfortable by GA standards, but I could tell my friend had gone quiet.

I asked if he was doing alright.

He hesitated, then said, "If I wanted to go back, would that screw up your flight?"

That caught me off guard more than it should have.

I told him absolutely not, we could head back whenever he wanted. He looked genuinely relieved. We turned around and landed maybe 15 minutes later.

Walking back to the parking lot, he admitted he'd been uncomfortable for a while but didn't want to waste the money I'd spent renting the airplane. He also thought that once we'd taken off, the route was basically decided and changing it would be a big deal.

And I realized that in every passenger briefing I've ever given, I explain seatbelts, doors, emergency procedures, what not to touch, when to stay quiet, all the usual stuff.

I've never explicitly told someone they can ask to end the flight.

Which seems like a pretty important thing to leave out when you're bringing along someone who has absolutely no idea how flying works.

I think sometimes we forget how much authority a pilot appears to have to somebody who's never sat in a small airplane. They might not know the difference between something that's operationally necessary and something we just happen to have planned.

Obviously we can't always land immediately or change course without considering terrain, weather, fuel, etc. But that's not the same as expecting someone to sit there miserable because they don't want to inconvenience us.

I've added a sentence to my passenger briefing now: "If you're not enjoying this, tell me. You don't have to tough it out, and you don't have to worry about disappointing me."

Curious how many of you explicitly cover this before taking non-pilots flying. And what else have passengers assumed about flying that surprised you?

So I have the opportunity to fly for a charter company in Zambia, Africa next Spring , flying Chieftans, 182s, 206s, Cherokees, I’m currently almost at 1400 hours flying pipeline but only 15 multi and it’s pretty much all day vfr flights. I fly about 18 hours a week and make 45K so it’s really a pretty good gig, however the chance to do something crazy for 5-6 months and get multi and ifr time is intriguing as well. I doubt I’ll be able to get on any jets in the next 6 months. Thoughts ? 25YO

Hey guys, I was recently on a Discord call with an instructor getting some tutoring, and we got to talking about some of the things my instructor has me do during flight training.
I mentioned that, from time to time, my instructor makes me suck on the pitot mast to help clear it out. Everyone on the call immediately started laughing and making jokes, saying that’s not actually a thing. Is this really not a thing? I don’t know who to trust anymore.

Starting 2027 SkyWest will no longer pay for ATP-CTP. Thoughts?
How does that affect the training contract? Will cadets be expected to pay for it as well?
Are we likely to see regionals asking applicants to have a type rating in the airframe?

I have CJOs at both.

I live a little over an hour (driving) away from a junior UAL base. EWR.

I live about an hour and a half to two and a hour hours (driving depending on traffic) from a Delta. LGA/JFK.

I cannot move.

Which would you choose?

Could somebody explain CASA and medicals to me? In the U.S. when I needed a medical, I went to my FAA-designated Aviation Medical Examiner, went through the paces, and walked out with my typed-up medical certificate to keep in my log book with me when I flew. In Australia, CASA designates medical examiners to do the same medical exam and interview, and then apparently distrusts them as a matter of policy, trusting instead an administrator who may not even be in the same state as me, let alone laid eyes on me. Three weeks after my appointment, I still don't have my medical. All they told me is if I call requesting a status update, I'll delay it even more. I'm left with the conclusion that CASA promotes safety by grounding pilots with bureaucracy. And I'm paying them to do it to me, never mind the $530 ASIC clearance that I can't do anything with on top of it. Is this actually normal?

Long story long, I’m in a position where I own a Piper cub, need tailwheel hours/XC hours and have essentially unlimited access to a Cherokee 180 and only have to pay for fuel.

My wife’s family is about a 2.5hr drive away and outside of that, every weekend she wants to drive somewhere hours away.

Every single time I bring up hopping in the Cherokee she acts as if it’s a huge undertaking and I cannot get the message across to her that it will make the trip shorter and more enjoyable.

She likes flying, she’s gone up with me in my cub and my Cessna 150 before it and had fun. But only for short hops. She’s by no means afraid of flying, but it seems as if she has built traveling by air into something much larger than it actually is and I don’t know how to overcome that.

TLDR how do I get my wife to fly places with me instead of driving?

I’ve been working on my CFI and gosh I feel like the biggest idiot to ever exist. I’ve done all my training part 61, with 3 dif instructors (loved them all) and doing CFI with a 4th rn (all at the same flight school). He’s basically the only instructor who does CFI initial training at my flight school, and a recommendation by him would almost def lead to me being hired by the flight school. I’m not looking to do it anywhere else because I want to get hired at this school. I don’t jive with him as well as I did with my previous instructors, but he’s been instructing about 20 years so definitely very skilled and knowledgeable guy.

Not that the rest of my training has been easy, but it’s all been relatively straightforward. CFI feels like a completely new ball game and I just feel like I’m going about the whole process wrong. I’m working on the FOI written rn - will be taking the test in a week or 2.

He says he usually does about 40 hrs+ of ground with students before the checkride, but how can I make these worth my time? It feels like every ground session is him dumping info on me. I bought backseat pilot, but how is the best way to study all this, and cram all this knowledge in and not forget any of it all? I’m definitely far out from a checkride date so I’m not sure how to learn all these lessons and retain the info for such a long time? I read the whole FAQ as well and I’m just struggling with how to actually go about studying all this.

It’s hard because I genuinely think I’ll enjoy being a CFI, but I feel such a mental barrier with this training that I am dreading every ground session I have with him. I also have 2 other jobs outside of this and life has just been really hectic. Any help is greatly appreciated, thanks for reading <3

Hey everyone,

I'm a CFI applying to law school because why not. Anyhow, as I'm editing my resume, I'm wondering whether flight training would go under an education, professional experience section, or extracurricular subsection? On my aviation resume it's just under aviation experience, but for an academic resume I just lumped all of that into professional experience.

Thanks for your thoughts :)

I’ve been debating a checkride scenario and wanted to get the perspective of the CFIs, DPEs, and recent checkride-takers here on how this should actually be graded under the ACS.

Imagine a PPL checkride in the pattern where the applicant has to demonstrate three landings: Short-Field, Soft-Field, and Normal. Here is how it plays out:

* Task 1 — Short-Field Landing: On the first approach, the airplane floats a little longer than expected. Instead of forcing it down and risking touching down just past the 200-foot mark, the applicant calls a go-around. On the second approach, they nail the landing well within ACS standards.

* Task 2 — Soft-Field Landing: On the first approach, the setup is completely safe, but in the flare the applicant judges that the touchdown might be a little firmer than ideal rather than as soft as they want for the checkride. They elect to go around to set it up better. On the second approach, they grease it right in standards.

* Task 3 — Normal Landing: On the first approach, the flare isn't quite where they want it, so they execute a clean go-around. On the second approach, they land cleanly within standards.

Every single go-around (Rejected Landing) is executed promptly, safely, and by the book, and every landing that actually touches the pavement is 100% within ACS tolerances.

Here is my question: Is this a straight-up disapproval for doing 3 go-arounds across 6 approaches?

What really bugs me about the idea of failing someone for this is that all three of those aborted approaches would have resulted in completely safe landings, they just might have been right on the border of ACS tolerances. We are constantly told in training that "a go-around is always free" and to never force a borderline approach just to check a box.

If a DPE fails an applicant in this scenario, doesn't that contradict everything we teach about Aeronautical Decision Making? It feels like the DPE is punishing the pilot instead of valuing the fact that the applicant is holding themselves to high standards and refusing to settle for a borderline landing.

CFIs and DPEs, how do you view this from the right seat? Where is the line between exercising good judgment to stay rigorously inside the ACS vs. "not being proficient"?

Hey everyone!

I’ve been interested in getting my PPL and wanted to get some advice from people who’ve gone through the process, especially around the Boston area.

I’m 25, have a background in mechanical engineering, and currently work full-time as an engineer in aerospace. I’ve always been interested in aviation, and lately I’ve been thinking more seriously about learning to fly.

I’m mostly wondering how feasible it would be to pursue a PPL while working a regular full-time job. My schedule is fairly consistent (7 AM–3 PM), so I’d have afternoons and weekends available for lessons.

I’m also looking for recommendations on flight schools around Boston or the surrounding areas. I have a car, so commuting for lessons wouldn’t be an issue.

Things I’m curious about:

- What flight schools would you recommend, and which ones should I avoid?
- How often would you recommend flying to make steady progress?
- How long did it take you to get your PPL while working full-time?
- What should I realistically expect to spend from start to finish?

I’m not necessarily in a rush to finish, but I’d like to be consistent and make good progress without it taking forever.

Would appreciate any advice or recommendations. Thanks!

Last time I went to Orlando I flew into ORL. Looking at it now avgas is cheaper at ISM and even MCO. I would have expected MCO to have “we don’t want you here” prices for single engine pistons but that doesn’t seem to be the case. 99% sure I’m going to ISM this time but I’m intrigued.

Flying in on Monday, leaving Saturday. Am I being crazy or is flying a Cherokee into MCO not as stressful and “in the way” as I thought it would be?

I’ve been taking Lexapro for a few months now switching from Zoloft and have some cuts on my upper arms and shoulders. I really like flying and want to do it as a career. But I’m afraid that being marked as a MDD single episode on my medical record will stop me before I even begin.

I’m 21yo and haven’t had any thoughts about committing suicide, only ones of self harm. Can anybody help please?

I'm one of those second career guys, I still have my full time job in Cyber that pays really well but I have been slowly instructing on the side to get to 1500, I'm at about 500ish hours and started to re-think the airline life.

I'm going to be having kids in a few years and I want to be home a lot while they're growing up which my current office job allows. It just seems silly as I spent $90k on my training to make $40/hr as a part time CFI if I'm not continuing towards the airlines/part 135 jobs.

The only other thing I could think of is being a part time charter pilot, but I highly doubt that's easy to break into.

It has been said that on the oral portion of the checkride, you should say only what you need to answer the question. If you say too much, you might dig yourself into a trap the DPE could exploit.

My question is this: on the flight portion of the checkride, should you be talking, verbalizing your actions, or keeping silent? Verbalizing your actions allows the DPE to gauge what you're doing and how you're making decisions, and helps him evaluate your thinking and analyzing skills as a pilot. But, you can also trap yourself, much in a similar way to the oral checkride.

How much talking during the flight is too much?

Thank you.

hey everyone, i’ve been curious about this and thought it’d be nice to hear from people in aviation about their experiences so far.
for those of you who are student pilots, flight instructors, airline pilots, or anywhere else in your aviation journey, how has everything been going for you?

i’d love to hear how you got started, what your journey has been like, and how things have turned out for you so far. was becoming a pilot something you’ve always dreamed of, or did you discover your interest in aviation later on? has the journey been what you expected, and how do you feel about where you are now?

whether you’re just starting out, halfway through training, or have been flying for years, i’d genuinely love to hear your stories. the good, the bad, the unexpected, all of it. everyone’s journey is different, and i think it’s really interesting to hear how people ended up where they are today.
looking forward to reading your experiences! 🤗

I just finished MT7 at a regional. Through MT6 I felt very solid. My only sticking points were holding centerline after touchdown in crosswind landings and holding my heading on rotation for V1 cuts. After MT6 my plan was to get one or two more V1 cuts in to get a better feel for the rudder.

MT7 didn't go well. I woke up two hours before my alarm with a sore throat, felt run down, and was behind from the start. I made small mistakes I wasn't making before. My V1 cut was within standards but right at the edge of the 10-degree heading limit. My first two crosswind landings were good, but on the third I veered off centerline once the nosewheel touched down.

My instructor recommended me for MV but said I can take an add session if I want one. I have tomorrow off and MV is in two days. I know I've flown better than this, but my confidence took a hit, and I'd like a few more reps before the check.
Is there any real downside to taking the add? My airline allows one add without it going to ST. My only concern is how other employers might view it down the road.

Looking to get back in to flying after a year… with a commercial-instrument rating. Looking to get the essential package but tempted to get the premium. Is it worth it? I’m only going to flying local on my Cessna 172. So I’m not sure if I’ll be needing all the features and save the extra money.

Okay, so I’ve heard many opinions on this subject. I even had an instructor say the airlines won’t take electronic flight logs because “hours can be forged.” That makes zero sense to me. In fact, it’s more likely you forge a paper log than an electronic one (at least the way ForeFlight manages logs). My first instructor didn’t make it a requirement and I’ve got almost 200 hrs TT all electronic. Am I cooked?

Hi everyone! I’m from Hungary and I’d like to become a flight instructor, teaching only PPL(A) students under VFR.
Here in Hungary, you can take the CPL(A) theory exams, but apparently there are no CPL theory courses available, only ATPL theory courses.

My question is: Do I really need to complete the full ATPL theory course and exams to become a PPL VFR instructor, or can I study on my own and take only the CPL(A) theory exams?
Has anyone dealt with this situation in Hungary or another EASA country?
Thanks!
(I'm not planning to fly airliners anytime soon, that's why I'd like to chose the easier way)

For context, I am a CFII nearing 1000 hours and am expecting to hit 1500 sometime next year (like many other pilots out there). The school I instruct at is pretty much in the middle of nowhere though and I really have no networking opportunities in-person aside from the occasional student who may fly different types of piston aircraft.

I'd like to set myself up for success in the coming months since pretty much every mid-level job seems to be filled up instantly, but without being at an airport with an FBO or within reasonable distance from a major city, what are my options to excel?

I have been considering planning trips to attend networking/career events but would love any advice on other avenues that may help my chances to stand out. It could be anything. Where have you found success if you have been in my position in the past?

My CFII and I flew the other day to do my 250nm XC for my IR checkride. We planned out the route and what approaches we would fly where. the first airport we went to they would not let us fly the ILS due to the wind direction and it being a not too busy class Charlie. instead we got the localizer. Seemed fine just needed 3 different types of approaches. Other 2 airports and approaches were an RNAV (Lnav non precision) and a VOR.

After we got back, my CFII double checked the regs and 61.65d just says 3 different kinds of approaches but somewhere else said it has to be a precision ILS. So now we’re wondering if bc I didn’t do a precision approach and just a LOC if this would count for my checkride?

I need some more XC time anyways so I’m okay with having to refly it but we both just want to make extra sure this meets the requirements per the regs and there is no guessing come checkride day.

TIA

Hi everyone,

I'm a veteran with a 100% P&T VA rating, considering a career change to airline pilot. Before committing, I want to know if a First-Class medical is realistic. I know the FAA looks at diagnoses, not the total percentage.

**My main concerns:**

- **Migraines (VA 50%)**: well controlled with OTC acetaminophen/Excedrin as needed. Keeping a headache diary.
- **Chronic adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood (VA 50%)**: no medications and no current therapy.
- **Obstructive sleep apnea (VA 0%)**: on CPAP with consistent use.
- **Ventricular septal defect (diagnosed in childhood)**: heart murmur, no symptoms. Cardiology follow-up every 2 years. Recent echo, and my VA cardiologist cleared me with no concerns.

I also have musculoskeletal and peripheral nerve ratings (back/IVDS, right radial neuropathy, bilateral sciatic radiculopathy, joint strains). No pain meds. I'm fully functional.

**My plan so far:**

1. Neurologist appointment coming up for a letter on frequency, no aura, OTC-only treatment, and stability, backed by my headache diary.
   
2. Sleep medicine follow-up to get a 90+ day CPAP compliance report and a letter confirming effective treatment.
   
3. Psychiatric evaluation to document current status and explain the "chronic" adjustment disorder label.
   
4. Cardiology letter and echo report. I know the FAA wants cardiac testing within 90 days of the exam, so I'll time it accordingly.
   
5. Pulling my full VA records so everything lines up.
   
6. Calling AOPA's Pilot Information Center (and possibly joining Pilot Protection Services) for guidance.
   
7. Pre-consultation with a HIMS-trained Senior AME before submitting MedXPress.

**Questions:**

1. Has anyone gotten a First Class with a similar profile? Office issuance, or Special Issuance?
   
2. Any recommended HIMS AMEs in the SF Bay Area?
   
3. Anything missing from my plan, or anything I should have in hand before the exam?
   
4. For the neuropathy/radiculopathy ratings, did anyone need a SODA?
   
5. Anyone with a congenital VSD go through FAA review? How long did it take?

Thanks!

Looking for some insight on long cross country flights (1,000NM+) in small piston aircraft.

Do you keep your route and length of flight for each day pretty flexible to adapt to the weather and how much you can comfortably fly each day?

Any tips for finding good airports along the way? It took me years of flying to know the good spots and nice FBOs in my area.

I’m working on my PPL and have been advised to start studying my PSTAR, but I can’t seem to find many resources on the material to study from.

How do people prep for this exam?