Flight Training - October 2019 - 40

the airman certification standards-which replaced the practical test standards-can't possibly delve into all the many
nuances involved in flying. Lots will be glossed over during the checkride or will not be mentioned at all. So, knowing what is
required to produce a well-rounded pilot, the instructor has to fill in the gaps.

Second, the ACS are just the minimum standards to be
met. When "minimum" standards are the accepted goal,
even a slight degradation of skills or knowledge will put
the candidate below the bar. Additionally, minimal skills
and knowledge are not adequate to meet many conditions
found in the real world.
Applicants aren't expected to walk away from their
private pilot checkride knowing everything they'll
need to know for a lifetime of flying. But, without
knowing it, many pilots are awarded that coveted
private pilot certificate with gaps in important knowledge and skill sets.
So, what is to be done? What are those unknown
building blocks that can correct a training deficiency or
help a student grow beyond the minimum standards?
Instructors who give advanced training to certificated
pilots say the list is long but easily corrected. They also
say that there is a striking similarity in the areas to be
improved from pilot to pilot.
BASIC AERODYNAMIC CONCEPTS
A student may learn the "hows" of flying with little context of the "whys" and "whats" that make the airplane do
what it does. The individual may be doing a good job of

So, what is to be done?
Instructors say there is a
striking similarity in the
areas to be improved from
pilot to pilot.
40 FLIGHT TRAINING OCTOBER 2019

pulling this lever and turning that knob, but his understanding is superficial at best.
As long as the pilot is making the airplane do what it
is supposed to do, why is it important that he know anything more? Rote training only works when situations
don't change. If a pilot who doesn't understand the concepts suddenly finds himself faced with a new situation,
he can't extrapolate into that new situation based on
what he's been taught. If the pilot learned to fly in New
Jersey-where density altitude is largely an intellectual
concept, and he finds himself taking off from a rural
New Mexico airport at 6,200 feet msl in August-not
understanding density altitude puts him in a potentially
dangerous situation. His rote training takeoff technique
may or may not work at that high density altitude and
he won't know why it won't work. His understanding of
basic aerodynamics is limited, which is one of several
areas instructors report as being common among pilots.
This shouldn't be construed as saying that a pilot needs
to be an aeronautical engineer to correctly fly the airplane, but there are basic aerodynamic questions that
every pilot should be able to answer. These could include
the following:
* When does more flap help and when does it hurt?
* What is adverse yaw?
* Why should the ball be kept in the middle in normal
flight?
* What is the function of the rudder (in most
applications)?
* What are all the effects of high density altitude and how
are they countered?
* Why, on base to final turn, is inside rudder and outside
aileron more dangerous than inside aileron and outside
rudder?
* How is angle of attack measured in all situations and why
is that important?
* What effect does P-factor have in a climb? In a glide?

Flight Training - October 2019

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Flight Training - October 2019