Something I found in some old e-mails that I thought might be interesting:



Love the nostalgia of bygone eras, near the end are some beautiful examples of what we are still flying.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pGEgJ2ZOTRY


Hawk

Great video. Here it is embedded for convenience. One thing that caught my ear was the cost of a license. Was $500 in 1953, which is $4,400 in 2016 dollars. Not as dramatically different as I expected.

What made my heart proud is how he got the C-170 on near the beginning of the runway without floating after around five hours of instruction. I'm old enough to know that is not all hype. What has happened to those numbers? And what have we gained by requiring much higher numbers?

That's a cool old video. I like the paint scheme on that 170.

When I saw that 170B in the video, I thought to myself "that looks just like Rob's!".
However, they set the bar pretty high-- from now on, I expect all the photos posted to show you wearing a coat and tie.

contactflying wrote:What made my heart proud is how he got the C-170 on near the beginning of the runway without floating after around five hours of instruction. I'm old enough to know that is not all hype. What has happened to those numbers? And what have we gained by requiring much higher numbers?

Here's the answer to your first question, from 61.87:

(a) General. A student pilot may not operate an aircraft in solo flight unless that student has met the requirements of this section. The term “solo flight” as used in this subpart means that flight time during which a student pilot is the sole occupant of the aircraft or that flight time during which the student performs the duties of a pilot in command of a gas balloon or an airship requiring more than one pilot flight crewmember.

(b) Aeronautical knowledge. A student pilot must demonstrate satisfactory aeronautical knowledge on a knowledge test that meets the requirements of this paragraph:

(1) The test must address the student pilot's knowledge of—

(i) Applicable sections of parts 61 and 91 of this chapter;

(ii) Airspace rules and procedures for the airport where the solo flight will be performed; and

(iii) Flight characteristics and operational limitations for the make and model of aircraft to be flown.

(2) The student's authorized instructor must—

(i) Administer the test; and

(ii) At the conclusion of the test, review all incorrect answers with the student before authorizing that student to conduct a solo flight.

(c) Pre-solo flight training. Prior to conducting a solo flight, a student pilot must have:

(1) Received and logged flight training for the maneuvers and procedures of this section that are appropriate to the make and model of aircraft to be flown; and

(2) Demonstrated satisfactory proficiency and safety, as judged by an authorized instructor, on the maneuvers and procedures required by this section in the make and model of aircraft or similar make and model of aircraft to be flown.

(d) Maneuvers and procedures for pre-solo flight training in a single-engine airplane. A student pilot who is receiving training for a single-engine airplane rating or privileges must receive and log flight training for the following maneuvers and procedures:

(1) Proper flight preparation procedures, including preflight planning and preparation, powerplant operation, and aircraft systems;

(2) Taxiing or surface operations, including runups;

(3) Takeoffs and landings, including normal and crosswind;

(4) Straight and level flight, and turns in both directions;

(5) Climbs and climbing turns;

(6) Airport traffic patterns, including entry and departure procedures;

(7) Collision avoidance, windshear avoidance, and wake turbulence avoidance;

(8) Descents, with and without turns, using high and low drag configurations;

(9) Flight at various airspeeds from cruise to slow flight;

(10) Stall entries from various flight attitudes and power combinations with recovery initiated at the first indication of a stall, and recovery from a full stall;

(11) Emergency procedures and equipment malfunctions;

(12) Ground reference maneuvers;

(13) Approaches to a landing area with simulated engine malfunctions;

(14) Slips to a landing; and

(15) Go-arounds.

I don't know the answer to your second question, but I suspect, since the final numbers to the checkride haven't changed all that much, the time between first solo and the checkride has shortened by roughly the amount of extra time required before soloing.

Cary

Cary/Mike,

You guys have been much closer to the normal program than I have for a number of year, perhaps ever. Do students now have more or less or the same confidence in comparison with students in the 70s? This was a major consideration in the Army. Am I overvaluing it?

Jim