On Dec 29, 4:30*pm, Dan G wrote:
Slightly O/T but I'm curious: in the UK all instructors are volunteers
and instruct for free. The courses required to become an instructor
are cheap so there's little cost *(if any if the club pays, which they
often do) involved in becoming one.

Is it different in the states? How does it work over there?

Dan

Hi Dan,

By and large, glider instructors over here (in the States) earn their
CFI-G on their own. By that, I mean there are very few organized
"instructor training" courses. Some of the larger clubs have the
resources and talent to provide formal training, but at most
locations, it's up to the individual. The existing instructors will
help with the requisite dual and sign offs for written and practical
tests, but the costs (tows, testing, books, etc.) are typically born
by the aspiring instructor. Note I said "typically"; I'm sure there
are a few good exceptions.

One other big difference is that some fairly significant percentage of
the soaring done in the States is done from a commercial operation.
In these settings, there's very little incentive for the new CFI-G to
emerge. They have to pay for tows and rent the glider to build up
hours, and they would have to pay the existing CFI-G for the
instruction toward the rating. Despite the glamorous lifestyle and
high pay, it's not something that most young guns would go after. If
they're interested in an airline job, they'll get their ASEL followed
by their Instrument and Instructor ratings and build up hours that
way.

Thinking in terms of the club/commercial operation where I fly, I can
think of only one new CFI-G being minted in the last 10 years, and
this is at a moderately large operation. Obviously, it's not a
sustainable model...

Erik Mann