Finding a flight instructor

then, when you have a more precise idea of where you'd like to
go, we'll be happy to comment on this or that flight school :-)

Honestly, I was hoping for some direct recommendations, here or even
per mail. Something like "hey, I know this guy who was an ex-military
pilot and also happens to be a CFI" ;-)

But nevertheless the tips I got are a great help, at least they give me
some further ways to dig around ;-)

note that you might want to focus on flight schools with some
*recent* (as in, post 9/11) experience with training foreign
students; there is additional red tape to go through, and
you can save yourself a lot of trouble by picking the right
school in this regard (another thing to ask AOPA)

I already read about the new "procedures" to prevent terrorism. That's
one reason I'm asking now because I have to request my student visa and
everything other that's necessary.

Tom

You just included several distractions into your training
program that will increase the training time.



--
James H. Macklin
ATP,CFI,A&P

"Tom" wrote in message
oups.com...
| Yes, you said CA, NV or NM... Colorado isn't near as hot
during
| the summertime...
|
| Thanks for the tip. One reason why I prefer CA, NV or NM
is that I can
| combine the time in the US with my job, and I have some
| friends/colleagues there that I want to visit.
|
| Tom
|

Tom wrote:

I had a look at the Airnav.com website but only could find a search
engine for airports. Am I missing something?

Try the databases at http://www.landings.com . You can get listings of many of
the schools by State. I doubt the listing is complete, but there's lots of good
stuff there.

George Patterson
Coffee is only a way of stealing time that should by rights belong to
your slightly older self.

You might check out one of the specialty schools, like the "Top Gun" schools
that teach you dogfighting and aerobatics in T34's or other ex military
aircraft.

We have a fellow near us who gives dual in his Stearman. It is legally a
"high performance" aircraft. His has a 300 HP Lycoming for power. Of
course its "high performance" is still 90 mph! :-) But then, it is really a
blast to fly ...

Highflyer
Highflight Aviation Services
Pinckneyville Airport ( PJY )

"Tom" wrote in message
ups.com...
Hello! I'm living in europe, but now I decided to take the step and
become a real pilot with everything and such. I want to travel to the
United States next summer and get some flight training there. I already
have some flight time (~40hrs) on C-152s, C-172 and some much more
powerful planes. Being a pilot also helps me with my career (I'm
working in aerospace). I don't want to go to a flight school but
instead pay a free instructor to teach me. But I couldn't find anything
on the net, I only found flight schools. Can someone here help me or
give me some advice? What I'm looking for is a free experienced
instructor (ex-military or active military pilot preferred) located
somewhere in the California, Nevada or New Mexico area. If he has it's
own high performance plane that would be even better.

Does anyone know where I can look for a suitable instructor? Or perhaps
someone already can recommend a instructor.

Tom

As a CFI, I thought I'd throw my .02 in here. I assume Tom means
"independent" when he says "free instructor." I doubt you'd find an
instructor to fly for free... You can't go wrong weather-wise if you
train in the southwest. Biggest issue is the heat if you're going to be
training during the summer. Get out early in the morning before the
temps reach triple digits and/or fly in the early evening (or both if
you're REALLY motivated, but don't burn yourself out).

As far as training in high-performance & complex aircraft - that will
wait until you have the PPL. There's no sense in complicating the
process (and spending more $$) by getting into a 182 or Arrow before
you've got your license. IMO you can't beat a Warrior or 172 for a
primary trainer. The reality is no flight school will rent a high
performance or complex acft to a brandy-new pilot until the minimum
flight hours and HP/complex time requirements have been met (insurance
mandates)

Dogfighting and aerobatics in T34s and Stearmans are fun but the point
here is to get the PPL finished in a reasonable amount of time without
breaking the bank.

Wooly

Hello Wooly,

As a CFI, I thought I'd throw my .02 in here. I assume Tom means
"independent" when he says "free instructor."

Exactly. Holy ****, now I realize that I made a mistake by writing
"free" instead of "independent". So everybody here probably thinks I'm
looking for free (means: at no cost) instruction. No, that's definitely
not what I want. I really want an independent instructor who is not
bound to a flight school .

Sorry for the confusion, my english isn't too god at all.

I doubt you'd find an
instructor to fly for free...

Certainly not. But even if there would be one I doubt that it would be
worth it for both sides.

You can't go wrong weather-wise if you
train in the southwest. Biggest issue is the heat if you're going to be
training during the summer. Get out early in the morning before the
temps reach triple digits and/or fly in the early evening (or both if
you're REALLY motivated, but don't burn yourself out).

That's no problem, I know the heat thing from the time I had in CA on a
flight school.

As far as training in high-performance & complex aircraft - that will
wait until you have the PPL. There's no sense in complicating the
process (and spending more $$) by getting into a 182 or Arrow before
you've got your license. IMO you can't beat a Warrior or 172 for a
primary trainer. The reality is no flight school will rent a high
performance or complex acft to a brandy-new pilot until the minimum
flight hours and HP/complex time requirements have been met (insurance
mandates)

When I was in CA I flew with C-152 and C-172 on the first day, and
after the second day we moved to a PA-28 Arrow II for most part of the
remaining instruction (and a PA-34 Seneca for the other part). The
instructor was quite good, the school was not. I know that it's
difficult to find high performance/complex airplanes to rent for
not-yet pilots, but I'd be ready to pay a bit more per hr because so I
not only get instructions and regular flying hours but also
complex/high performance time which I had to build up separately
otherwise.

That's another reason why I think an independent instructor would be
better for me, because this would allow us to get planes from
everywhere and not only what the flight school offers.

Dogfighting and aerobatics in T34s and Stearmans are fun but the point
here is to get the PPL finished in a reasonable amount of time without
breaking the bank.

Right, and due to the accidents that happened in these dog fight
"schools" (especially with the T-34) I don't have too much trust in
them. It looks more like huge videogame in real-life for people that
had a overdose of the "Top Gun" movie. I'd prefer a ex-military
instructor because of his experience, not because I want to play dog
fights in the air.

Tom

You just included several distractions into your training
program that will increase the training time.

I don't think so. It's not that I would have to work hard or long, or
that it is time consuming or exhausting, and I can schedule my work
time as I want :-)

Tom

http://www.nafinet.org/directory/flight_lookup.html

This is what you want. Search engine for CFI finding.

Thank you very much! That's really helpful!

Tom

Freelance= independent, so you were not to far away from the
correct English words.

Some military pilots have no experience outside the
military. Look for a CFI with experience as a 135 charter
pilot and as many other areas of aviation as you can.
Military pilots from the 40 and early 50s learned in Cubs
and Stearmans. Recent military pilots may have never flown
off grass, some can't even find a grass strip. Military
pilots are trained very well to do what they do, you may
want to elect several different CFIs as you progress in your
training. The CFI who is great in your private training may
not have any mountain experience or have flown in cold
weather. Some CFIs fly only to get the hours needed for the
right seat in a 737, others fly because they love airplanes
and like to teach. All CFIs pass the tests, but the test
are minimums and all pilots and CFI are not created the
same. Bottom line, find someone you get along with because
it is a lot like getting married without the sex.


--
Merry Christmas
Have a Safe and Happy New Year
Live Long and Prosper
Jim Macklin
"Tom" wrote in message
oups.com...
| Hello Wooly,
|
| As a CFI, I thought I'd throw my .02 in here. I assume
Tom means
| "independent" when he says "free instructor."
|
| Exactly. Holy ****, now I realize that I made a mistake by
writing
| "free" instead of "independent". So everybody here
probably thinks I'm
| looking for free (means: at no cost) instruction. No,
that's definitely
| not what I want. I really want an independent instructor
who is not
| bound to a flight school .
|
| Sorry for the confusion, my english isn't too god at all.
|
| I doubt you'd find an
| instructor to fly for free...
|
| Certainly not. But even if there would be one I doubt that
it would be
| worth it for both sides.
|
| You can't go wrong weather-wise if you
| train in the southwest. Biggest issue is the heat if
you're going to be
| training during the summer. Get out early in the morning
before the
| temps reach triple digits and/or fly in the early
evening (or both if
| you're REALLY motivated, but don't burn yourself out).
|
| That's no problem, I know the heat thing from the time I
had in CA on a
| flight school.
|
| As far as training in high-performance & complex
aircraft - that will
| wait until you have the PPL. There's no sense in
complicating the
| process (and spending more $$) by getting into a 182 or
Arrow before
| you've got your license. IMO you can't beat a Warrior or
172 for a
| primary trainer. The reality is no flight school will
rent a high
| performance or complex acft to a brandy-new pilot until
the minimum
| flight hours and HP/complex time requirements have been
met (insurance
| mandates)
|
| When I was in CA I flew with C-152 and C-172 on the first
day, and
| after the second day we moved to a PA-28 Arrow II for most
part of the
| remaining instruction (and a PA-34 Seneca for the other
part). The
| instructor was quite good, the school was not. I know that
it's
| difficult to find high performance/complex airplanes to
rent for
| not-yet pilots, but I'd be ready to pay a bit more per hr
because so I
| not only get instructions and regular flying hours but
also
| complex/high performance time which I had to build up
separately
| otherwise.
|
| That's another reason why I think an independent
instructor would be
| better for me, because this would allow us to get planes
from
| everywhere and not only what the flight school offers.
|
| Dogfighting and aerobatics in T34s and Stearmans are fun
but the point
| here is to get the PPL finished in a reasonable amount
of time without
| breaking the bank.
|
| Right, and due to the accidents that happened in these dog
fight
| "schools" (especially with the T-34) I don't have too
much trust in
| them. It looks more like huge videogame in real-life for
people that
| had a overdose of the "Top Gun" movie. I'd prefer a
ex-military
| instructor because of his experience, not because I want
to play dog
| fights in the air.
|
| Tom
|

I have instructed many students, some had lots of money, but
the ones who did the best in training concentrated on the
flying and did not have business or personal distractions
[social engagements and phone calls] to take up their time.
Not that you can't overcome those distractions, but you will
certainly spend extra time and money because of them.


--
James H. Macklin
ATP,CFI,A&P

"Tom" wrote in message
oups.com...
| You just included several distractions into your training
| program that will increase the training time.
|
| I don't think so. It's not that I would have to work hard
or long, or
| that it is time consuming or exhausting, and I can
schedule my work
| time as I want :-)
|
| Tom
|