First Solo and Total Hours Flown

"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
ups.com...
This thread has made me wonder whether pilots really do differ from the
general population in some ways other than just the desire to fly.
Remember those aptitude tests that we (in the US, at least) were given at
different times during our elementary and secondary education? I suspect
that good "stick and rudder" pilots also scored high on the 3D
visualization parts of those tests.

Supposedly this is why a higher percentage of pilots are left-handed
than would otherwise be expected. Something to do with the way
right-brainers perceive the world...

What world?

george wrote:
Andrew Sarangan wrote:

I would love to see the 3-hour guy's logbook for all the 15 items
required by the FAR for solo. In fact, I would love to see the 5-hour
guy's logbook too.

I soloed September 4th 1966 in MS880b ZK CKL after 4hours 50 minutes
dual instruction at NZ Aerosales Paraparaumu...
And I have 15 exercises (including spinning) ticked and signed off by
the instructor before I soloed
The 3 hour solo was a WW2 pilot who missed being an ace because he was
chasing doodlebugs.

Spinning a MS880B?
-Kees

wrote in message
oups.com...

I'm going to take the opposite from the prevailing oppinion on this...

There absolutley should be a minimum amount of hours to solo (15-20),
as flying through the pattern a few times here and there is nowhere
sufficient for a pilot to solo (especially out of anything with a
tower... and forget about it in less than a certain amount of hours in
class B), this minimum shoul dbe there for the same reason that we have
a "minimum" amount of hours to get a Private, to get your instrument
rating to get a CPL. There is an amount of time that a person just
needs to be sitting behind the controls of a plane to be able to fly a
plane with reasonable ability, as they are not even proficient in
operation at that point.

An instructor that sends out a student with 3 hours or less is
definitley being reckless and endangering his students and fellow
pilots.

Taxiing out to the runway say 3 times (once every hour), having done 3
run ups (maybe), is not sufficient enough to prepare anyone for the
complex situations that may arise in the air.


So a student that flies out of a small airport that is not crowded and
allows several cycles per hour should be penalized because there are
students that fly in more crowded airspace?

Of course a student who is going to be flying in busy airspace is going to
need more training pre-solo than the ones that aren't. Do you know CFIs that
have soloed students that are unsafe? I assume you called the FSDO.

"Bob Noel" wrote in message
...
In article ,
"Peter Duniho" wrote:

As you correctly point out, the bulk of being a pilot has to do with
judgment and factual knowledge, rather than motor skills (especially with
current aircraft design...this wasn't always true, IMHO). And frankly,
not
everyone is capable of exercising the judgment, nor of learning the
factual
knowledge, required to be a pilot.

A coworker was at something like 30 hours before she broke off her
training.
She just couldn't get the hang of landing the airplane. She still wants
to fly,
and will likely try again sometime in the future. Though I'm not a CFI, I
still
want to say that I don't think her problem is judgement or motor skills
(unless
somehow she is different in the airplane than on the ground). When she
starts
her training again and gets to solo will be a treat.

--

Did she ever try different instructor during that 30 hours?

How come no one ever mentions instruction curriculum in these discussions?

An independent instructor might "solo" a quick learner, then jump right
back into the airplane for many more hours of dual.

A structured 141 school's program might require the student to
demonstrate proficiency on more maneuvers, be comfortable on the radio,
cover more emergency procedures, take a pre-solo stage check ride, etc...

My 141 school required me to experience demonstrated stuff like
accelerated stalls, secondary stalls, and to perform pattern trips and
very low approaches with simulated aileron, elevator, and rudder
failures, as well as some instrument failures. I also had to do a
pre-solo stage check with a different instructor.

I very successfully took my FAA check ride well before the national
average hours (including three stage checks for ~ 5 flight hours), yet
my symbolic "first solo" was farther along than many who brag about how
quickly they were able to do so.

Peter Duniho wrote:
"Andrew Sarangan" wrote in message
ups.com...
All you need to fly an airplane is motivation, perseverence, basic
intelligence, money and spare time. We are not talking about becoming a
Chuck Yeager or Niel Armstrong. Anyone with basic intelligence and
basic motor skills can be turned into a basic pilot.

Anyone with basic intelligence and basic motor skills can be turned into
someone who can control an airplane. That does not mean that they can be
turned into a pilot, even a basic one.

Even the lowest levels of FAA certification are beyond the reach of some
people who may well have basic intelligence and basic motor skills.

The point I was trying to make is that flying an airplane is not an
extraordinary skill. Anyone with average capacity can accomplish these
tasks, given enough time, patience and money.

The reason the lowest levels of FAA certificate appear to be beyond
certain individuals is because they lack the discipline and patience
required to reach those goals, not because the skills required are
beyond their capabilities.

Hence I do not believe certain people are 'cut out to be pilots'. That
implies that you have to have some kind of special gift. That may be
the case with people with extraordinary capabilities, such as nobel
laureates and olympic winners, but flying a small airplane around a
traffic pattern is not one of them.

...is because they lack the discipline and patience

Thlse that lack the discipline and patience are not "cut out" to be pilots.

Jose
--
"There are 3 secrets to the perfect landing. Unfortunately, nobody knows
what they are." - (mike).
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

"Andrew Sarangan" wrote in message
ps.com...
[...]
The reason the lowest levels of FAA certificate appear to be beyond
certain individuals is because they lack the discipline and patience
required to reach those goals, not because the skills required are
beyond their capabilities.

Hence I do not believe certain people are 'cut out to be pilots'.

The statement about "not everyone is cut out to be a pilot" says nothing
about skills. Nevertheless, in addition to that point already made by Jose,
I'll point out that in my opinion, discipline and patience ARE skills.

The fact remains, there are people who should not be pilots, for one reason
or another. These people are not "cut out to be pilots".

Pete

I dont know why it would take over 30 hours to solo, and some as many
as 70? I soloed at 14 hours, but I hear the average is 20.

wrote:

george wrote:
Andrew Sarangan wrote:

I would love to see the 3-hour guy's logbook for all the 15 items
required by the FAR for solo. In fact, I would love to see the 5-hour
guy's logbook too.

I soloed September 4th 1966 in MS880b ZK CKL after 4hours 50 minutes
dual instruction at NZ Aerosales Paraparaumu...
And I have 15 exercises (including spinning) ticked and signed off by
the instructor before I soloed
The 3 hour solo was a WW2 pilot who missed being an ace because he was
chasing doodlebugs.

Spinning a MS880B?

No. A C150. ZK BVY
Fully developed stalls in the Rallye are, as you know, almost an
impossibility. :-)