How to find a CFII?

wrote in message
oups.com...

wrote:
I am ready to start working on my IFR training. I took an intensive
weekend crash course to pass the written and got a 93%, so that's out
of the way.

My CFI for my private was fabulous, but he was a real drill sergeant.

Any thoughts?

It's a lot like finding a doctor. The easiest (and cheapest) way is to
get a recommendation from someone you consider a reasonable person. I

Look at your field for the high-performance planes with good IFR equipment
that are flown regularly. Find the owners (lookup N-Numbers in the database,
post-it note, etc) of those planes and ask who they use. Also, call a local
aircraft broker who deals in serious traveling airplanes, ask who he
recommends for a checkout. Designees are a good lead as well. They know all
the characters and if they recommend someone you'll be in good shape when
testing time comes.

Also, a plug here for the "drill seargeant" approach. Much more so than VFR,
IFR is not a place to worry about self-esteem. The weather is the cruelest
instructor of them all, and you don't want a pink slip from her.

-cwk.

"Roy Smith" wrote in message
...
wrote:
Finding the best instructor in the western hemisphere is a difficult
task.

It doesn't seem like it should be that difficult. Several people who
claim
to fit that description are frequent contributors to this newsgroup. :-)
Roy,
I don't remember if when we were flying around San Francisco Bay something
close to twenty years ago(+/-) a few, if I told you my criteria for
successful instructing. "If I can teach a student that I am the best
looking of all instructors, I can teach him anything."
Gene

"Gene Whitt" wrote in
ink.net:
I don't remember if when we were flying around San Francisco Bay
something close to twenty years ago(+/-) a few, if I told you my
criteria for successful instructing. "If I can teach a student that I
am the best looking of all instructors, I can teach him anything."
Gene

Or to quote a phrase, you can fool some of the people some of the
time......

--
Regards,

Stan

"They that can give up essential liberty to obtain a little temporary
safety deserve neither liberty nor safety." B. Franklin

In article . net,
"Gene Whitt" wrote:

"Roy Smith" wrote in message
...
wrote:
Finding the best instructor in the western hemisphere is a difficult
task.

It doesn't seem like it should be that difficult. Several people who
claim
to fit that description are frequent contributors to this newsgroup. :-)
Roy,
I don't remember if when we were flying around San Francisco Bay something
close to twenty years ago(+/-) a few, if I told you my criteria for
successful instructing. "If I can teach a student that I am the best
looking of all instructors, I can teach him anything."
Gene

I can't say I remember that, but I do remember you telling me to hold the
yoke with two fingers, and I think of you whenever I pass on that advice to
one of my students.

Blanche wrote:

I do believe that NW_PILOT missed the smiley at the end of Roy's
response.

Probably, but his point is still valid. Several of my instructors for
primary were, in retrospect, scary. But I didn't know enough to know that
at the time.

When I was shopping around for a CFII, I was a slightly better-informed
consumer. I believe I did a better job as a result.

I liked the suggestions of "starting backwards", be it with good IFR pilots
or "advanced" aircraft. The former is tough for the inexperienced, but the
latter should be available to anyone at a reasonably busy airport.

Another suggestion is to increase the connections and contacts w/in
aviation. Go to meetings. Join clubs. And so on.

We're having a meeting tomorrow, for example, in Little Falls NJ. You're
all welcome.

http://www.midatlanticpilots.com/program.html

For me, attending meetings like this made a big difference. It transitioned
me from "aviator" to "member of the aviation community", if you will.

- Andrew