Here we are at week #10 and the final step in becoming a pilot in Canada.

If you want to travel fast, go alone. If you want to travel far, go with others.

This is an African proverb that is certainly worth taking time to consider, and I'm sure many of you already have thought about it... but have you tried to apply this way of thinking to aviation?

Have you applied it to your study time?

Have you applied it to every other area of learning how to fly?

In short, aviation needs to be thought of in regards to long-term thinking, not short-term thinking.

Nobody gets their PPL in a few weeks, and rarely does it happen in a few months. 

It takes consistent and steady small steps forward, often just one day at a time, hour by hour, and topic by topic, in order to arrive at your destination, the goal of becoming a Private Pilot.

It is possible, if only you can believe.

The Most Successful Pilots tend to be People Who Don't Fly Alone

If you listened to my interview about the Common Mistakes Made by Student Pilots, you heard about a great way to double your flying time. Essentially, the advice I got from a Class 1 Flight Instructor on this point was that if you want to fly more frequently, get around 2 or 3 other guys in your local area and start having some adventures.

This means "don't fly solo."

Fly with a buddy, get a friend.

No matter who you are, if you can join your local flying club and get around other pilots, you're going to meet someone in your local area that you get along with, and you'll certainly have aviation as a common interest! 

Bottom line, sure it's fun to fly alone sometimes, but it's always better to experience the adventure with others.

When You Build Your Hours, You Build Your Experience

If you're not at a flying club that offers fun and exciting getaways with other pilots, then you may need to consider looking into another flying club. 

You should be able to meet other pilots in your area who you can fly with, even if you're just a passenger once in a while, you're going to pick up and learn so much just being on board.

Ok, So You've Become a Private Pilot... Now What?

In the coming weeks and months we'll be releasing a series of posts about the options you get when you have your PPL. For example, as a friend of mine who is a Transport Canada Pilot Examiner mentioned to me, and as something you can hear in the tutorial I made here, the next thing you should consider is working towards your Night Rating. This is easy to do, it's fun, and if you're building hours anyways, why not work towards expanding your horizon, which will open up a whole new level of excitement letting you fly beyond daylight hours.

Get your Aviation Education from Hangaaar's Online Ground School

One of the challenges I had when I was trying to become a private pilot was that I kept missing my ground school classes. As you probably already know, Transport Canada requires that we take ground school and gain the knowledge and learn the regulations required to operate an aircraft in Canada. 

As you can imagine, if you miss your ground school on Meteorology Theory, it makes learning about Meteorological Weather much more difficult. It's the same with all topics. There is a step-by-step way that makes the learning easier.

I also thought that if I had to spread out my learning over a period of several months, it'd be nice to have a single source that would allow me to review and catch up on the knowledge I've already picked up without having to wait for the course, or worse, having to pay again for some online course.

That's what Hangaaar's Online Ground School courses offer. Once you buy a course, you become a member and get access to that course for 12 months. If you decide to remain a member at Hangaaar, you can continue to have access to all of the courses you've bought for the membership fee of $199/year. Check out more details here. 

Moving to a Whole New Level as a Company 

The last thing I'd like to leave you with is a bit of encouragement. 

It's seems like every week I meet more people who say, "I almost became a pilot but life changed and blah, blah, blah... "

It hurts me.

Seriously.

My goal is to make it so easy to NOT give up, that nobody will ever be able to use that excuse again.

If I can leave you with one piece of encouragement...

Remember, "whatever your mind can conceive and believe, you can achieve." - Napoleon Hill 

Here we are today at HANGAAAR, celebrating with all the amazing things happening, and now moving to a whole new level as a company.

We wouldn't be able to make it to this point without the support of our customers who do believe in us!

That's you.

Thanks for your support! 

THIS HAS BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.

If you’ve been tracking along, you’ll see that I’ve been spending some time looking back at when I started taking flight lessons and considering how I could’ve been much more efficient as I went along this journey to become a Private Pilot.

If you’ve been paying attention, you’ll remember back in Step #4 that I mentioned it was ideal to take your Ground School at the same time as your Flight Lessons. You can read Step #4 again, but the point was, as you take Ground School it will help you with your Flight Lessons… and as you take your Flight Lessons, it’ll help make sense of your Ground School (and make it more interesting, too!). Let’s face it, the majority of us learn to fly because we like flying, not because we enjoy all the work that’s comes with Ground School.

Before we get too far, let’s do a quick recap of the first 8 Steps that got us here…

So You’ve Passed Your Written Exam?

After speaking with a few Flight Instructors, I’m told that the student pilots who try to prepare for their written exam at the same time as they prepare for their Flight Test end up doing poorly at both. It’s ideal if you’ve finished your Ground School, then as mentioned in Step #8… do your 2 weeks of preparation to write your exam. With that past you, it’s time to get those hours in and finish off with your Flight Lesson.

But the real question is: Is there a way to prepare for your Flight Test even while you’re not taking Flight Lessons?

Here’s the key to Doing Well on your Flight Test

After talking to a friend and Associate of mine who’s a Transport Canada Pilot Examiner, a guy I highly respect and someone who I know is one of the best pilots in Canada, the key he mentioned to me about preparing for your Flight Test was this:

“The way you fly your airplane on any given Tuesday is the way you should fly your airplane for your Flight Test. And the way you fly for your Flight Test should be the exact same way that you fly your airplane on any given Tuesday.”

If you really think about that statement, it’s actually quite brilliant.

His point?

You should be learning to fly from your Flight Instructor with every detail that is required for successfully passing your Flight Test.

If you’re at a Flying Club that promotes a certain way of flying during your Flight Lessons and a “different” approach for when you are taking your Flight Test… then you should really consider changing Flight Schools.

The way you fly the airplane during your Flight Lessons should be “the right way” for flying for your Flight Test. When this concept really sinks in, it takes all the pressure away from actually taking your Flight Test. Because by the time you take your Flight Test you should’ve been doing the same procedures all along the way for every Flight Lesson you’ve taken.

The Best Way to Not Develop Sloppy Habits is to Not Be Sloppy

Remember when you first got your driver’s licence?

Did you ever take a driving class where your instructor told you to do things like, “Always check your rearview mirror when you first get into your vehicle, remember to fasten your seat belt every time you drive, even just a short distance because 80% of accidents happen within a km of your home,  always keep both hands on the wheel in a 10 and 2 o’clock position, be sure to come to a full stop at every stop sign, etc, etc, etc…”

The point is: You were getting the ideal way to operate your vehicle to ensure safety and success every time you drive.

And if you think through all those details, if you keep those good habits, the odds are high that you’ve never been in an accident.

Operating your aircraft is similar.

There is a “sufficient way” to operate your aircraft… and then there is the best way to operate your aircraft. That’s what you’re learning from a good Flight Instructor.

If you make that your “Standard Operating Procedure” for operating the aircraft, it means when it comes time to take your Flight Test, it will be as if you’ve already had a few dozen Flight Tests just by flying with your Instructor.

In other words, nothing should change for your Flight Test. It’s just another flight.

How Do You Remember All the Details Your Flight Instructor Tells You?

Chances are you’ve been on a steady diet of new information as you’ve been learning to fly.

It can be overwhelming.

Big time.

As I talk to many student pilots in this process, I hear over and over again that the information isn’t necessarily hard, but there is a lot of information to stay current with what you’re learning.

If you are good at keeping notes, good on you, you’re a keener and you already have an effective system for going over the details you need to know.

If you don’t always remember to make notes, or if you realize it’s just not that practical while operating your aircraft to pull out your notebook and jot things down, you can try some software to help you stay on top of things.

If you don’t, well, you can just continue to make the same mistakes over and over.

In this situation, I think of Einstein’s definition of insanity.

Albert Einstein said the definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result.

Is that you? Be honest.

To be really honest myself, I think it’s a bit of all of us, me included.

But how do you change things up? Well, you’ve probably heard of something like what is below, but have you applied it to your Flight Training yet?

The Cone of Experience

Edgar Dale was an American educationist who developed the Cone of Experience. He made several contributions to audio and visual instruction, including a methodology for analyzing the content of motion pictures. Here’s the “Cone of Experience” often referred to as the Cone of Learning.

The real takeaway for me on this is that people tend to remember just 10% of what they read. Only 10%!!!

Think about this, if this is true, think of ALL the things you’ve ever read… and assume that 90% of it is actually gone!!!

Yikes!

Okay, personally, that makes me feel less excited about reading.

Hearing, viewing images, watching videos gets us into that 30% range… much better but still pretty pathetic.

Where things get really exciting is that bottom layer:

Analyze, Define, Create, Evaluate.

This is a lot of what we’re doing when taking Flight Lessons.

Here’s the key to the bottom portion of this cone: You must engage your brain with analyzing, defining, creating and evaluating.

If you can engage yourself in the material you are trying to learn, it activates a part of your brain that tries to figure out answers to problems, seeking solutions to challenges, sorting and organizing the scattered bits of information in your head to lay out “the ideal solution.”

So, this makes sense when you’re in the plane taking your Flight Lesson. If you are “doing the real thing” well, chances are, that’s the best way for your body and brain to learn and remember.

But what if you’re not actually taking your Flight Lesson? Is everything else just a waste of time?

Here’s the Key to Learning: Analyze. Define. Create. Evaluate.

As you can see in Edgar Dale’s Cone of Experience, if you can figure out how to engage your brain with analysis, seeking to define, create and evaluate your actions, the odds are high that you’ll not just learn, but you’ll also remember.

Software can help this.

Do you have a Flight Simulator? Use it.

Do you have some software that can quiz you? Use it.

The bottom line? Engage Your Brain.

As a result, you learn more efficiently and effectively.

Let’s face it, we’ve all been reading a book before and after a few minutes we realize that, even while reading, we’re actually thinking about what we ate for dinner… or what we’re about to go have for a snack. The point is, we’re reading and not absorbing anything from the book at all.

At HANGAAAR, we are trying to develop Aviation Tutorials and Training that engage and make learning to fly more efficient.

If you haven’t checked out one of our Apps, I recommend you start with the PSTAR App. It’s free and will give you the idea of what it’s like to be able to carry around your own personal Flight Instructor who is coaching you on what you need to learn.

It’s a great way to get the brain activated.

If it’s not activated, well, let’s just say it should be if you want to learn AND if you want to operate an aircraft.

The bottom line, if you want to learn efficiently and effectively: Analyze. Define. Create. Evaluate.

Step #10 – How to Stay Current as a Private Pilot

The last thing I wanted to say was, “Thanks!” We really appreciate your feedback and support and could not be where we are today without customers like you!

THIS WILL BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.

But how do you know when you’re actually ready to write the Transport Canada written exam?

Sure, I know you can’t write it until you get your letter of recommendation from your Flight Instructor, but besides waiting for he/she to tell you, how would YOU know that YOU feel ready for this? I’m pretty sure you don’t want to show up and hit a big 42% on the practice exam in front of all your buddies at the flying club.

Every Pilot Needs to Do Their Two Weeks

I spoke recently to a Class 1 Flight Instructor, and he made some observations that he’s seen in the past 30+ years of being around student pilots who are preparing for their Transport Canada written exam.

He said it all boils down to the fact that after you’ve completed your ground school, every pilot needs to do their 2 weeks of study time.

That’s it.

He didn’t mean just a bit of study here and there, he meant get permission from your family and friends to check out for 2 weeks and hit the books, hit your study notes, take some practice exams and spend 2 weeks to get it all done. Once you pass your written exam, you’ll have a year that it’s valid so you can then tackle your Flight Test.

Preparing For Your Written Exam

I’m going to assume that if you’ve finished ground school, and if you stayed awake, you should have a few study notes. I’m thinking you should have some concepts, perhaps some sample weight and balance questions, some flight planning exercises, and some odds and ends of all kinds of “important points” indicated by your Ground School Flight Instructor.

In your preparation time during the 2 weeks, hit those notes hard. Review the entire ground school course for anything that didn’t make any sense, follow along with your Study and Reference Guide for each topic you’ve been studying as pointed out in Tip #5 and at this point you should have a clear idea of what you know really well, and you should also be able to identify the topics or concepts that are a bit fuzzy.

Put aside the things you know and spend your time on what needs clarifying. Check From the Ground Up to sort out any cobwebs in your thinking, or review your Ground School course for any topics you need clarifying, and get those topics better understood.

So, You Think You’re Ready for the Exam?

There will come a moment when you realize, ok, that’s it… “I think I’m ready to write the Transport exam.” My advice? Don’t follow through on that just yet.

Start with a practice exam.

Your flying club should have a few exams for you so you can get a real sense of writing the exam and handing it over to someone who may find out if you’re on your game or if you’re a rookie at this point. Remember, the goal here is to identify your weak topics, but don’t give up if you bomb your first exam. Try a couple of these exams and find out the type of answers you seem to be struggling in. Meteorology? Spend some time reviewing the NavCanada website. Air Law trouble? Use our PSTAR App to review the Air Regulations. You can review our online ground school to see if it’s right for you. It comes with 850+ questions and you try several practice exams.

When you write these practice exams, you should be very honest with yourself and make note of the questions that you’re just guessing at vs. the answers that you really know, so you can really identify what you know and what you don’t know.

After Trying Some Practice Exams, Hit the Books Again

This time focus in just on the topics you don’t know, the questions where you were guessing. Learn that material. If the software you’re using to test yourself has some tidbits or explanations, that’s great. Read that and try and learn why the answer is what it happens to be.

Do this for a couple of days before you take your next practice exam and let the information settle in. If you needed to check your performance charts, review those, if you missed some questions in METARs, find some to practice online.

The Official Transport Canada (Practice) Written Exam

After you’ve put in some more study time on the areas that were identified by your failed questions on the practice exams, now you should be ready for “the official” practice exam. It’s available from the Transport Canada website. I hope you haven’t looked at these questions AT ALL yet in your preparation time… you want to reserve this exam for “the final practice exam” to let you know if you’re REALLY ready for the official exam.

You can get the Transport Canada PPL practice exam here or simply google: TP13014e and you’ll find the Civil Aviation Sample Examination.

This should be the final indicator to let you know if you’re ready for this or not.

When I followed this method of preparation, first with ground school, then with studying my notes, onto practice exams using software, and last, with this Official Transport Civil Aviation Sample Examination… I scored an overall 81% on the this “official” sample exam.

The great thing about the sample exam is you’ll note that the exam is broken down into the four categories: Air Law, Navigation, Meteorology, and Aeronautics – General Knowledge, and you can find out how you did on each section. For me, I hit 100% on Air Law, but my lowest mark was 73% in Meteorology.  That meant I didn’t need to touch Air Law again at all… but I spent some time in MET to make sure I knew what I was missing.

Remember, 60% is required to pass each section.  Figure out where you’re weak and put in some serious study time.

If you’re hitting +80% on the practice exams, go back to the flying club and hit one more practice exam just to make sure this wasn’t a fluke, and if you nail it, you’ll know you’re ready and your Flight Instructor should be prepared to give you your recommendation letter.

Have a Strategy for How You Prepare for Your Written Exam

The overall point here? Have a strategy that works for you if you want to pass your Transport exam on the first attempt. Everybody learns differently, some read, others need to watch a video, and others need a quiz to engage them with the material.

Know what works best for you and put just as much time into coming up with a plan that works best for you so you don’t waste time reviewing material you already know.

The last point I want to make, even if you bomb your practice exam at your Flying Club and feel terrible, don’t let it get you down. You can recover. Give yourself a tiny break to clear your head and see what areas you need to polish up.

But DO NOT give up. You’ve come all this way, you can do this!

Step #9 – Ok, You’ve Passed Your Transport Canada Exam. Now What?

Thanks so much for your support! We’re so grateful for your feedback and for your support for what we’re doing in the aviation education industry in Canada!

THIS WILL BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.

What Kind of Equipment Do You Need in Order to Learn How to Fly?

When it comes right down to it, there’s equipment that is essential, equipment that is a preference, and then there’s equipment that’s optional.

My best advice is to really consider what each of these categories are for you. I’ll go into some details of what I’ve really valued and also what I believe isn’t necessary.

Things I Believe Are Optional

I want to start this off with items that I believe are optional. There are things you may be told by your instructor, your school, or your buddy who just buys everything, but the bottom line is that these are items that I believer aren’t necessary, only optional.

1. An E6b Manual Flight Calculator. Nobody uses these in the real world. It’s like insisting on doing math calculations with an abacus rather than a calculator.
2. The AIM – Aeronautical Information Manual. It’s a big book filled with important information, but it’s available for free online where you can have access to it all and carry it around with you without all that extra weight.
3. The Private Pilot Reference Guides. You can buy a book filled with all the Transport Canada Study and Reference Guides, but they’re available online for free.
4. The Air Command Weather Manual and Workbook. It’s the official Transport Canada resource for Meteorology, but this information is covered in other manuals or services.

Standard Equipment for Student Pilots

Now I’ll make a list in order of what I believe is the most important down to the least important.

1. A good headset. Really, you will be in pain after an hour of flying with the low quality rental headsets that are available for most student pilots. Get a headset such as David Clarke, Bose, or Lightspeed and you’ll immediately find yourself more comfortable during your flight training.
2. An ICOM A6 or A24 handheld radio. It’s a great backup radio for your aircraft, particularly if you’re using a rental aircraft where you don’t really know the age or condition of the radio onboard. Having a backup radio is not just a good insurance policy, but it’s great to be able to learn quicker listening to the various radio frequencies and develop your listening and communication skills for the specific procedures required for using the radio.
3. From the Ground Up. The standard go-to book across Canada for reference material for all matters relating to ground school. It is filled with a lot of extra information you don’t need, but having the ability to reference the topics you find out are essential makes learning things easier. Buy it if you love to read about every little detail of aviation. Otherwise, a good ground school course will cover the essentials for you. This may be one of those purchases that you use as a reference if you get stuck on something and need to dig in a little further to grasp the concept.
4. The Flight Training Manual. It’s produced by Transport Canada and is the Canada-wide resource for learning and understanding the Air Exercises you’ll be tested on for your Flight Test.
5. A copy of the POH for the aircraft you’ll be operating. This is the book you’ll want to make reference to several times and know it very well. Note here: you should be sure to get the exact Pilot Operating Handbook as no two aircraft are identical, and the details you’ll need specifically for your aircraft will be unique to a specific POH.
6. A logbook. You’ll need to note your ground school and your flight lessons right from day one.
7. *A subscription to the Canada Flight Supplement. The CFS is the Aerodrome Directory book that list most aerodromes and airports in Canada. It is required documentation to take on each flight.
8. *Current VTA and VNC charts. VTA and VNC Charts are available through NavCanada and can be purchased online or at your flying club. The VTA Charts cover a detailed view of the major airports across Canada while the VNC charts are less detailed and cover the rest of Canada. You’ll use both of these in your ground school. When you begin to fly, you will need to keep ordering updated charts, however, some services as you’ll see below provide updated charts digitally.
9. A Flight Computer. (such as a CX-3) There are a variety of kinds you’re permitted to use on your Transport Canada written exam. You’ll use it to do aircraft performance calculations and flight planning exercises as you begin to understand what you’re required to do prior to your flights.
10. A Protractor and a Chart Rule. These are two items you’ll use most in ground school as you work with your printed charts and begin to make flight plans. In the real world, services such as ForeFlight are replacing the need for these things but your ground school instructor might insist on you doing things this way, really, just because you’ll need to do it for the Transport Canada exam.

*I’ll make a note here to specify that if you look into getting a subscription to ForeFlight, it will come with a digital copy of a CFS as well as all charts for across Canada. For studying purposes, having an actual VNC/VTA Chart and a hard copy of the CFS are very handy and practical.

What Items Would I Recommend You Work With?

There are a few items I’ll list here that I believe to be essential. There are ways to get by without these services, but what the following offer in terms of value far outweigh the cost in my mind:

1. ForeFlight. When it comes to being more efficient and saving a ton of headaches, ForeFlight fits into that category for me. It makes things so much easier, you should try it out and give it a chance, even if you’re an “old school” type of pilot that enjoys the paper charts and pencils. You might be surprised.
2. Educational Software that Helps Save Time. I’ll put a disclaimer out here right off the top to let you know of my bias of the educational products Hangaaar provides that aim at helping pilots save time and make things more efficient. I believe good educational products that are convenient and efficient to access can also provide additional safety as they make it easy to stay on top of the knowledge and regulations that you need to know to operate your aircraft effectively and safely. However, even if you decide to go with another provider for things like iPhone and iPad Apps to help you prepare for your PSTAR exam, or a PPL Exam App I think you’ll be glad you did. Regardless of the company you decide to go with, I believe there is much to learn from those who’ve gone before us who can help accelerate our journey and also help us avoid any big losses along the way.

If it Adds Value to Your Life, It’s a Good Choice

Regardless of what I think or what others tell you, at the end of the day, it’s an individual choice as to what you decide to invest in. Some guys love to have the t-shirts and hats and the big GPS enabled watch; if those items add value and make you feel good, that’s great! Go at it and accept what you love about it!

Whatever you decide works for you, I can accept that and appreciate that we all have a varying degree for what and where we find value.

The bottom line, enjoy it and hopefully it gets you even more committed to flying and enjoying aviation!

That said, you can now check out Step #8 – Everybody Needs to Do Their Two Weeks

Last, we are so grateful for your feedback and support! Thank you so much!

THIS WILL BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.

A Good Flight Instructor Gives Briefings Before and After Each Flight

There are many good Flying Clubs or Aviation Schools out there that all have good intentions, but life gets busy for everybody, and sometimes the best intention doesn’t actually come through in the most effective manner. That said, most Flight Instructors provide briefings prior to each Flight Lesson. You take the time to talk about what you will be doing in the lesson up in the sky, what you will be hoping to achieve, how it will take place, some common mistakes to watch for, and any other pertinent information.

However, most Flight Instructors don’t seem to give debriefings after your Flight Lesson.

How Much Do You Really Want to Learn?

If your Flight Instructor cares about your learning process and about helping you learn quickly and efficiently, they’ll provide you with the necessary feedback in order to help you grow quickly.

You do need to have fun getting along with your Flight Instructor, and although having fun and joking around is an important part, just remember, you’re paying a lot of money for that one hour flight lesson and you should ensure that you can take a step forward with every lesson. I know a lot of pilots who joked around and had fun with every flight lesson, up until the point they were at 55 hours and no where near getting their PPL.

Then suddenly there wasn’t much joking around or fun.

If you and your Flight Instructor just turn the time into “buddy-buddy” time, before you know it you’ll be at 50 hours of flight time and you won’t be anywhere near your destination when it comes to actually getting ready to take your Flight Test.

My suggestion? Have a little fun, but be sure to have the majority of your time learning something. Think of it like 80% learning, 20% jokes and fun.

Want to Seriously Learn Fast and Step Ahead of the Rest?

If you’re serious about getting to your goal of becoming a Private Pilot in Canada as efficiently as possible, as you land and taxi back to the flight school or flying club and before you do your shut down procedures, take the time to ask your Flight Instructor about what happened up in the sky during that flight lesson. Consider this your debrief. Don’t look for the typical, “You did great, man! Way to go! You’re a natural!” but rather insist on the hard truth, “How could I do it better next time?” Ask questions. Ask a lot of questions about how you can improve.

If you want a better answer, it starts with asking a better question.

Don’t be satisfied with general answers and the ol’ typical, just keep at it… ask very specific procedure questions about what you did, about how your Instructor did it, get them to really think and break it down. Ask a lot of questions that are detailed, and you should press until you get detailed answers.

You should be able to walk away from the lesson with 5-7 really good solid tips for each flight lesson.

What Do You Do With This Information?

Take a moment back at the flying club or the flight school to go to your car, go to “check out the planes in the hangar or something“, but really, go to any quiet place, make note of exactly what you did up in the sky in that lesson, how you made mistakes, the list of mistakes you made, the details that you got from your Flight Instructor, and what you should do next time.

If you wait, well, you’ll miss some of the details because you’ll forget.

Moving to the Next Level on the Next Flight Lesson

Now that you’ve taken the time to make your own debriefing notes, you should have an accurate record of what the lesson was and where you were lacking.

Before you go for your next lesson, do some research ahead of time by checking your Flight Training Manual and read over all the details of the flight lesson, figure out what you should have done better, and actually prepare for your next flight lesson by being specific and targeted about what you need to learn. On your next Flight Lesson, any good Flight Instructor will start you with a review what you did on your past flight lesson.

However, if you’ve taken a bit of time to study and prepare with the notes you made from your last lesson, you should have put in at least an hour of preparation work going over and researching and trying to understand where you went wrong on the previous lesson. You can even ask some of your buddies about how they overcame these challenges. The one thing you know about every pilot in the world is that they love talking about flying! Be that guy who listens and learns something from the people who are more experienced.

I wish I did this more.

On your next lesson you’ll be amazed, it’ll be as if your brain and body solved the problem and just figured it all out, you’ll suddenly nail it for your next lesson.

You can review your briefing notes as you go, and then one day you’ll wake up with 25 -30 hours of flight time, and if you’ve done this for every flight lesson, you’ll have an amazing resource of specifically what you need to know in order to be an incredible pilot.

Very few Flying Clubs or Flight Schools have the dedication to devote all this detailed instruction to each student pilot. I encourage you to take the initiative to lead yourself well by picking up on this discipline as early as possible.

Do I Really Have to Listen to You and Do This?

No, you don’t. Remember, I didn’t do this for every flight lesson… I only started doing this much later in my flight lessons when I realized it was taking forever to get where I wanted to go! Remember, this is a series of posts about what I wish I would’ve done right from the beginning.

But remember, you don’t have to listen to this, you’ll still probably end up with your PPL eventually, but why take 60 hours if you could do it all in 40 hours?

That additional 20 hours could cost you $3000 or more, and even worse, it will probably also cost you an additional 3 – 5 weeks!!!

If you’re the kind of person that has to learn everything the hard way, well, how’s that working out for you?

It’s a mindset thing, you either recognize that “time” is the most precious thing in the world, or you’re the kind of person that has to learn everything the hard way, from your own mistakes… and if you have to learn everything the hard way, well, good luck with that. Learning from people who are more experienced can help you grow without wasting so much time.

LAST TIP: I took the time and spent about 2 hours with a Transport Canada Pilot Examiner and we went over every single flight exercise and detail of the Private Pilot Flight Test.

If you really want to prepare well for your flight test, you can listen to the tutorial preview I put together about this here, Private Pilot Flight Test – Common Errors, Part 1. It’s a two-part series because there were so many details and such good advice, it just took a long time to get them all down.

Hope your flying is going well! Keep at it, no one ever accomplished their goals by giving up, and no amount of struggle or misfortunate can stop you if you have perseverance to stay focused on your goal!

Check out Step #7 – Get What You Need for Your Flight Bag

Thanks for taking the time to check things out at Hangaaar! We are so grateful for your support!

THIS WILL BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.

Next week…

THIS WILL BE AN ON-GOING SERIES OF EDUCATIONAL POSTS TO HELP YOU BECOME A PILOT IN CANADA. IF YOU HAVE ANY QUESTIONS RELATING TO THE AVIATION INDUSTRY, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO CONTACT US. 1.844.264.2227 That’s toll free, 1.84HANGAAAR.