Have you ever wanted to quit your training?

555Juliet

555Juliet

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Jill
Good morning everyone--

I'm putting together an article for an upcoming issue of AOPA Flight Training magazine; the focus is common reasons for quitting your training, and tools to combat those issues.

I'd love to hear from folks who quit--or nearly quit--and what you did or found to help you get back on track. CFIs, if you had a student in this situation, how did it play out?

This is my first time reaching out to the PoA community in this fashion, but I have met/flown with/FB'd several folks, among them Kaye, Tim Metzinger, Ben (spiderweb), Diana, Harley Reich, and of course uber-Babe Moxie. :smile:

Thanks!
Jill Tallman
 
Yes. After I hit 70 hours and there was no end to my training in sight, I began to question my abilities as a pilot. I finally decided that even if I had to carry 200 pounds of ballast in the right seat for the rest of my life, I'd do it. Once I came to that conclusion, everything just started working for me and I progressed very quickly.
 
I quit my IFR training about halfway through for two reasons:
1) Money - at the time, I didn't have any to spare.
2) Work - I took up flying for pleasure, and while I completely valued the lessons from IFR, it was getting to be an awful lot of work and not an awful lot of fun. It's fun to take the plane up and see the world from the perspective of a bird. Staring at dials and gauges and running math in your head or on a flight computer for several hours - not so fun.

#1 was the main reason, but #2 made it easier to accept #1.
 
I started and finished my PPL in 28 days & 40 hours on the button. I actually had to fly around .5 hours to burn off time before I took the check ride. I had a lot of flying time in ultra lights.

I had my CFI loose it. His temper got the best of him and he started yelling and screaming and slammed on the brakes of the plane because I was taxing too fast in a Cessna 172? I almost walked off right then. He then tells me he was just testing me to see what I would do. I guess he needed to see if I could handle stress or something. Pretty weird test if you ask me, I'd rather have him pull the thottle back or something.
 
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Geico266 said:
I started and finished my PPL in 28 days & 40 hours on the button. I had my CFI loose it. His temper got the best of him and he started yelling and screaming and slammed on the brakes of the plane because I was taxing too fast in a Cessna 172? I almost walked off right then. He then tells me he was just testing me to see what I would do. I guess he needed to see if I could handle stress or something. No Christmas presents for him.
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Interesting - because as a training technique, that's actually quite effective sounding to me. If you'd known in advance that he might do that, your reactions wouldn't have been the same, would they?
 
Greebo said:
Interesting - because as a training technique, that's actually quite effective sounding to me. If you'd known in advance that he might do that, your reactions wouldn't have been the same, would they?
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Usually, slamming on the brakes while taxing is not a flight situation one would have to deal with as an emergency, but hey ya just never know! :rofl:

I guess I passed because I was signed off for a check ride with only 39 hours in the log book knowing it took a 1/2 hour to get to the check ride inspector. He trusted me to use an hour to get there, or maybe he just wanted to get rid of me? :yesnod:
 
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Geico266 said:
Usually, slamming on the brakes while taxing is not a flight situation one would have to deal with as an emergency, but hey ya just never know! :rofl:
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Anxious right seat passenger.

But on the other hand - not the smartest move on the CFI's part. If you WERE going too fast, slamming on the brakes could theoretically cause a nose-over, couldn't it? Even in a tricycle?
 
I earned my PPL in a couple of months, flew everyone I knew on local hops, ran out of money I had stockpiled for the very purpose, and lost my primmary mission when my employer issued a rule banning private aircraft for business travel (which I was doing weekly).

I didn't fly for nearly 5 years, then decided it was time again, got current, earned the IR, the comm, and the CFI within a year, and have since purchased an airplane.

IMHO, there are two key points where people drop out of flying: right after solo, and right after the PP checkride. IN each case a huge hurlde has been cleared, and whatever follows seems insignificant in comparison.

With my students so far, I have tried to figure out why they want to fly, and then try to tailor instruction accordingly. So the guy that wants to fly XC to his beach house gets lots of XC focus, while they girl that just wants to be "up there" spends more time doing various manuevers.

Yet, the motivation often changes once they start to see the utility of flight, so the situational tailoring has to be flexible.
 
Greebo said:
Anxious right seat passenger.

But on the other hand - not the smartest move on the CFI's part. If you WERE going too fast, slamming on the brakes could theoretically cause a nose-over, couldn't it? Even in a tricycle?
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I certainly would have never treated a plane like he treated that poor 172 trainer. I was used to greasing landings due to flying ultralights. If you even think about bouncing a landing in a UL you are gonna leave parts on the runway. Most have no give at all, so when I was flying the 172 I always tried to just touch down easy. He did not like that. He MADE me stall the plane one wing lenght verticle over the runway. After hitting hard he said; "That's the way you are suppose to do it, Plant the wheels hard." :rolleyes: Needless to say I have unlearned that landing technique. RV's can handle those kinds of landings once.
 
Geico266 said:
After hitting hard he said; "That's the way you are suppose to do it, Plant the wheels hard." :rolleyes: Needless to say I have unlearned that landing technique. RV's can handle those kinds of landings once.
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Was your CFI a former Navy carrier pilot?
 
555Juliet said:
Good morning everyone--

I'm putting together an article for an upcoming issue of AOPA Flight Training magazine; the focus is common reasons for quitting your training, and tools to combat those issues.

I'd love to hear from folks who quit--or nearly quit--and what you did or found to help you get back on track. CFIs, if you had a student in this situation, how did it play out?

This is my first time reaching out to the PoA community in this fashion, but I have met/flown with/FB'd several folks, among them Kaye, Tim Metzinger, Ben (spiderweb), Diana, Harley Reich, and of course uber-Babe Moxie. :smile:

Thanks!
Jill Tallman
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I started training in 1970 in Illinois. Got married in 1971 and joined the Air Force and ended up in Gila Bend, AZ where I found a local CFI with his trusty 150. I continued into 1972 until my first son was born and that put an end to training at 17 hours, first solo cross country under my belt.

No flying until computers came along and so did Flight Simulator. I was in seventh heaven sitting in front of that computer flying. I had to settle with that until February of last year. Family grown up and moved out, some money tucked away and a new thing called Sport Pilot available. I found a local school with an LSA and started back withe my training. Got about 10 hours in and my instructor moved back to Norway and the plane I was flying went down for mechanical reasons.

With nearly 30 hours now I decided to move back to PP and moved into 172's to continue. Check ride was completed in December last year. Only thirty eight years to complete, but well worth it.
 
Yes. Re: How long should it take to get a PPL?
There were many times when I wanted to quit. Fortunately, Hubby and I began training together and with his example, I kept going. There were times when I wouldn't give in because it would be admitting defeat. Other times I didn't want to disappoint Hubby. He supported me throughout.

Factors causing discouragement included nausea, fear, age, illness, and poor instruction.
 
dmccormack said:
IMHO, there are two key points where people drop out of flying: right after solo, and right after the PP checkride. IN each case a huge hurlde has been cleared, and whatever follows seems insignificant in comparison.
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That was me back in 1978 or 9. My dad was a pilot in the USAF and I always wanted to fly, but never was in a place where I could. After I got married my wife bought me one of those Piper specials of the time, 0 hours to solo for (some ridiculously small amount of money) after I solo'd in 11 hours, the real cost per hour started (still ridiculously small amount of money in comparison). But we were expecting our first child and money was tight so I quit.

Fast forward nearly 30 years and the birth of our first grand-child. On the 11 hour drive back from her birth I realized that trip could be cut substantially if I was flying. Before the child's first birthday I had my ticket. Now hopefully before her 3rd birthday I'll have my IR.

Times change, priorities change, and disposable income changes, sometimes the stars just line up and your life long dreams can become reality after setting on the back burner for way too long.
 
Geico266 said:
I started and finished my PPL in 28 days & 40 hours on the button. I actually had to fly around .5 hours to burn off time before I took the check ride. I had a lot of flying time in ultra lights.

I had my CFI loose it. His temper got the best of him and he started yelling and screaming and slammed on the brakes of the plane because I was taxing too fast in a Cessna 172? I almost walked off right then. He then tells me he was just testing me to see what I would do. I guess he needed to see if I could handle stress or something. Pretty weird test if you ask me, I'd rather have him pull the thottle back or something.
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My first instructor was prone to yelling and other verbal abuse. He also just wasn't able to explain things to me in a way that worked for me. I tend to want/require an understanding of the reasons behind the "facts" and would put questions to him in pursuit of such understanding. Unfortunately for both of us, he often related to these questions as if they were personal attacks and things quickly went downhill from there. I think I made all of three flights with him before going to the FBO's chief pilot and requesting a different instructor who was more "compatible". My second CFI who was willing to explain anything I asked about without getting defensive or making up stuff lasted through my PPL checkride.

I suspect that had I not switched instructors, I would likely have become unhappy and frustrated enough that I would have "quit", at least for a while. That makes me wonder how many "training aborts" are due to CFI/Student incompatibility.
 
I did my private certificate when I was 17 years old making $10.50 per hour. It took me about 8 months, mostly do to money. I still wonder to this day how the hell I got by on that income while paying for flight training.

I picked up my instrument rating in about 3 months. I enjoyed the instrument rating and didn't really consider it that difficult. The written test was quite annoying but the rest of the experience was a lot of fun. It probably helped that I had been flying instruments online since about 10 years old.
 
555Juliet said:
Good morning everyone--

I'm putting together an article for an upcoming issue of AOPA Flight Training magazine; the focus is common reasons for quitting your training, and tools to combat those issues.

I'd love to hear from folks who quit--or nearly quit--and what you did or found to help you get back on track. CFIs, if you had a student in this situation, how did it play out?

This is my first time reaching out to the PoA community in this fashion, but I have met/flown with/FB'd several folks, among them Kaye, Tim Metzinger, Ben (spiderweb), Diana, Harley Reich, and of course uber-Babe Moxie. :smile:

Thanks!
Jill Tallman
Click to expand...

I suspect that your query was intended to address PPL training but I went through that without undue pause. It was on the next step, the IR that I
experienced several starts and stops. Most were schedule/time priority related not financial in nature.

Shortly after obtaining my PPL I joined a large (7 airplane) well run flying club which offered instruction as well as aircraft at reasonable rates and it wasn't long before I started into a somewhat unstructured IR training regime. But it seemed that several times I'd find myself taken away from the training (and flying) for a few weeks due to a heavy load at my job or other recreational interests that competed for my free time. And I found that once I'd been away from the training for that much time, it was difficult to get motivated enough to jump back into the game. Inevitably my enthusiasm would get re-awakened by a VFR trip that was held up in one direction or the other by IMC and I'd start back into a regular training schedule only to have another interruption block my progress. I'm pretty sure I learned and unlearned each and every basic IR skill at least four times by the time I was ready for the checkride. I even had to take the written test twice because the first one "expired" halfway through my training.

The final straw was my purchase of my very own Bonanza which was far better equipped for cross country travel than I was, at least weatherwise. After the first time I had to park the plane a hundred miles from home and wait for my business partner to fetch me by car, I vowed to myself that I'd get serious about the IR and train on a regular schedule with at least 2 and preferrably 3 lessons per week until I finished. Once we got rolling I finished up in about 3 months but it was almost nine and a half years from my first IR lesson to the IR checkride (which was almost 20 years ago).
 
555Juliet said:
Good morning everyone--

I'd love to hear from folks who quit--or nearly quit--and what you did or found to help you get back on track. CFIs, if you had a student in this situation, how did it play out?
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Did my PPL in 10 months. There was a month or two pause in the middle. Don't remember why, since it was 33 years ago. There is certainly no one-size-fits all reason for why some stall. There is such a variety among people in amount of desire, priority, and plain old love of flying. For some it's a passion, and for some just another thing to cross off the list. I'm wondering if those who were stopped by some issue might have found another if that one wasn't there. The ones that overcome obstacles will be the best pilots anyway.
 
After more than five years of refusing to quit, I came very close a few weeks ago. I have never, in my entire life, not accomplished what I set out to do. I made a post about all of this on POA at the time.

My latest instructor, who has been working with me more than a year, is incredibly knowledgeable when it comes to aviation, he has forgotten more than most will ever know, he is 74.

The downside to him, he worked on convincing me I can not get a PPL. After almost every flight, I felt a little less positive. He even signed me off for the check ride, then the examiner, was a no show. Every flight after that seemed to be worse than the last. I finally received an e-mail from him that pretty much indicated there was indeed, no end in sight to my training. His plan was to keep me flying until I made some errors that would prove I am inconsistent in my performance therefor would require more training.

For over a week, I never felt so low in my life when I realized I was never going to get a pilots license. I have never in my life worked so hard and spent so much to accomplish only failure.

I posted all of this on POA and received some good advise that I followed. I flew with another, younger instructor on Sunday. He seemed to lack knowledge in some areas as compared to the instructor I have, but he did one major thing different, he said I am there. He said the rules say he must give me three hours of instruction, so he will, and I'll take the test.

Yesterday I flew by myself. I went down to Brown Field and had lunch. I then flew to Ramona and did a bunch of touch and goes. I left Ramona and flew north and did some stalls. I flew over to robin intersection, called SO CAL and received clearance through Bravo back to Montgomery Field.

I swear, I did not think it was possible for anyone to make a perfect flight, one with no mistakes. I can not think of one mistake I made yesterday, not one single one.

The younger instructor foolishly believes I can do this, and is working on convincing me I can, and soon.

When I first joined POA, I was honestly convinced I was only a few weeks from my check ride, I even say that on my bio. That was more than a year ago.

I know I feel better about it now than I did a week ago, however, I will never believe it until I actually do it.

Had I known beforehand just how much time, and how much money would be involved in figuring out how to make an airplane go, I never would have started.

More than five years, and over one hundred thousand dollars. Older fellows who want to fly had better have a thick wallet and a whole lot of time and patience. I'll be 67 in a couple of weeks, I started when I was 61, and am still not there.

John
 
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John Baker said:
<...>
More than five years, and over one hundred thousand dollars. Older fellows who want to fly had better have a thick wallet and a whole lot of time and patience. I'll be 67 in a couple of weeks, I started when I was 61, and am still not there.
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Wandering just a little off the original topic (but not too far, I think) let me present my own twisted perspective...

What is the objective? I see a lot of posts from different people about the cost / time involved in getting a ticket. And, some people have made a point to "save up" for their estimate of what it will take.

Ok, fine.

But, then what? You have a PP certificate - wha'cha gonna do with it?

If your (only?) objective is to use an airplane for transportation for you and the family, getting stuck in "training" would be a problem. But if your primary objective is to fly as a hobby - you know - for the fun of it - what difference does it make if you have the certificate or not? You are still flying.

I would also argue (particularly for the second case above) that focusing on the cost / time to reach the objective of a PP ticket can even be counter productive. If you save $xxxx, what are you going to do when the money runs out (even if you do get the certificate)? Quit flying? What was the point? I would think that it would be better to budget $xxx per month for flying and just enjoy the process.

Eh?

My story, FWIW, is far from typical. My Dad had a ticket from years gone by, and my brother (in high school at the time) decided he wanted to fly also. So he searched out the lowest cost options and found a flight school that still had some old Champs in the fleet and got his ticket there. My dad then decided that with two pilots in the family, he ought to get an airplane again so he bought a "handyman's special" Cessna 120 :yesnod:. We fixed up and I started flying (mostly) with my brother. We had fun, and he let me do a lot of the flying. After a while I got to the point where I wanted to be able to putz around without my brother so I signed up with an instructor who signed me off for solo with just over 2 hours in the log. Other than ocassionally touching base with the instructor, I was happy just flying around the local area, working the pattern, etc. It was probably the better part of a year later before I finally decided that I might as well get the official piece of paper and restarted "serious" instruction again (logging cross country and stuff). In that time frame I had also made a couple longer trips with my brother (including Detroit to Alaska) so actually getting the PP didn't seem like that big a deal other than the fact that I could now take passengers up.:dunno:
 
I almost quit during the PP training. We were working short field landings and I just wasn't getting it to his specs. After the 3rd try, he blew up on me, told me to park the plane, he got out....glared at me and stomped off. I put the plane away, went home and sat on the porch deciding it was time to quit.....I didn't have what it takes.

Had a solo flight scheduled the next day that I decided to keep. Only problem...I needed another solo sign'off. I decided if my instructor wouldn't sign me off, I would quit. After he signed me off, he asked why I thought he wouldn't. I referenced the day before, and he just waved it off saying I was having a bad day and we were pushing the plane to its limits. What I really learned while working with this guy that if life was good with the girlfriend, training was fun. Problems with GF, better off if I just fly alone.
 
I didn't almost quit, but had I not had a compatible instructor, I would have. I started out pretty unmotivated. Fortunately, my instructor saw in me someone who would really get into this if properly motivated. I'd say he did a good job.

The other instructors in the area I know probably would've gotten me to quit, just due to personality conflicts.
 
I did quit flying during comm training. Reason - unsupportive spouse. :frown2:

How did I get back on track.........after 6 months of being a royal b****, the spousal unit was begging me to return. :D

Completed the training, started flying the Trinnie, took spousal unit on flying vacations.....happy spousal unit, happy pilot.....life is good!!! :cheerswine:
 
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Kaye said:
I did quit flying during comm training. Reason - unsupportive spouse. :frown2:

How did I get back on track.........after 6 months of being a royal b****, the spousal unit was begging me to return. :D

Completed the training, started flying the Trinnie, took spousal unit on flying vacations.....happy spousal unit, happy pilot.....life is good!!! :cheerswine:
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:rofl:

You know how to get the job done, Kaye!
 
Kaye said:
I almost quit during the PP training. We were working short field landings and I just wasn't getting it to his specs. After the 3rd try, he blew up on me, told me to park the plane, he got out....glared at me and stomped off. I put the plane away, went home and sat on the porch deciding it was time to quit.....I didn't have what it takes.
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I once had a guy call me asking me if I was a "yeller."

"A what?"

"A Yeller."

"I have no idea what you're talking about..."

I've been through Basic, OCS, and was an instructor at OCS. I was yelled at and then yelled alot there.

This is flying -- and most people are doing it for fun. There's no need or excuse for impatience, yelling, stomping off, or other evidence of immaturity. If the student is doing so poorly at X that you can't stand it, shift to Y and then work on X later.

How hard is that??
 
Started flying in high school (1970-71) - ran out of money, discovered girls, cars, etc. Different priorities.
Started flying again in 1979 - quit when I moved to another state.
Got a big bonus at work in 1992 and told my wife "I'm going to finish my pilots license". She said - "I know you! You are going to get your pilots license, then buy a plane and spend lots of money." I got my license in 1993, purchased 172 in 1994, Instrument ticket in 1995, sold 172 and bought the 182RG in 2004. Wife still happy. I can be a B***h when necessary too.
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Wandering just a little off the original topic (but not too far, I think) let me present my own twisted perspective...

What is the objective? I see a lot of posts from different people about the cost / time involved in getting a ticket. And, some people have made a point to "save up" for their estimate of what it will take.

Ok, fine.

But, then what? You have a PP certificate - wha'cha gonna do with it?

If your (only?) objective is to use an airplane for transportation for you and the family, getting stuck in "training" would be a problem. But if your primary objective is to fly as a hobby - you know - for the fun of it - what difference does it make if you have the certificate or not? You are still flying.

I would also argue (particularly for the second case above) that focusing on the cost / time to reach the objective of a PP ticket can even be counter productive. If you save $xxxx, what are you going to do when the money runs out (even if you do get the certificate)? Quit flying? What was the point? I would think that it would be better to budget $xxx per month for flying and just enjoy the process.

Eh?

My story, FWIW, is far from typical. My Dad had a ticket from years gone by, and my brother (in high school at the time) decided he wanted to fly also. So he searched out the lowest cost options and found a flight school that still had some old Champs in the fleet and got his ticket there. My dad then decided that with two pilots in the family, he ought to get an airplane again so he bought a "handyman's special" Cessna 120 :yesnod:. We fixed up and I started flying (mostly) with my brother. We had fun, and he let me do a lot of the flying. After a while I got to the point where I wanted to be able to putz around without my brother so I signed up with an instructor who signed me off for solo with just over 2 hours in the log. Other than ocassionally touching base with the instructor, I was happy just flying around the local area, working the pattern, etc. It was probably the better part of a year later before I finally decided that I might as well get the official piece of paper and restarted "serious" instruction again (logging cross country and stuff). In that time frame I had also made a couple longer trips with my brother (including Detroit to Alaska) so actually getting the PP didn't seem like that big a deal other than the fact that I could now take passengers up.:dunno:
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Over the years I've made the acquaintance of a few perpetual student pilots (solo'd and still flying but not training anymore) and they offered similar thoughts. But AFaIK, the FAA frowns deeply at such a pilot. I don't think this has ever made it into the FARs but I have heard that any such pilot that crosses the FAA's path will undergo close scrutiny. Technically, they have to be under some CFI's supervision and cannot make any cross country flights without a specific signoff. So a PPL may convey more than just the ability to carry passengers, it can add significantly to a pilot's freedom to fly.
 
gismo said:
Over the years I've made the acquaintance of a few perpetual student pilots (solo'd and still flying but not training anymore) and they offered similar thoughts. But AFaIK, the FAA frowns deeply at such a pilot. I don't think this has ever made it into the FARs but I have heard that any such pilot that crosses the FAA's path will undergo close scrutiny. Technically, they have to be under some CFI's supervision and cannot make any cross country flights without a specific signoff. So a PPL may convey more than just the ability to carry passengers, it can add significantly to a pilot's freedom to fly.
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My dad was one such -- student pilot since 1959, with regular sign offs for local flying whenever he had the time and money. He seemed ok with it, and quite frankly I think the FAA finally figured it out with the Sport Pilot cert.
 
I'm a student with about 80 hours. I've never ever, even once, considered quitting, and this is the hardest thing I've ever done in my life. I love it too much to let it go. I've cried after a few lessons, once even in front of my CFI (when I pulled the mixture instead of the throttle on short final), but I've never wanted to quit. I've always said somebody's gonna have to tell me when it's time to quit! Now I'm working on my solo cross-countries and practicing for the checkride.
 
I often considered quitting after a bad lesson, but that would usually wear off by the time I got home. I also got into the habit of looking at every lesson as a new chance to do better.

The bigger problem was money... I was working fairly sporadically during my training period, and when I found a full-time position towards the end, I was still barely making enough to cover the bills, let alone the flying. And of course, the job took up a lot of my time.

But whatever the cause of my doubts, all I had to do was consider how much time, money, and effort I'd invested already, and the fact that during most of my lessons, I'd done pretty well.

For most of us, I think it's a series of highs and lows... best you can do is keep your eyes on the prize and just keep going.
 
During one of my solo cross countries I ran into some fairly severe turbulence and I did question why I was doing this whole flying thing but as I had to continue to fly to get to my destination ( or any other place to land ) I just gutted it out. That was the only time I considered quitting and I got over it fairly quickly.
 
I never wanted to quit, but there was this one time when I thought I might have to quit. We were doing power on stalls in the fearsome C-150 and I kept sliding off to the left despite full right rudder. I had visions of snapping inverted and ripping the tail off during the recovery. I was thinking "Is this how it's going to end?" Then my instructor told me to quit pulling down on the yoke while pulling back. I was keeping my right hand on the throttle and my left hand was dropping when I raised the nose, putting in left aileron. After that everything seemed to click and the rest of the training was much more enjoyable. Took 18 months as it was pay as you go and a 45 mile trip one way to the nearest available instructor. Plus the wife got her pvt cert at the same time.
 
I wouldn't say I wanted to quit, but I wondered if I should. Getting landings down -- I had problems with that. My 19yr old CFI didn't help. Fortunately, he called me the same day I had planned to call him. He told me he got a job as a charter pilot, I had been about to s$itcan him. So no feelings hurt. Unfortunately I had so "waste" another 5 or so hours with a new instructor, but things fell into place pretty quickly after that.

Frustrated? Definitely.
 
Quitting had never crossed my mind. Frustrated, almost every time flying with my instructor. His constant "coaching and quizzing" at critical moments are more of a distraction(I'll pass that with flying color)then benefiting for me. I'm 49 years old, and doing this for my owner enjoyment rather then as career pilot. I stuck with him because his intention(to make his students better) was good. Anyway after 15 month and 85 hrs, I'm prepping for my check rite.
 
During my private pilot training I had to quit post-solo in a Citabria because I was short of money, and had to choose between paying for my wedding or getting my license. The choice was easy (I'm now married).

I started up again, after moving to the other side of the country, this time in a DA-20. After a month or so the school decided to sell off the DA-20s in its fleet (apparently they had trouble maintaining the Rotax engines). So I switched to training in Tomahawks (and also switched instructors for a second time). This time I finished -- and took (and passed) my checkride on the day before I moved across the country once again.
 
Experimental, welcome to POA. Congratulations on your progress. Good luck on the check ride.
 
One point Jill, you probably are not going to hear from people who actually quit on an aviation board, some took time off but I doubt if people who start and really give up hang around places like this. That doesn't include people who lost their medical or their jobs and really want to fly.

As an instructor, I've had quite a few people start and quit and have talked to many others.

The reasons for quitting in no particular order

  • Boredom/lack of motivation, some people don't have the love of flying that makes them willing to spend the time, effort and money it takes to go through the PP syllabus. I had a girlfriend that talked me into English riding lessons, this was my reason for quitting those.
  • Something scares them early on. I have a friend who was real excited about flying until one day his instructor had a very flat and low approach that (according to him) just missed the power lines across the approach end. Never took another lesson.
  • Lack of confidence or no desire to accept PIC responsibilities. I have a long story about this one that will have to wait.
  • Frustration about the rate of progress especially when combined with time and money constraints
  • I've had a couple of students that quit right before solo. In some cases I suspect they had some reason to doubt they would pass the medical but enjoyed flying.
  • Time and money are most common expressed reasons.
  • Pressure from family members, a wife or a mother who is afraid of flying convinces them to stop flying for her sake. I guess it's not the sex of the family members but I sure see it more often from women.
  • Can't leave out personality conflicts with the instructor. It's amazing to me how much easier it is to quit than find another instructor. That's why I recommend to new students to fly with 2 or 3 instructors early on. Not only do they get to choose the best fit, but it makes it easier to change your mind later.
Gotta go, I have 2 students this morning, both of whom fly well but don't have the confidence to leave the pattern. One flies better than I, the other needs some practice managing energy for the different pattern entries the tower gives us. I'm working hard to instill confidence without frustration, a real challenge.

Joe

Joe
 
Areeda said:
  • I've had a couple of students that quit right before solo. In some cases I suspect they had some reason to doubt they would pass the medical but enjoyed flying.
Click to expand...

Sport pilot would now potentially be an option for them?

Assuming, of course, the issues that may raise doubts about the medical don't impact their ability to safely pilot an aircraft - but if you had them ready to solo...

And, assuming one can find a LSA to rent that isn't several hours drive away...
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Sport pilot would now potentially be an option for them?

Assuming, of course, the issues that may raise doubts about the medical don't impact their ability to safely pilot an aircraft - but if you had them ready to solo...

And, assuming one can find a LSA to rent that isn't several hours drive away...
Click to expand...
Geoff,
this was before sports pilot and they never said that was the reason, it's only a suspicion. We do have one LSA on the field, that I believe is being rented for instruction (it was for a while, then wasn't and now?)

Oh yeah and one reason I forgot to add to the list (nothing to do with this) is Instructor incompetence ie no syllabus and completely unstructured approach to teaching.

Joe
 
Thank you, everyone, for your responses, and please keep 'em coming if you have additional thoughts. Feel free to PM or e-mail me as well.

Jill
 
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