How to back into flying after a 3yr break?

cocolos

cocolos

Pre-takeoff checklist
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cocolos
Clearly I am out of my bfr so I will need to do that, but do you guys/gals have any recommendations on how I should study up before I meet with an instructor? I was planning on saving for my IFR but then life happened. I think for now I'll get my bfr and just fly once per month.

Any book or website recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
 
Review airspace, cloud seperation etc.. And go for it. I did mine after a 7yr break and it was no biggy. 1.5 on the Hobbs and done.
 
20+ year break just under 7 hours. First few hours were sketchy then it started flooding back. 3 years should be a walk in the park.

I did most of my studying on Youtube and various websites.
 
ditto....it was a 15 year cold break for me....+3 hrs and I was back.
 
cocolos said:
Clearly I am out of my bfr so I will need to do that, but do you guys/gals have any recommendations on how I should study up before I meet with an instructor? I was planning on saving for my IFR but then life happened. I think for now I'll get my bfr and just fly once per month.

Any book or website recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks!
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Get signed up for the WINGS program and start through their online courses. A good one to start with is Flight Review Prep.

Welcome back.
 
I recently came back from a 12+ year break. I wasn't a high-time pilot to begin with, and I think the instructor signed me off with a BFR of 5.7 hours, and 2 hours of ground. He would have signed me off with less, but I asked for a bit more. For one, I started flying in a different region than the one where I trained originally, and the issues we have out here are different than the ones I originally trained with (mountainous terrain, high density altitudes, regular strong cross winds, etc). And, like most people who have come back from a long break, I've taken a couple of other rides with instructors just to brush up on things.

As for the studying, I did some reading through the same texts I used when I worked on my PP and Instrument years ago. I replaced my FAR/AIM with a new one, and I spent time online watching Youtube videos just to refresh my memory of other little things I may have forgotten.

The instructor I worked with was someone who had also come back to flying after a long break, and he was able to relate to the things you need to relearn when you come back. The first hour felt like a soup sandwich in some ways, but it quickly improved again after that (just as the instructor suggested it would).


EDITED TO ADD:

Don't be in a big hurry, either. It sure isn't a contest to see how few hours you can log before feeling proficient again. I've logged 8+ hours of dual time since I came back, simply because I want to make sure my skills are sharp and acceptable before I put my family at risk. Someone recently asked me why I was bothering to pay for an instructor when I was current and legal to fly on my own… the simple answer is that I've got a lot more riding on a successful flight these days than I did back when I was first learning to fly. It is a perishable skill, and I don't want to end up with my story on an NTSB report someday.
 
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Ton of material online. So much that you might be tempted to give up, don't. There's some good stuff at AOPA.org, a lot of free courses and some that they charge you for. Not sure if you have to be a member to access it, but I don't think so.Google Flight Review (no longer called BFR) and you'll get all kinds of stuff. Any particular area you want to see is available too on YouTube videos, some good ones as well as lousy ones. You really don't have to spend a cent on material as there a sufficient amount online, including everything free at FAA.gov (FARs, books, etc). A bunch of good advice here as well, but you'll get the same answer at least a half dozen times or more! :D
 
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dillardrg said:
Get signed up for the WINGS program and start through their online courses. A good one to start with is Flight Review Prep.

Welcome back.
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I am signed up but I didn't know they have a flight review course. Neat. Thanks!
 
I just recently got back into it as well after 15 years, took only a few hours in the airplane but plenty of review, preparation, studying and research on the changes (not too many) which was plenty of fun. iPad & GA glass cockpit tech is pretty different from steam and paper I learned on, but very welcome.

Followed up with IPC, was similar. Like above, I requested some additional time even though I qualified pretty early. The more challenging things for me included busy ATC work in Class B/C, rapid fire approaches and workload management. It just took a little while to get in the groove again.

Flying every week or two again now and loving it. Can't believe I took such a long hiatus (life got in the way I guess) but glad to be back. 3 yrs away? No problem. As mentioned, lots of online reading material is out there, and there's quite a few youtube subject reviews as well. Good luck!
 
I had a 15 year hiatus and it took about 8 hours of instruction to get signed off. The instructor wanted to sign me off sooner but I wanted to take things slow and cover all things including cross country planning, night flying, hood work, etc. As someone said above, don't rush. Just take your time and it will all come back.

I studied at home by going through much of the old books and test guides. Since much of it was obsolete I supplemented with the latest FAR/AIM and Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge. An excellent exercise is to break out the charts and POH and plan a cross country flight and calculate the aircraft performance, fuel burn and headings for each leg of the flight. Do W&B the old fashioned way too.

I also downloaded the Sporty's Private Pilot test guide and the guide to VFR radio communication. I was never good with radio communication so I went to LiveATC.net which was just awesome. I wish they had some of this stuff when I was a student back in the late 1980s.
 
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Add me to the "15 year break" group (hmmm, seems about the same length of time to get a family up and running...). Like everything I do, I over prepared. The Wings training was very helpful, and so was the ASA BFR guide. My instructor said I was more prepared than most on a "no-break" BFR. That was 18 months ago and I've put over 100 hours in since.
 
For the OP, I'm not sure what has changed in the past 3 years...nothing significant that I can think of. You don't need to learn much so much as refresh what you did for Private. Study airspace, FARs, POH and checklists if you can get them. Get a cockpit picture and chair fly some procedures. That will accelerate your in flight learning.

It's like riding a bike, it comes back pretty quickly no matter how long it's been. Ok, it's not quite like a bike, it hurts a lot more if fall off, but you know what I mean.

What aircraft are you flying?
 
If you knew the stuff pretty well before, you'll probably relearn it pretty quickly. When I work with rusty pilots, the most usual topics they have problems with are airspaces, airport operations, and radio work. These are all easily resolved with a little homework. And they're covered thoroughly (well, I think the FAA could be more thorough regarding radio comms) in the PHAK and AIM.

If you want to try an online program, Gold Seal just this week began offering a Review Course, good for pilots prepping for flight reviews as well as for rusty pilots. It's the full Private Pilot program without all the quizzes and tests.
 
I came back after a 10-year break. Just get with a good instructor.
 
bflynn said:
For the OP, I'm not sure what has changed in the past 3 years...nothing significant that I can think of. You don't need to learn much so much as refresh what you did for Private. Study airspace, FARs, POH and checklists if you can get them. Get a cockpit picture and chair fly some procedures. That will accelerate your in flight learning.

It's like riding a bike, it comes back pretty quickly no matter how long it's been. Ok, it's not quite like a bike, it hurts a lot more if fall off, but you know what I mean.

What aircraft are you flying?
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I'll just be renting either 152s or 172s. Probably the latter so I can actually go on long cross countries.

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
 
For the flying part my instructor just did like a mini PPL in the 7 hours. Slow flight, stalls, steep turns, take offs and landings, some navigation (never used a 430), simulated instrument, controlled air space, x-wind work. You get the idea.
 
Some guys get it quicker than others. I've had people that came back after a long hiatus that got their BFR sign off in a few hours and others who took a while for me to give them a sign off. Meet with an instructor and make a plan.
 
Also did an eight year hiatus here. There were reg changes while I was out and some airspace things. A good instructor will just quiz you and see what's missing and help you fill it in. Self study can be done with all sorts of online stuff.

As far as the actual flying goes, it comes back nearly instantly but I suggest demanding that the CFI go up with you until you hit the same standard you did the day you got the ticket originally -- all covered in the Private Pilot Practical Test Standards.

No need to rush it at all. The CFI already knows you know how to fly. They're there to help you remember and get the swing of things going again and at the end you'll both know it when you're ready for a Flight Review sign off. They'll do it and you'll shake hands and you'll be back in the air as PIC.

Don't sweat it. You know most of it, it's just going to feel a bit hazy at first. It'll come back fast or slow. Doesn't matter. It's in there.
 
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