New CFI in Town

forseth11

forseth11

Pre-takeoff checklist
Joined
Sep 30, 2016
Messages
194
Location
Fort Worth, TX
Display Name
Display name:
Forseth11
Last week I had my CFI initial checkride. After a 9 hour oral, and teaching about 20 different lesson, we went and flew for 2 hours. After a long vigorous and exhausting day, I got to shake the inspector’s hand.

I am now a brand new CFI, and I am so excited about it!!!

I took my checkride in a Mooney M20E.

Now the plan is to look for a job and work on CFI-I.

Thank you everyone for the support and help!

---------------------------

Regarding the looking for a job part, I haven't even began looking, and I made this same post on Facebook. It was then followed with 4 flight schools contacting me. Apparently there is a very high demand.

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So I am working on my CFI-I now. My checkride is scheduled November 9th. I am looking for any advice if anyone would like to share.

My checklist / plan so far:
  • Get PTS CFII & PTS IR ✓
  • Get FOI book (I used my instructors for my CFI) ✓
  • Get lesson plans ✓
  • Print and laminate lesson plans (did this for CFI) ✓
  • Make syllabus (I did this for private and commercial)
  • Study FII
  • Pass FII
  • Flight Training
  • Schedule Checkride
  • Study Oral
  • Practical Test
  • Print and laminate local approaches / charts / STARS
Any suggestions are welcome. Thanks for the help.
 
Nice, I have been on the fence about getting my CFI. It's a lot of work so I commend your accomplishment.
 
Congrats!

Nine ****ing hour oral, totally ridiculous! Even the airlines dont grill you that long on a type ride.
 
Hey man, call up Brazos Valley Flight Service in College Station Texas. They fly out of CLL and will be needing another CFI soon. I think a couple of their CFIs are leaving in February to go ATP. I've been training there for the past 1.5 months (PPL) and it seems like a good atmosphere. Owner is friendly, mechanic onsite, planes are well maintained. Right now we have three 172SP (one G1000), a 150, a 162, and an Arrow. The guys stay very busy and there are plenty of students. Most of the students I have encountered are young. Texas A&M is nearby and you probably will have a steady flow of students passing through. Its also a great place to raise a family. I've lived in BCS my whole life (moved near Franklin about 3 yrs ago). Living in Bryan will have lower housing costs and less property tax than College Station.
 
Terry M - 3CK (Chicago) said:
9 hour oral? Is that normal for the CFI A?
Click to expand...

Mine was 8 hours. But I'm one of those kinds of people that "can't shut up"... :)
And when it was over, the flight portion was postponed to another day... you did the whole thing (11 hours) all in one day????? Wow!
Congrats!
 
Congratulations! 9 hrs sounds a bit ridiculous.......examiner sounds like a d!*khead
 
Grum.Man said:
Nice, I have been on the fence about getting my CFI. It's a lot of work so I commend your accomplishment.
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Thanks! You should go for it as long as you are interested in teaching. The more practice I get instructing, the more and more I love it.

mscard88 said:
Congrats!

Nine ****ing hour oral, totally ridiculous! Even the airlines dont grill you that long on a type ride.
Click to expand...
midwestpa24 said:
NINE HOURS?!:eek2:

Well you certainly earned that certificate!
Click to expand...
Terry M - 3CK (Chicago) said:
9 hour oral? Is that normal for the CFI A?

MtnMarcus said:
Congratulations! 9 hrs sounds a bit ridiculous.......examiner sounds like a d!*khead
Click to expand...
It was a long checkride for sure, but I honestly enjoyed the whole thing. I had three spots where I was stumped, and was able to recall information, but I used FAA.gov, FAR/AIM, and my pilot handbook to find the information to continue the lessons. I enjoyed it all because I naturally love to instruct. From my understanding, it is on the longer side. The guy was an FAA Inspector, and he was exactly by the book. He was also an A&P, so I had a fun time having to teach ADs. I had to compare my AD list to the FAA's website, and then I had to look into several and teach how to find and read them. I also had to teach the importance of recurring ADs. Basically... the guy went through every single required point in the PTS, and had me exhaust that given topic via teaching. After the flight, I gave a 25 minute postflight, then it was over.


CONGRATULATIONS!!!
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kath said:
Mine was 8 hours. But I'm one of those kinds of people that "can't shut up"... :)
And when it was over, the flight portion was postponed to another day... you did the whole thing (11 hours) all in one day????? Wow!
Congrats!
Click to expand...
I woke up at 5:45 AM. The checkride began at 7:15 AM. We had about 4 bathroom breaks and one short lunch break. We flew in the same day.

texasclouds said:
Wow dude, I checked out your web page and am impressed you are 19 yrs old.
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Thanks! I am trying my best. I have a list of stuff to complete in 10 years, another list for 1 year, another for seasons / semesters, and another for weekly and daily. It helps keep me organized and focused.

texasclouds said:
Hey man, call up Brazos Valley Flight Service in College Station Texas. They fly out of CLL and will be needing another CFI soon. I think a couple of their CFIs are leaving in February to go ATP. I've been training there for the past 1.5 months (PPL) and it seems like a good atmosphere. Owner is friendly, mechanic onsite, planes are well maintained. Right now we have three 172SP (one G1000), a 150, a 162, and an Arrow. The guys stay very busy and there are plenty of students. Most of the students I have encountered are young. Texas A&M is nearby and you probably will have a steady flow of students passing through. Its also a great place to raise a family. I've lived in BCS my whole life (moved near Franklin about 3 yrs ago). Living in Bryan will have lower housing costs and less property tax than College Station.
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That is a little over a 5 hour drive from me, and with school and living inside an airplane hangar, I am not looking to move. Otherwise, I would love to. I currently live in a hangar apartment my dad and I built. Our plane is right inside with us, and I am within driving distance of my community college and UNT (which is where I plan on going).

I haven't started looking for a job yet. This is mostly because 4 people contacted me in the area, so I am figuring it all out. Apparently CFIs are in very high demand.
 
Nicely done sir. I wish I had that much future planning in my head when I was 19. I'd probably be retiring from the majors soon instead of from a 30 year non-aviation career where the last 15 really sucked.

What is the "FII" that you have to study and pass?

Did you write your own lesson plans or crib from another source? I ask because I'm just starting my CFII training also (have to pass an IPC first!).

Are you using paper for everything (hence, laminate) and can't use an EFB for the process?

Rooster
 
Rooster T said:
Nicely done sir. I wish I had that much future planning in my head when I was 19. I'd probably be retiring from the majors soon instead of from a 30 year non-aviation career where the last 15 really sucked.

What is the "FII" that you have to study and pass?

Did you write your own lesson plans or crib from another source? I ask because I'm just starting my CFII training also (have to pass an IPC first!).

Are you using paper for everything (hence, laminate) and can't use an EFB for the process?

Rooster
Click to expand...
I am sorry to hear about the past 15 years.

The FII test is "Flight Instructor Instrument—Airplane" written test. It has 50 questions limited in 2 hours and 30 minutes. It is almost identical to the instrument test.

I initially wrote my own, but after using them in practice, I went with external sources. I then laminated each one and collected visual aids online and laminated those too. My syllabus and record keeping is my own though. And I wrote several procedures students can follow to perform maneuvers. The source I am using is: https://cfilessonplans.flightinstructorguide.com/

I was allowed to use my iPad, but I used it as little as I could. When I was training and doing ground instruction, I found it very difficult to manage my lesson plan, visual aids, and other resources all on one iPad. On my own it is easy, but when I teach, I need to present materials to the student, and this is difficult to do with an iPad. The system I developed was to use a notepad for the topics to cover in a lesson and take notes on the student (mini steno). Then I have laminated cardstock which I created (a laminator is $17) for lesson plans and visual aids. The great thing about this is, I can use dry erase markers on the aids. When I was teaching runway incursion avoidance at a controlled airport, this was extremely useful.

---------------------------

I just flew yesterday with my instructor. I have the Avidyne stack with the 440. I performed and did some teaching (training for CFI) in the air regarding holds at a fix, RNAV lnav/vnav, missed approach, turns to a heading, standard rate turns, and more. The main portion of this lesson was to see where I am at with proficiency. I held all altitudes and headings without issue. Also, the examiner does not ever let anyone taking an instrument checkride see the map portion of a gps (only flight plan waypoints). He does this to ensure the student following the nav aid (in my case a G5 HSI). So I did just that, and I had no issue with the approach. There are a few things I need to work on, but nothing too much. For example: I made a steeper bank than I should (30 degrees) during the missed approach, I forgot the speed limits for hold (this comes with study), and I failed to instruct several times (I think this was because my instructor got frustrated when I tried to take over as the mock instructor, but we discussed it on the ground). So right now, aside from the written and oral portion, I am feeling confident with the flying portion.
 
This might be a dumb question but there are two written test for CFI, did you take them both at the same time or one then back for the other?
 
Grum.Man said:
This might be a dumb question but there are two written test for CFI, did you take them both at the same time or one then back for the other?
Click to expand...
I took both at a different time. There is the FOI (fundamentals of instructing) and the FIA (flight instructor airplane). I crammed studied last summer before school. I took one, then I crammed the next one, then took the other. Also, not a dumb question. I did it this way because I wasn't able to pay the fee for both in one day, and I was afraid to fail one. They were tough, but not too bad. The FOI was the biggest challenge because it is about teaching, not flying.

Zeldman said:
Always carry a clean pair of underwear in your flight bag..... you will need it with some students....:lol::lol:

Good job buddy.!!
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HAHAHA.
 
Get some Flight instructor insurance, the peace of mind is worth it and it does not cost that much.
 
brien23 said:
Get some Flight instructor insurance, the peace of mind is worth it and it does not cost that much.
Click to expand...
I plan on that. Who should I get it with?

I am also setting up an LLC to keep it all separated and for tax implications and liability.
 
Still learning about insurance myself, but the answer depends on whether:
A) you instruct in a student's plane
B) you join a flight school
C) you instruct in your own plane

For A, search for "non-owned CFI insurance" and there seem to be many vendors and you can just buy some.
For B, the school should cover you (uhh... right?)
For C, you are entering into a very complicated insurance landscape, which may be pricey and I probably shouldn't try to give advice because I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it all, except to say that calling AOPA helped us find something and sort it out.
 
As a 19yo, you probably don't have much in the way of assets (I am assuming the plane you used is your fathers?) to protect so I'm not sure I'd worry about an LLC at this point. I'd just make sure you use someone else's plane to instruct in.
 
As far as liability is concerned, being the sole owner, sole employee, and sole proprietor of the business, the LLC provides you with no legal protections. You can still be held personally liable. The only reason we have one for a shared aircraft I am involved in is for protection from the other owner's actions (ex. they hurt or kill someone in the airplane) and to simplify the registration process with multiple, and occasionally changing, owners.

It could help a little with the book keeping aspect, but really doesn't provide any real tax incentive either that I am aware of. All I have in that respect is a separate checking account that my "flying" money goes into.
 
kath said:
Still learning about insurance myself, but the answer depends on whether:
A) you instruct in a student's plane
B) you join a flight school
C) you instruct in your own plane

For A, search for "non-owned CFI insurance" and there seem to be many vendors and you can just buy some.
For B, the school should cover you (uhh... right?)
For C, you are entering into a very complicated insurance landscape, which may be pricey and I probably shouldn't try to give advice because I'm still trying to wrap my brain around it all, except to say that calling AOPA helped us find something and sort it out.
Click to expand...
I am going for choice A and choice B as well but as a contract instructor.

Brad Z said:
As a 19yo, you probably don't have much in the way of assets (I am assuming the plane you used is your fathers?) to protect so I'm not sure I'd worry about an LLC at this point. I'd just make sure you use someone else's plane to instruct in.
Click to expand...
Right now, I do not have much in assets aside from the plane and website stuff. I paid $10,000 into the plane, and I am a part owner.

My long term goal is to be an entrepreneur, and I figured this would be a great way to lessen the learning curve. I also want to keep my money separated easily to make taxes easier regarding deductions with instructing (which there are a lot of).

I paid for the following today, but the paperwork is still going through:
  • LLC registration in Texas
  • Minutes, certificate of operation, and other paperwork
  • Operating Agreement written by a lawyer to keep separation
I also setup an online system which I can use for tax information and accounting/book keeping.

This is used for flight instruction now, but when I decide to make more businesses, I can extend off of this one, and then eventually make them separate.

I should mention, I plan on instructing for at least 5 years.
 
midwestpa24 said:
As far as liability is concerned, being the sole owner, sole employee, and sole proprietor of the business, the LLC provides you with no legal protections. You can still be held personally liable. The only reason we have one for a shared aircraft I am involved in is for protection from the other owner's actions (ex. they hurt or kill someone in the airplane) and to simplify the registration process with multiple, and occasionally changing, owners.

It could help a little with the book keeping aspect, but really doesn't provide any real tax incentive either that I am aware of. All I have in that respect is a separate checking account that my "flying" money goes into.
Click to expand...
I got some legal advise on this. The LLC only provide legal protection if you keep it completely separate from your personal stuff and treat it as if it was a partnership. It also enables me to take more deductions and makes it fairly easier with online systems for book keeping. From what I have researched and calculated, if I made $30,000, I will save $2,000 in taxes. Also, if I do make more than $40,000, then it would make sense to have a CPA handle taxes and change over to be taxed as an S-Corp. This will enable me to take a "reasonable" salary and have the rest in dividends. The dividends avoid the self-employment tax completely. This would save about $3,000 on taxes with $30,000 gross. However, this small change is made less so with accountants, so I will only do this if business increases.
 
The problem from a legal perspective in this case, if there was an accident that involves your LLC, then it obviously involved you personally as well. As such, any good lawyer will punch through the LLC shield and be able to come after you for your personal involvement. Now if you had an employee or partner in your LLC, and that person caused an accident or loss, then the LLC would you shield you personally from the other person's actions, although your financial interest in the LLC is at stake. Maybe TX law treats it differently, but I think in most cases it is impossible to shed your personal legal responsibility for your personal actions.
 
midwestpa24 said:
The problem from a legal perspective in this case, if there was an accident that involves your LLC, then it obviously involved you personally as well. As such, any good lawyer will punch through the LLC shield and be able to come after you for your personal involvement. Now if you had an employee or partner in your LLC, and that person caused an accident or loss, then the LLC would you shield you personally from the other person's actions, although your financial interest in the LLC is at stake. Maybe TX law treats it differently, but I think in most cases it is impossible to shed your personal legal responsibility for your personal actions.
Click to expand...
It does not take away any legal responsibility especially as a flight instructor. However, it does provide protection from personal assets and only assets involved within the LLC (flight instructing purposes) can be easily sued. It is possible to sue me directly as the instructor, but that is what instructor insurance is for, and there are many cases where this will not be the case. I am using it as just an extra as well as room to have entrepreneurship ventures in other ways without having to setup a bunch of stuff each time.
 
forseth11 said:
I am sorry to hear about the past 15 years.

The FII test is "Flight Instructor Instrument—Airplane" written test. It has 50 questions limited in 2 hours and 30 minutes. It is almost identical to the instrument test.

I initially wrote my own, but after using them in practice, I went with external sources. I then laminated each one and collected visual aids online and laminated those too. My syllabus and record keeping is my own though. And I wrote several procedures students can follow to perform maneuvers. The source I am using is: https://cfilessonplans.flightinstructorguide.com/

I was allowed to use my iPad, but I used it as little as I could. When I was training and doing ground instruction, I found it very difficult to manage my lesson plan, visual aids, and other resources all on one iPad. On my own it is easy, but when I teach, I need to present materials to the student, and this is difficult to do with an iPad. The system I developed was to use a notepad for the topics to cover in a lesson and take notes on the student (mini steno). Then I have laminated cardstock which I created (a laminator is $17) for lesson plans and visual aids. The great thing about this is, I can use dry erase markers on the aids. When I was teaching runway incursion avoidance at a controlled airport, this was extremely useful.

---------------------------

I just flew yesterday with my instructor. I have the Avidyne stack with the 440. I performed and did some teaching (training for CFI) in the air regarding holds at a fix, RNAV lnav/vnav, missed approach, turns to a heading, standard rate turns, and more. The main portion of this lesson was to see where I am at with proficiency. I held all altitudes and headings without issue. Also, the examiner does not ever let anyone taking an instrument checkride see the map portion of a gps (only flight plan waypoints). He does this to ensure the student following the nav aid (in my case a G5 HSI). So I did just that, and I had no issue with the approach. There are a few things I need to work on, but nothing too much. For example: I made a steeper bank than I should (30 degrees) during the missed approach, I forgot the speed limits for hold (this comes with study), and I failed to instruct several times (I think this was because my instructor got frustrated when I tried to take over as the mock instructor, but we discussed it on the ground). So right now, aside from the written and oral portion, I am feeling confident with the flying portion.
Click to expand...

Thanks for all this info. I somehow missed your response until now.

It sounds like you are moving forward quickly with the CFII and great to hear you are so far ahead in the flying. I still have to get my basic skills back up to a higher level before diving into hood work. I just got my CPL review signed off last week so now am studying to get the FII out of the way. Bought the Sheppard prep today.

The lesson plans you referenced look quite good and I'll probably get them as the price is reasonable and they seem comprehensive. Since my CFI was so long ago I have zero paperwork from then (and it would be laughingly outdated anyways). I think this is a good solution for me as it will actually help me get up to speed in a lot of areas that I haven't looked at for years. It's still a little daunting to be diving into all this after almost 30 years away.

I'm going to get checked out in a Warrior this week which I might use as my CFII trainer instead of a 172. The Warrior gets rented a lot less than the 172s, and I like the low-wings better for some reason (flew an Arrow for my CPL/CFI). And the 172s I have access to are all pretty tired and shabby from decades as trainers.

Keeps posting your progress if you can. It's inspiring.

BT
 
Rooster T said:
Thanks for all this info. I somehow missed your response until now.

It sounds like you are moving forward quickly with the CFII and great to hear you are so far ahead in the flying. I still have to get my basic skills back up to a higher level before diving into hood work. I just got my CPL review signed off last week so now am studying to get the FII out of the way. Bought the Sheppard prep today.

The lesson plans you referenced look quite good and I'll probably get them as the price is reasonable and they seem comprehensive. Since my CFI was so long ago I have zero paperwork from then (and it would be laughingly outdated anyways). I think this is a good solution for me as it will actually help me get up to speed in a lot of areas that I haven't looked at for years. It's still a little daunting to be diving into all this after almost 30 years away.

I'm going to get checked out in a Warrior this week which I might use as my CFII trainer instead of a 172. The Warrior gets rented a lot less than the 172s, and I like the low-wings better for some reason (flew an Arrow for my CPL/CFI). And the 172s I have access to are all pretty tired and shabby from decades as trainers.

Keeps posting your progress if you can. It's inspiring.

BT
Click to expand...
I'm kind of rushing the FII stuff because I am very instrument proficient. I fly when ever clouds are low, there is rain, and low visibility. I just love it.

What I have done so far is use Sporty's instrument training and focusing on the stuff for review and how they taught it. Now I am using a free website to practice questions for the FII.

Regarding the lesson plans, I created a 75 page document in addition to the plans, and I printed the plans and visual aids and laminated them. I am instructing someone for their commercial at the moment, and I did the same for commercial and private visual aids, and they are SO USEFUL!

The lesson plans have the front part have standard lesson plan information, and all other pages dive into the details. It is great to review after teaching in case you miss something or forgot a small detail.

Very nice. My main recommendation is to use a plane you are most comfortable with regarding the instruments especially.
 
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