Poll: How should I accomplish my BFR?

[LevelWing]

How does renting a glider work? Is it like renting an airplane, do a short checkout flight (one tow?) with their CFI and then you're good to go?

Like everything, it depends. But yes, it could be taking a tow with an instructor. Or taking a couple of pattern tows.

Just to add some context, it depends on if it's a commercial outfit or a club. Commercial outfits are as @Lindberg posted; could be a couple of tows depending on if they want to see a rope break or not. If you only have clubs near you, you'll likely have to join the club and SSA before they allow you to rent.

 

[iamtheari]

The poll doesn't have tailwheel or backcountry or mountain flying. Also you can't choose more than one. I just completed my 8th BFR, and one of those included a Seaplane rating. I have considered a tailwheel endorsement but I don't need one yet, so I have used my BFR to get better at flying my own bird. I like grass strips so I try to have my BFR focus on the skills I need for that stuff. It makes the larger strips look easy.

If I set it to allow multiple choices, then it would just have lots of votes to do everything.

I should have included ski flying since there is a place not far from me that does that when the conditions are right and I have a pair of skis for the J-3, but it never seems to work out to get the instruction. Backcountry or mountain flying would be good if I can find a way to do one or both of those by the end of February (and ideally the end of January due to other plans in the month of February). Any suggestions?

 

[Clip4]

When did they change the CFI ride as resetting the flight review?
There's a CC opinion to Ron Levy in 2008 saying the opposite.

2013

 

[William Pete Hodges]

If I set it to allow multiple choices, then it would just have lots of votes to do everything.

I should have included ski flying since there is a place not far from me that does that when the conditions are right and I have a pair of skis for the J-3, but it never seems to work out to get the instruction. Backcountry or mountain flying would be good if I can find a way to do one or both of those by the end of February (and ideally the end of January due to other plans in the month of February). Any suggestions?

I'd go for a tailwheel if you have any interest in that at all. You should be able to do it in 2-3 days.

 

[iamtheari]

I'd go for a tailwheel if you have any interest in that at all. You should be able to do it in 2-3 days.

I could try to convince a CFI that I’m a new tailwheel pilot and just not show him my logbook at first. I have 280 hours of tailwheel in 7 different planes and my first solo was in a J-3.

Otherwise, I’d agree 100%. The tailwheel endorsement is the biggest bang for your buck to have fun while improving your stick and rudder skills.

 

[FoCoJayco]

I’m still a student pilot so I’m far from needing a BFR and am new enough to POA I can’t even post links. But backcountry or mountain flying is my vote. Living in Colorado it will be my first training after my PPL. There are a few I’ve looked at:

Flywithia.com (this one is probably the most expensive, but they have a fleet of Cirrus you could rent. This is more mountain than backcountry, as landings are at mountain airports.)

Alpineflighttraining.com

mountaincanyonflying.com (true backcountry flying, this is in Idaho but doesn’t have courses in the winter)

 

[Z06_Mir]

My vote is bring your airplane south and let the previous owners do the flight review in it.


I am not biased, though.

 

[iamtheari]

My vote is bring your airplane south and let the previous owners do the flight review in it.


I am not biased, though.

My plane is in the shop but this is a great idea. I'll send the previous owners a picture of what I'm up against and ask them if they have anything available.

 

[Gilbert Buettner]

I am surprised no one mentioned the FAA WINGS program for extending your Flight Review date. It's simple to do the ground portion online with a wide choice of topics, and they give you a checklist of items to review in the air with a CFI.

 

[Initial Fix]

My last “BFR” was a Seaplane Rating. DId it at Flying Fish near St Louis. Great experience, so much so I have an Aventura HP Amphibian Kit on order.

Sadly Chris closed down Flying Fish this past fall

 

[X3 Skier]

Sadly Chris closed down Flying Fish this past fall

Bummer. Any info as to why?

 

[Pinecone]

I have my Private ASES, so sometime will upgrade to Comm. There is a place in Orlando area that does the rating in Maule's on floats. I always wanted to fly a Maule.

Good reviews on BT.

I would vote glider. Not hard for a tail wheel pilot (one who knows what the pedals are for in the air ). But then you might want to chase achievement badges. So far I have my Gold duration (5+ hours) and altitude (went to 18,000 in mountain wave).

 

[mandm]

Also can do the online FAA wings training classes, it’s free and can count as your flight review. I’ve been doing a few of those courses online, learned a few things and got my drone license.

 

[Gilbert Buettner]

Also can do the online FAA wings training classes, it’s free and can count as your flight review. I’ve been doing a few of those courses online, learned a few things and got my drone license.

The online portion is free, but you also need to fly with a CFI to complete the credit.

 

[RussR]

I am surprised no one mentioned the FAA WINGS program for extending your Flight Review date. It's simple to do the ground portion online with a wide choice of topics, and they give you a checklist of items to review in the air with a CFI.

Also can do the online FAA wings training classes, it’s free and can count as your flight review. I’ve been doing a few of those courses online, learned a few things and got my drone license.

I didn't mention the WINGS program because if you're waiting until a Flight Review is actually due before doing any WINGS activities, you're not taking advantage of the WINGS program as intended. And in fact, it pretty much is just a "normal" flight review at that point anyway. Since the OP asked for options other than a "normal" flight review, it didn't seem to be what he wanted.

 

[iamtheari]

I didn't mention the WINGS program because if you're waiting until a Flight Review is actually due before doing any WINGS activities, you're not taking advantage of the WINGS program as intended. And in fact, it pretty much is just a "normal" flight review at that point anyway. Since the OP asked for options other than a "normal" flight review, it didn't seem to be what he wanted.

Exactly. WINGS is just spreading the 1 hour of ground from a BFR out over the course of 10 hours through the year. I’m aiming more along the lines of getting a DC-3 type rating or something ridiculous like that. Hey, does anyone have the number of the Goodyear Blimp school?

 

[RussR]

Exactly. WINGS is just spreading the 1 hour of ground from a BFR out over the course of 10 hours through the year.

Well it shouldn't take 10 hours to get the 3 ground credits, but if that's what it takes you, okay.

But no, the real intent is to spread out the FLYING part throughout the year. This is where WINGS is really marketed badly, by CFIs, DPEs, and the FAA itself. It's often marketed as "Takes the place of your Flight Review! If you do WINGS, you don't have to do a Flight Review!" Which is all technically true, but if you're waiting until the Flight Review is due before starting on anything in WINGS, you're doing it wrong and really it's going to take more time that just a standard FR.

The intent is to try to encourage you to seek out recurring training throughout the year, and if you do it with some structure provided by the WINGS program, then you will not have to do an actual FR, ever. But that's BECAUSE you're doing some online study AND flying with a CFI from time to time anyway, which is much better than just meeting with one once every 2 years. So if you're the type that's going to call your CFI up every 2/3/6 months anyway (whether there was a WINGS program or not) and go flying, then WINGS just gets you FR credit as you go. And if you're the type that wouldn't bother to fly with a CFI before the 2 years is up, then maybe WINGS will convince you to try (and I believe that's the real intent, to get more people doing more refresher training more often). But if you're the type that waits until the FR is due before calling your CFI, then you're likely going to see WINGS as a waste of time, since it's going to take longer than "1 hour of ground and 1 hour of flight."

 

[iamtheari]

This is where WINGS is really marketed badly, by CFIs, DPEs, and the FAA itself

I think that WINGS has been poorly marketed to CFIs and DPEs as well as to pilots. I've never heard a local CFI mention WINGS and I requested WINGS credit for a check ride two years ago but the DPE never responded.

It also has a suboptimal user interface. For example, there is no obvious way to filter acceptable flight activities to those that can be completed with a local CFI. (Wherever Farmingdale State College is, they aren't going to let me take any of the numerous instructor standardization courses I had to scroll through in search of something more interesting than the suggested "airport operations" activity.) I also took my AMEL rating out of my WINGS profile for now because there are no local MEIs.

I think that WINGS is a great idea on the FAA's part, far better than the concept of demonstrating steep turns, slow flight, and a few landings every couple of years. The fundamental concept of WINGS fits with my existing approach to flying: Constantly trying to learn and apply what I learn in practice. But I think it has to be a core part of your relationship with a CFI in order to really work, and that should start with CFIs leading the way.

I don't give up on WINGS and I may end up bypassing my upcoming flight review expiration with its help. But I'm still in the market for more interesting alternatives. I'd even settle for doing a FR in an exotic plane like a Staggerwing or 172.

 

[Gilbert Buettner]

I think it says something that the most experienced pilots I fly with are doing WINGS instead of a normal Flight Review. These are the guys who need training the least, but value it the most.

 

[Lindberg]

So if you're the type that's going to call your CFI up every 2/3/6 months anyway (whether there was a WINGS program or not) and go flying, then WINGS just gets you FR credit as you go.

If you're flying with a CFI every 2/3/6 months, then why not just ask him to endorse you for a BFR? I don't think there's any requirement to take a flight specially designated as Flight Review.

 

[Gilbert Buettner]

If you're flying with a CFI every 2/3/6 months, then why not just ask him to endorse you for a BFR? I don't think there's any requirement to take a flight specially designated as Flight Review.

Look at 61.56 Flight Review. It says, "Except as provided in paragraphs (b) and (f) of this section, a flight review consists of a minimum of 1 hour of flight training and 1 hour of ground training...." It goes on to describe the requirements.

And then, ..."(c) Except as provided in paragraphs (d) (e) and (g) of this section, no person may act as pilot in command of an aircraft unless, since the beginning of the 24th calendar month before the month in which that pilot acts as pilot in command, that person has - (1) Accomplished a flight review given in an aircraft for which that pilot is rated by an authorized instructor; and (2) A logbook endorsed from an authorized instructor who gave the review certifying that the person has satisfactorily completed the review."

(b) addresses glider pilots.

Seems to me that there is definitely a requirement to take a flight specifically designed as a flight review and to log it as such.

 

[Lindberg]

Seems to me that there is definitely a requirement to take a flight specifically designed as a flight review and to log it as such.

You paraphrased the reg, and I didn't get that. Can you tell me in which section you find that requirement?

 

[Pinecone]

I agree it has to be logged as a flight review. But that is up to the CFI if they feel the flight met the requirements.

 

[RussR]

Seems to me that there is definitely a requirement to take a flight specifically designed as a flight review and to log it as such.

I have, numerous times, signed off a pilot for a flight review just during the course of normal training. For example, during instrument training if the pilot's flight review expires midway through, I have certainly covered more than one hour of ground training and more than one hour of flight training on the areas listed in 61.56. So I have no problem going ahead and signing off a flight review at that time, without calling it a designated "flight review" flight.

I see no regulatory problem with this.

 

[dbahn]

I "voted" for just doing the FR. You can design the goal of the review and how its accomplished. You can make it fun or challenging or a combination of both, depending on the CFI.

I've discouraged people from using the new rating as a substitute, partly because of timing issues with completing the rating. If you don't fit the check ride in before your current FR expires, you're going to need to do a new FR anyway. A glider rating is a good add on, but there aren't many glider operations that can predictably accomplish that on a specific time frame. In addition to weather, scheduling involves coordinating an instructor, two airplanes and a tow pilot. At Sugarbush (VT) this year, we had to turn down all requests for new students, and we still did some 1500 flights during the season.

My most recent FR was in my Cub with a retired FAA safety examiner. We both had fun, and the cost compared to the cost of another rating was miniscule.

 

[Kritchlow]

I’m switching my vote to the DC-3 option.

 

[Gilbert Buettner]

You paraphrased the reg, and I didn't get that. Can you tell me in which section you find that requirement?

Seems clear from what I posted that there needs an hour of ground and an hour inflight as a minimum, but I agree that it could be met in the performance of other training that covers those minimums. That's up to the CFI who signs the logbook.

I have done 19 Flight Reviews this year so far. All of them were traditional, but in past years I have signed off pilots who met the requirements in other ways, in other training flights. So, I guess it doesn't have to be a flight specifically for a Flight Review if it meets the requirements.

 

[dbahn]

Seems clear from what I posted that there needs an hour of ground and an hour inflight as a minimum, but I agree that it could be met in the performance of other training that covers those minimums. That's up to the CFI who signs the logbook.

I have done 19 Flight Reviews this year so far. All of them were traditional, but in past years I have signed off pilots who met the requirements in other ways, in other training flights. So, I guess it doesn't have to be a flight specifically for a Flight Review if it meets the requirements.

There are requirements and there are goals. They're different, and that's what differentiates a FR from a check ride. The goal of a FR is to verify that the pilot is sufficiently current in knowledge and skills to act as PIC. In many cases the CFI doesn't need to do ANYTHING to accomplish that goal, if he or she already has adequate knowledge about the applicant. In other cases the FR may take hours and resemble more of an instructional flight than a check flight, and might result in the CFI advising further training before signing that applicant off (in which case the applicant can simply find another instructor and try again, without the FAA even knowing about it).

It's no big secret that when one active instructor does a FR for another active instructor it's typically just an exercise in documentation rather than certification. That situation can exist in a variety of other circumstances as well, and it still satisfies the goal of a FR.