RyanLikesFlying
Pre-takeoff checklist
Ok, I'm going to not ****, moan, ***** or complain. But have a bit of a rant and some follow up questions.
Has anyone ever gone to a club or flight school to do a checkout so you can rent from them and been told they do a BFR instead of a checkout? I am already part of a club in Charlotte but the Air National Guard throws a little money at us for tuition assistance but it has to be at a 141 school. So I had some money sent to a school about an hour flight/2.5 hour drive. I figure I can fly up there in the club plane, burn 2 hours round trip and fly on the Guard's money a little bit.
So I fly up there on Tuesday. Sit down with a CFI and he informs me they do a BFR instead of a checkout. I tell him I had my PP check ride back in July and am no where near needing it. Its their policy though. Ok, I guess I can roll with this... so he pulls out this long checklist and commences to quiz me for a little over an hour on a repeat of my PP check ride. Now I'm not saying I have forgotten it all by any means but there was a bit of dust present. Luckily I had my FAR/AIM with me and I asked if it was ok if I referenced it a few times. This was literally more challenging than my oral (probably because I wasn't prepared this time around). So at this point I've already paid for an hour of time with the CFI....
We head out to their C-172 G1000. I've never flown a G1000 equipped aircraft so I tell him I may need a few extra minutes but did alot of my training in a C-162 with the G300 and am familiar with an MFD/PFD and how Garmin lays things out. He began to instruct me as if I was a day one student, even during the preflight. He corrects most of my radio calls because I am not doing it per "the schools script."
We take off and head to their practice area. Do some basic maneuvers. Nothing cosmic. Was I perfect? Never. But it was pretty good. It would have passed a FAA Private Pilot check ride. Landings were textbook.
We taxi back, button up the airplane, etc. He is showing me how the school ties their knot on the tie down, yada yada. As we are walking back he says, "Well, I'm not exactly sure how to tell you this... but I think you could use another flight or two before you'd be ready to rent from us. Thing is, I'm not exactly sure why. Youre landings were perfect, radio work was a little sloppy, and maneuvers weren't bad. I just think you could use another flight."
I was definitely a bit shocked and surprised. I didnt really even know what to say. I asked him if I did something unsafe. He says no, "your stalls were a little sloppy, but thats not surprising. No one really practices stalls." No **** dude, I don't go out a stall the plane for fun and by nature, stalls are a bit "sloppy."
We do a short admin stop, he gives me some paperwork, and sends me on my way. The flight was 1.4 hours. The cost of this was $400 after rental and CFI. Plus a 2 hour round trip flight in the club plane (which I safely flew by myself, transiting Class Bravo airspace with no issues).
So, rant over. Who has had a BFR as part of a checkout? Does this seem extreme? This particularly flight school is known for bleeding students dry. I have FIVE coworkers at the Guard that have had money sent up there and not one has finished. They keep dragging you through more and more training. Their Chief CFI is also the DPE they use (conflict of interest???) so during progress checks with the person you will take your check ride, he informs you that you need to fly more (with their instructors).
Do I pull the money out and send it to another school? Or do I suck up my pride and go back? I'm leaning toward yanking the money and spending it elsewhere. I'm just ****ed how the whole thing went down and needed to vent to someone other than my non-pilot mortal wife.
Has anyone ever gone to a club or flight school to do a checkout so you can rent from them and been told they do a BFR instead of a checkout? I am already part of a club in Charlotte but the Air National Guard throws a little money at us for tuition assistance but it has to be at a 141 school. So I had some money sent to a school about an hour flight/2.5 hour drive. I figure I can fly up there in the club plane, burn 2 hours round trip and fly on the Guard's money a little bit.
So I fly up there on Tuesday. Sit down with a CFI and he informs me they do a BFR instead of a checkout. I tell him I had my PP check ride back in July and am no where near needing it. Its their policy though. Ok, I guess I can roll with this... so he pulls out this long checklist and commences to quiz me for a little over an hour on a repeat of my PP check ride. Now I'm not saying I have forgotten it all by any means but there was a bit of dust present. Luckily I had my FAR/AIM with me and I asked if it was ok if I referenced it a few times. This was literally more challenging than my oral (probably because I wasn't prepared this time around). So at this point I've already paid for an hour of time with the CFI....
We head out to their C-172 G1000. I've never flown a G1000 equipped aircraft so I tell him I may need a few extra minutes but did alot of my training in a C-162 with the G300 and am familiar with an MFD/PFD and how Garmin lays things out. He began to instruct me as if I was a day one student, even during the preflight. He corrects most of my radio calls because I am not doing it per "the schools script."
We take off and head to their practice area. Do some basic maneuvers. Nothing cosmic. Was I perfect? Never. But it was pretty good. It would have passed a FAA Private Pilot check ride. Landings were textbook.
We taxi back, button up the airplane, etc. He is showing me how the school ties their knot on the tie down, yada yada. As we are walking back he says, "Well, I'm not exactly sure how to tell you this... but I think you could use another flight or two before you'd be ready to rent from us. Thing is, I'm not exactly sure why. Youre landings were perfect, radio work was a little sloppy, and maneuvers weren't bad. I just think you could use another flight."
I was definitely a bit shocked and surprised. I didnt really even know what to say. I asked him if I did something unsafe. He says no, "your stalls were a little sloppy, but thats not surprising. No one really practices stalls." No **** dude, I don't go out a stall the plane for fun and by nature, stalls are a bit "sloppy."
We do a short admin stop, he gives me some paperwork, and sends me on my way. The flight was 1.4 hours. The cost of this was $400 after rental and CFI. Plus a 2 hour round trip flight in the club plane (which I safely flew by myself, transiting Class Bravo airspace with no issues).
So, rant over. Who has had a BFR as part of a checkout? Does this seem extreme? This particularly flight school is known for bleeding students dry. I have FIVE coworkers at the Guard that have had money sent up there and not one has finished. They keep dragging you through more and more training. Their Chief CFI is also the DPE they use (conflict of interest???) so during progress checks with the person you will take your check ride, he informs you that you need to fly more (with their instructors).
Do I pull the money out and send it to another school? Or do I suck up my pride and go back? I'm leaning toward yanking the money and spending it elsewhere. I'm just ****ed how the whole thing went down and needed to vent to someone other than my non-pilot mortal wife.
