CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 5
STANDARDS DISSECTED
ACS BASICS
BY WILLIAM E. DUBOIS
IN THE EARLY DAYS OF THE GOVERNMENT'S INVOLVEMENT IN THE ISSUANCE OF PILOT'S
LICENSES, THE EXAMINER STOOD ON THE GROUND AND SENT APPLICANTS UP INTO THE AIR
TO DEMONSTRATE A FEW SIMPLE MANEUVERS, WITH INSTRUCTIONS TO THEN LAND THE
AIRPLANE IN ONE PIECE.
Ah... for such simple times. But since 2016, the law of the land when it comes to how
checkrides are conducted is the book-length, info-packed Airman Certification
Standards-called simply ACS by most folks in the flight training biz. It, unpopularly
among some, replaced the decades-old Practical Test Standards (PTS), but that's water
under the bridge. ACS is here to stay, and for the benefit of our students, everyone involved
in flight training needs to embrace the standards, or at least understand how they work.
ACS'S PURPOSE
The ACS seeks to create a continuum between the written, oral, and practical exams,
unifying them and pulling them together in a synthesized scenario-based way that seeks to
better reflect real world flying. It also embraces the FAA's new mantra of safety: The Safety
Management System, integrating aeronautical knowledge, risk management, and flight
proficiency standards into testing.
In practice, this means that for every element of the test, the person tested must not only
demonstrate appropriate skill in the operation but must also be able to answer questions
about both risk management and basic knowledge related to the skill. And while the ACS
is largely the blueprint for examiners on how to go about carrying out the ground and flight
portions of the practical test, it's a document instructors need to know intimately because,
like it or not, we "teach to the test."
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter—Vol. 10, Issue 2
CFI Notes
CFI Notes: Letters
CFI Notes: Did You Know? There I Was…A Cirrus, a Cruise Ship, and the USCG
Standards Dissected—ACS Basics
Safety Seminar: Difficult Decisions—What Would You Do?
Collected Wisdom: Tricks of the Trade
CFI News
CFI Tips: Beyond Teaching "To the Test"—How To Ramp Up Your Instruction
ASI Message: Moving Up, Down, or Sideways
Real Pilot Story: Powerless Over Paris
Safety Spotlight: Scalable Safety Framework
Point/Counterpoint: Keep Spinning the Whiz Wheel or E6B No Mo?
Chart Challenge: The Art of the IFR Chart
You Can Fly: 2019 AOPA FlightTraining Service Experience Survey Now Open
Safety Quiz: Density Altitude
CFI Tools: Weather or Not—Thunderstorm Challenge
Chief's Corner: Mentoring—A Different Perspective
Safety Tip: Marshalling Signals
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI-to-CFI Newsletter—Vol. 10, Issue 2
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI Notes
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI Notes: Letters
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI Notes: Did You Know? There I Was…A Cirrus, a Cruise Ship, and the USCG
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Standards Dissected—ACS Basics
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 6
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 7
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 8
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Safety Seminar: Difficult Decisions—What Would You Do?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Collected Wisdom: Tricks of the Trade
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI News
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 12
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 13
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 14
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI Tips: Beyond Teaching "To the Test"—How To Ramp Up Your Instruction
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 16
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 17
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 18
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - ASI Message: Moving Up, Down, or Sideways
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 20
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Real Pilot Story: Powerless Over Paris
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 22
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Safety Spotlight: Scalable Safety Framework
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Point/Counterpoint: Keep Spinning the Whiz Wheel or E6B No Mo?
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 25
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 26
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Chart Challenge: The Art of the IFR Chart
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 28
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - You Can Fly: 2019 AOPA FlightTraining Service Experience Survey Now Open
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Safety Quiz: Density Altitude
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 31
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - CFI Tools: Weather or Not—Thunderstorm Challenge
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Chief's Corner: Mentoring—A Different Perspective
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 34
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - 35
CFI-to-CFI Newsletter - Volume 10 Issue 2 - Safety Tip: Marshalling Signals
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