Flight Training - August 2024 - 48

ADVANCED PILOT CFI TO CFI
YOU DO TOO MUCH FOR ME
NO, REALLY, YOU'RE DOING TOO MUCH!
BY CATHERINE CAVAGNARO
But children also should grow to be
self-sufficient so they learn to navigate the
world alone; we parents aren't going to be
around forever, after all. Deciding when to
be helpful so they feel supported and when
to extract myself so they learn independence
has been, for me, one of the toughest
parts of being a parent.
My worlds as aviation educator and
mother came together recently as I've been
teaching my son Jack to fly in our Cessna
Aerobat, Wilbur. As we hopped in Wilbur
on a recent flight, I tuned in the local ASOS
and dialed the altimeter setting into the
Kollsman window. After he leveled off,
I leaned the mixture to an appropriate
setting before we commenced steep turns.
I then directed him with headings and
altitudes as we navigated to the Winchester
airport (BGF) to practice some landings.
" HELPFUL " FLIGHT
INSTRUCTORS CAN PROVE TO
BE ANYTHING BUT HELPFUL.
" YOU DO TOO MUCH FOR ME " IS THE
comment I find myself making most
often while debriefing a flight instructor
practical exam candidate. Whether it's
tuning frequencies, operating the flaps,
loading an approach, or even sharing the
controls, " helpful " flight instructors can
prove to be anything but helpful, and I see
the ill effects most often on all practical
tests and most often for the instrument
rating. Preparing for an instrument
approach requires securing the airport
weather, loading the procedure, ensuring
the navigation and communication
frequencies are properly tuned, briefing
the plate, and anticipating a missed
approach-all while maintaining aircraft
control-is a tall order for any single
pilot. I cringe when I see a candidate who
fumbles to load a procedure and can't fix
the problem if it's loaded incorrectly. He
never had to learn the box because his
flight instructor was always there to help.
48 FLIGHT TRAINING AUGUST 2024
On one exam, I had the candidate
remove the view-limiting device at the
missed approach point and proceed to
attempt a landing with the gear still
tucked up in the wells. He admitted that
his CFI usually put the gear down for
him at the final approach fix since that's
generally a busy time.
Of course, we examiners direct debrief
messages toward the recommending
instructor as much as the candidate. That
way, the feedback loop ensures that flight
instruction continues to improve.
This summer I found the need to give
myself the same advice I've doled out to so
many other CFIs over the years.
My parents instilled in me the importance
of always being polite and helpful,
and I've done the same with my sons.
During their youth, I exhibited the behavior
I wanted them to emulate by making
requests with a please and thank you and
being there to help when needed.
To be clear, this was not his first flight
and Jack proved ready to do all the above
by himself. So, my help was hurting his
progress and hindering his independence.
Since then, whenever I consider " helping, "
I ask myself if doing so is in Jack's best
interests, and often, it's not.
Soon Jack should be ready for his own
practical exam and, most important, a
happy life of safe flying that awaits him.
Being helpful while fostering independence
is an important balance for any
flight instructor to strike. I will continually
remind myself to do less of the former
and more of the latter to improve my own
skills as a CFI. FT
CATHERINE CAVAGNARO teaches aerobatics at
UOS and is the Gaston Swindell Bruton Professor
of Mathematics at Sewanee: The University of
the South.
CHRIS ROSE
Flight Training - August 2024

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