Kahnemann and Tversky, who overhauled the officer training programme for the IDF, and designed the first MCC program for Delta (perhaps the first by a major airline?), had an interesting observation on learning progress and reversion to the mean. Basically as we progress, one lesson goes better or worse than the next one but we slowly oscillate along a learning curve.
However, without this insight, it can create an illusion of causality. Student has a crummy lesson, instructor shouts at her/him. Next lesson student improves, ergo shouting is good, when in fact it is purely a reversion towards the mean, with a possible overshoot on the positive side.
There was a time when air forces prided themselves on wash out rates, but Kahnemann and Tversky established that cadets who needed additional training (anathema in a wash out philosophy program) made better long term leaders/officers.
In general I would suggest the two major low cost regionals, Ryanair and EasyJet, have made enormous progress in producing excellent safety standards in flight deck and cabin crew, and also raising them for the region overall.
I’ve had several experiences with instructors/examiners that sit in happily my mind.
2 main ones.
When I learned to fly, it all went very well, and I took to it all, except the final touchdown.
I was ready for solo around 6ish hours, except for my confidence in the touchdown and obviously my young instructors’ confidence too. He wasn’t wrong.
He told the CFI I’d be one of the earliest solo’s if we could just sort that.
It was at a big controlled field. But the big runways weren’t helping with anything. They just made circuits take longer.
The CFI, an older ‘Prickly’ type of chap said. “Right, you’re flying with me very early tomorrow!” I wasn’t really looking forward to it.
We got in the aircraft and he said to me, " Ok, what’s all this you can’t land crap"
I explained that actually, although I wasn’t getting it, I hadn’t done many hours so hadn’t done that many landings, but wasn’t improving noticably either.
I said I just felt I needed landings, the rest was wasting my time….lol….lol.
He had a word with ATC, the field was quiet.
Off we went.
Took off on, Rwy 11.
At 300ft or something, hooked a hard right onto land at Rwy 17. Kept rolling, straight out of 17, hard left onto 11, kept going hard round onto 17………what a scream. We were ignoring the thresolds and just landing, doing figure eights.
Such fun, and half a dozen landings in about as many minutes. With a big smile he got out, (engine running) and said you’re good to go. I’ll be in the tower, see you in 15 mins!!!!
When my South African licence became a pain in the UK (after flying my shared aircraft for about 10 years) I need an UK one. I had been granted dispensation for the exams except air law and radio licence practical.
I got that sorted and duly turned up for my check ride.
Fully unprepared, I was told it was going to be a full GFT.
Wtf……. Of course it was, but I’m too stupid to see that coming or to prepare.
There I am sitting looking at producing a GFT-passable plog, with drift and estimates etc.
I’d been hamming it together nicely with VOR’s for 10 years and forgotten what drift was.
The CFI came along, looked at me and said surely you’ve finished all that up by now, come on….off we go!
I hurriedly gathered up all my crap and like a scene from a movie, rushed out the door chasing him, dropping my chart, followed by pens, doubling back for a headset etc, you get the idea.
We took off and headed for our 1st waypoint.
I was settling-in and feeling happy it was kinda going my way.
He then said “ok….tell me when you see we’ve arrived”.
Clearly this was a hint. Lol
I started looking much harder and my calm was again dissolving.
“You need to see it”, he said.
“Yes, well I’m looking” I said.
“It’s down there!!!!” He said.
Not wanting to lie, I repeated, sorry “Sir but I can’t see it”.
I think we repeated that all once more.
“My controls” he said.
At that point he pulled the nose up a little, inverted us, and as we begun an inverted dive (fall), he was able to point out of the windshield and say…..“There, there it is, can you see it now?”
After the 1st genuine “No, I still can’t” we’d lost about 800ft, and I could just make out the boundary of the disused airfied he’d taken me to.
I’d never have found it, it was very vague.
He said “Well, you’ve done an excellent Nav, but you’ve put your turn point under the nose. That’s no good if you need to identify it. Don’t do that again”.
He gently rolled us level and gave it back to me.
He was so relaxed and comforting but with a huge Old-school personality that would draw respect from any descent person. It was a wonderful experience, that still amuses me to this day.
To finish, he gave me a divert and asked for an estimate. I guessed at 15 mins (kinda plucked it from thin air). We arrived bang-on.
He and I knew it was luck.
After we turned for home it went IMC in heavy rain. I said I was comfortable, so he said ok take me back and if you don’t mess up the flapless we’ll call it a day eh?
What a wonderful experience. The debrief was, “Clearly you can fly, and I was very comfortable the whole time. Keep that up please”
He signed my paperwork and was gone like a ghost. I never saw him again.
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RobertL18C wrote:
Basically as we progress, one lesson goes better or worse than the next one but we slowly oscillate along a learning curve.However, without this insight, it can create an illusion of causality.
This is interesting, and I can see how this happens
Learning in an aeroclub environment, as I did, is probably unique to France. The Brevet de Base allowed unsupervised solo, and the same aircraft would be flown before and after the PPL, so the licence was only a paper milestone. The training covered more than the minimum: radionavigation (VOR, DME) instead of dead reckoning, VFR on top, basic mountain flying, leaning, flight plans. I did the PPL on tailwheel, too.
However, there were also club-specific procedures, and nowadays I don’t think I’d easily conform to the oversight by club management and/or instructors. Things missing from my training:
Both instructors were university-level teachers, a perfect match for me in my early 20s, and highly committed. One focussed more on the physical aspect (stick and rudder), and the other on cognitive (knowledge, decision making), so they were complementary and well-balanced.
As an instructor, there are several operative levels: the flying, the teaching, and adapting to the student. Not all are necessarily present. My anecdotes:
Probably the best instructor was another US CFI, who it transpired was younger than me, had fewer hours, and had only been qualified 2 days. However, he was humble, emanated calmness, and genuinely cared about his students. He stayed with the school longer than the ATP-minimum 1500 hours, so I flew with him a few times before he finally got a GA job with the Sheriff’s Department (instead of an airline).
Unfortunately, for my PPL test, the examiner and I took an instant dislike to each other. Thankfully, he was fair, and I passed. Other than a few isolated instances of ignorance or ‘personality issues’, my general experience with instructors has been positive. My own attitude has changed, from passive and receptive on day one, to now viewing an instructor as someone you hire to fulfil a particular need.
The GOOD most instructors can teach basic flying.
The Bad most instructors teach people to fly aircraft but not to operate them.
The ugly Most instructors teach people to operate Lycoming or Continental engine as if it was a Gypsy Major.
