Ground Instructor Tips

SFCC/UND

Well-Known Member
I've always been interested in becoming a teacher and being a pilot. I'm looking to become a ground instructor at a flight school first and then maybe later on be a instructor at a airline. I've tried looking for ways to do this, but for some reason ground instructors are not a very popular topic. I've seen job posts at Compass and Lynx, but not many flight schools. So any ideas how to get my foot in the door as a ground instructor at a flight school and airline? Thanks:)
 
First look for a flight school that would need a ground instructor, i.e. a part 141 school. Find a part 141 school near you and put in a resume. The reason that I suggest a part 141 school is because those schools are very inpersonal(sp?), in my experience, and a student usually goes through about 7 instructors for one rating at any particular school. The result is they student gets seperate ground lessons by various instructors, in my experience. I wouldn't suggest a part 61 school/free lance instructor flight school because generally the same instructor is with the same student and that same instructor does the ground lessons.

Also, maybe checkout companies that specialize in ground lessons for FAA written tests. Look up "Aviation Seminars" for instance.

Good luck.
 
There is only one 141 school in Spokane and the chief pilot does the ground school, so I'm out of luck. All I see on websites is jobs for flight instructors, I just want to do ground work.
 
Often adult education centers are looking for classes to host. They will advertise your class through their booklet, provide classroom space and projector and collect class fees (so they can take their cut).

You could have a class outing to an FBO or Flight school as part of your syllabus and use the opportunity to network for a future job. (meaning -look how many students I can bring). Maybe get something for each student that signs up at that school.
 
Unfortunately, CFIs are a dime a dozen right now. Having a lesser qualification won't help. They are already qualified to teach ground.
 
My advice is to get your ratings as a CFI, not only a ground instructor rating. Find any school 141 or 61 and start teaching (both flight & ground).

One manner to make quick connections is to land a job in a simulator at one of the recurrent training places like FlightSafety. That's my advice
 
I can't fly right now because of medication that I'm on, so I have to wait till spring before I can start teaching again. I was thinking about doing ground school to help increase my knowledge and my flight instructor skills. So I was just curious to see if there were any ground school jobs, but I guess not. Thanks for the help.
 
Unfortunately, CFIs are a dime a dozen right now. Having a lesser qualification won't help. They are already qualified to teach ground.

This is very true, but I know of one school (Pt. 61) that has a desk guy who does ground instruction also. So if you are willing to sign on for the desk job booking the schedule, answering the phone, sweeping the floor, etc., then having your AGI & IGI might be attractive to the school versus someone who is applying for the desk job without same ratings.

Just an idea for you. I'll go along with what others have said though, you will need to get your CFI certs if you are planning on making a career of it. Might as well do so in one effort rather than just the ground instructor certs.

My $.02
 
There is only one 141 school in Spokane and the chief pilot does the ground school, so I'm out of luck. All I see on websites is jobs for flight instructors, I just want to do ground work.

You sure the chief pilot does not need any help with those classes?
 
I'm sure, things are drying up around here. Last I heard SFCC got rid of their seminole and their arrow. He only teaches private ground and the classes are around 5-10 people a quarter. That is not a bad idea working behind a desk, since you get paid on your time off.
 
I've always been interested in becoming a teacher and being a pilot. I'm looking to become a ground instructor at a flight school first and then maybe later on be a instructor at a airline. I've tried looking for ways to do this, but for some reason ground instructors are not a very popular topic. I've seen job posts at Compass and Lynx, but not many flight schools. So any ideas how to get my foot in the door as a ground instructor at a flight school and airline? Thanks:)
Sorry to hear you are grounded for the time being. The AGI/IGI qual may have limited utility, but it is fairly easy to get with 3 tests, and may keep you in the game.

If you really want to get into teaching ground school, the JAA syllabus is pretty in depth. If you have some aviation experience this could be a possibility. (Have you pursued an aviation degree in UND?) Unfortunately, most of the schools are in Europe, but there are a few schools in the US that do the residence ATPL course that hire instructors.
 
I'm still in school and will get a aviation degree from Everglades University. I wouldn't mind living else where as long as I can pay the bills. I never seen any ground schools jobs in Europe.
 
The AGI/IGI qual may have limited utility, but it is fairly easy to get with 3 tests, and may keep you in the game.

That is the problem, IMO. Anyone with half a brain can get a Gleim study guide and take a written exam to be a ground instructor. If there were more scrutiny in the process, the ground instructor certificates would be worth a lot more, IMO. I think at the minimum, they should be required to have an oral exam with the FSDO, like us CFIs get.
 
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