Advice for getting the CFI

VUOFlyer

Well-Known Member
Well after doing some deep thinking, I have decided to take on the adventure of getting my CFI. In the process, I was curious for our CFI's here if you would be willing be to share any tips/advice you found successful in the process of getting your CFI? I want to make the process of getting my CFI as fun as it can be for myself so I would appreciate any info. Thanks.

VUOFlyer
 
I've learned more than I ever thought I would studying for mine.

As someone in the same boat, here's what's been helpful for me:

Study the FARs, PHAK, Airplane Flying Handbook. I learn more every time I read these (and they are free).

Practice instructing. If you can find a CFI that will let you teach under their supervision, it is awesome experience. It is also double work for whoever lets you do this, buy them some beers after...

Making the binder was worthwile for me. While most of the instructors I know have pointed out that I won't really use it much instructing, it is helpful knowing that you have gone over the huge amount of material you will need to know.

The best news so far for me, it looks like where I'll be instructing will also be covering most of the cost of my CFI and taildragger. Sweet!
 
I have been spending most of my study time working on a very detailed bindeir. I also get to teach some of my CFI's other students every once in a while.

Hosting review sessions in my dorm hub lounge every Wednesday night is good for getting "lecture" practice.
 
Don't try to get it done in an unrealistic time frame. Give yourself plenty of time to absorb the information, because there's a lot of it.
 
Speaking of the binders, how much other stuff does the average applicant have in it besides the syllabuses to the maneuvers? Also, which study materials do you guys recommend for the FOI/FIA written? I'm leaning towards Gleim or King.
 
Speaking of the binders, how much other stuff does the average applicant have in it besides the syllabuses to the maneuvers?

I have every conceivable advisory circular I might ever need. Presolo quiz, A/C quiz, BFR outline. The AC about the various endorsements is an especially useful one.
 
1) When flying never stop talking....Practice explaining everything!

2) Make a great CFI binder! I spent alot of time on mine, and it made ground briefs, my oral, and teaching students so much easier!
 
1) When flying never stop talking....Practice explaining everything!
Yeah, that. If you're talking the examiner isn't and they aren't wondering what you're thinking.
2) Make a great CFI binder! I spent alot of time on mine, and it made ground briefs, my oral, and teaching students so much easier!
It's just as effective to purchase a thorough syllabus for each certificate. The things to have copies of are the relevant AC's, oral exam guides, and a current PTS. All of which can be downloaded off the FAA website. Use that to put together a binder. Don't reinvent the wheel especially since the FAA loves it when you use what they provide. A lot of academies use CFI binders as a way to charge their CFI candidates more money. The truth is everything you need is in the PHAK, AFHB, the FAR/AIM, or a relevant PTS. I can't count the number of CFI binders I've seen collecting dust once the instructor has a bit of actual instruction under his or her belt.

Really hit the FOI. That written is the easiest one you will ever take but the FOI will comprise the majority of your checkride. After that hit common student errors and PTS standards.

The best piece of advise I can give is this: Think of the things your instructors have done you liked and you found effective, do those. Also think of the things your instructors did you didn't like, don't do those.

Speaking of the binders, how much other stuff does the average applicant have in it besides the syllabuses to the maneuvers? Also, which study materials do you guys recommend for the FOI/FIA written? I'm leaning towards Gleim or King.
For my ride with the FAA in 06 I had one lesson plan on Lazy-8s and one on chandels, thats it.

Buy the gleim software. It's portable, cheap, and the ability to review what you just missed is invaluable.
 
I made a binder simply because I feel I learn better by actually writing about it. But I didnt do it from stratch. I took a already made commerical syallbus and taylored it to the type of teaching I would be doing and I added and subtracted stuff from it. If I would have had to make one from scratch that would have added soo much time to the prepartion. TEACH anyone who knows nothing about aviation. I taught my dad, my mom, my gf etc. Its alot different explaining different details to someone who knows nothing about flyin versus your cfi buddy who knows everything your saying. It is much more effective. They would ask questions I never though a student would ask. In the end you it will help you to be able to explain things on a more detailed level.
 
I can't count the number of CFI binders I've seen collecting dust once the instructor has a bit of actual instruction under his or her belt.

Really hit the FOI. That written is the easiest one you will ever take but the FOI will comprise the majority of your checkride. After that hit common student errors and PTS standards.


I for one, have never seen one of these mythical binders. I didn't make one for my CFI stuff. I downloaded all of the FAA books, all pertinent AC's to my laptop, and like esa, purchased sylibi. I took the laptop into my CFI checkride and fired it up before the ride started. Now that I've got a few hours of instruction under my belt, it's preaty rare that I have to go back to the material in my laptop. My favorite thing to tell a student when they ask a question, "I dunno, look it up, and expect me to quiz you on that next lesson."


Bottom line, you don't need to know everything (save for the FOI). But you do need to know how/where to find it, and have a working knowledge of it.
 
Hey guys good info. Im into my CFI training now and about halfway done. I was wondering what you can take with you into the checkride, like is it ok to.....

Oral
-have notes out or handy in a binder and ready for things he might ask? Like if he says "lets talk about the four fundimentals of flight" can I take notes out or open my binder and talk from a outline? If yes, Can I do this for each topic he asks about?
or
-Make a powerpoint or some sorta presentation on the computer for different topics?

Flight
-Make a little booklet of each maneuver to have handy and glance at now and again to make sure Im not forgetting anything while teaching?

Thanks guys!
 
Hey guys good info. Im into my CFI training now and about halfway done. I was wondering what you can take with you into the checkride, like is it ok to.....

Oral
-have notes out or handy in a binder and ready for things he might ask? Like if he says "lets talk about the four fundimentals of flight" can I take notes out or open my binder and talk from a outline? If yes, Can I do this for each topic he asks about?
or
-Make a powerpoint or some sorta presentation on the computer for different topics?

Flight
-Make a little booklet of each maneuver to have handy and glance at now and again to make sure Im not forgetting anything while teaching?

Thanks guys!

i think to a certain extent you can look up some things, but DO NOT rely on your notes! There is a certain level of knowledge you must poses without "looking up the answer"

Saying that, bring as many books to the checkride as possible. With my CFI binder, i carted in the private, commercial, and CFI PTS, FAR AIM, PHAK, AFH, aviation instructors handbook, and several AC's. All of the pubs had important pages tabbed for quick reference. I actually verified several things during the oral and it was OK.

Cant answer about the powerpoint. it sounds good if you have the facilities to do it AND if the examiner is cool with it. Try and get the gouge on that before you depend on it for the checkride.

Memorize your lesson plans as much as possible. I did. I had to teach several ground lessons and didnt refer to my notes at all during the "lesson" I did do a quick review of each lesson plan during our breaks. The examiner would tell me what to teach next and then take a 10 minute break. I am sure that it would be OK to review the lesson plan prior, but reading straight off the lesson plan or out of the applicable pub wouldnt look too good DURING the lesson. I know as a student, I wouldnt want my CFI reading to me... so thats how I approached the checkride. Would you expect YOUR instructor to simply read a lesson plan to you as a student pilot?

In the aircraft, the ONLY thing you should have out is charts and checklists. At least that was the vibe I got during my training and checkride. If you need "cheat sheets" prior to teaching a maneuver in the airplane, you need to spend more time "chair flying" or going through each maneuver in your head. i spent several hours just sitting in the airplane on the ground doing this.

This was my approach to the CFI ride and it worked out pretty good! Good luck, and like everyone said, you dont really know how to be a CFI until you gain some real experience.
 
Thanks for the reply and great info. I guess I really didn't mean reading from my notes word for word but just have them on the table to glance at every now and then if I needed to.

As for the flight I was really thinking the same thing about getting into the plane while in the hanger or at parking and just going through each maneuver and talking to myself on the ground. Not many people rent the arrow at my place so its almost alway avalible.
 
1. Be able to explain exactly what makes an airplane fly to the lowest possible student level. (also, if it can fly right-side up, why can it fly up-side down)

2. You can already fly the plane, everyone already knows this. This checkride is about how well you can teach someone to fly the plane.

3. When you are on the checkride, you are the instructor. Just because the examiner may have control of the plane, NEVER assume anything. My examiner wanted to see how far I'd let things go before I took controls.

4. As you have heard 100's of times, the flying part of this checkride is easy, the oral is the tough part. Mine was between 6 and 7 hours. Make sure you spend plenty of time studying the oral material.

Good Luck!!!
 
4. As you have heard 100's of times, the flying part of this checkride is easy, the oral is the tough part. Mine was between 6 and 7 hours. Make sure you spend plenty of time studying the oral material.

Good Luck!!!

6-7 hours??????:confused: Jesus! Thats a little off the wall dont ya think? If my oral lasts more than 5 hours I think I might ask for a letter of discontinuance and come back and finish sometime later.:)


On another thought do you guys think its a good idea to take this training a little slower than others in order to get everything in order and in my mind? Im getting out to the airport about once or twice every 2 weeks and studying on my own inbetween the lessons.
 
6-7 hours??????:confused: Jesus! Thats a little off the wall dont ya think? If my oral lasts more than 5 hours I think I might ask for a letter of discontinuance and come back and finish sometime later.:)


On another thought do you guys think its a good idea to take this training a little slower than others in order to get everything in order and in my mind? Im getting out to the airport about once or twice every 2 weeks and studying on my own inbetween the lessons.

Mine was 8 hours.
 
If you need a diagram or illustration of something, pull it from an FAA publication whenever possible. They like that.
 
Oral isnt as bad as you would care to expect. My buddy got his recently and he had to fly every maneuvers twice and ended up spending 2.8 in the air with the examiner. That would be more stressful than the oral part.
 
Oral isnt as bad as you would care to expect. My buddy got his recently and he had to fly every maneuvers twice and ended up spending 2.8 in the air with the examiner. That would be more stressful than the oral part.

exactly. my oral was about 6 hours with about an hour of breaks. my flight was exactly 2.8 and we did ever maneuver twice as well as the examiner flying several maneuvers while I explained to him what to do. To me, the flight was harder than the oral.
 
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