Free lance CFI

FlySooner9

FlySooner9

Well-Known Member
Ok, so i have a question. Are CFI's allowed to hand out business cards at airports? I know Commercial pilots aren't allowed to "holdout" but does this change with a CFI? If not how do free lance CFI's get their name around?
 
I'm not an instructor, but I would think it's OK. Someone will correct me if I'm wrong. You probably wouldn't want to put them on ABC's Flying School desk though.:)
 
FlySooner9 said:
Ok, so i have a question. Are CFI's allowed to hand out business cards at airports?
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Yes, but...what would your business card say? Where is your airplane? where is your 'office'? - your 'briefing room'? - your flight planning room? - Weather Data?..and the space and room to teach these elements of flying? We need these facilitites to conduct flight training,..so if you are not affiliated with a school, at least you need to be affiliated with an FBO, and that's where/how you get your name around...
 
Yes, a CFI can advertise all he wants.

I suspect the impression that you have regarding a restriction on commercial pilots involves crossing the line into 135.
 
nosehair said:
Yes, but...what would your business card say? Where is your airplane? where is your 'office'? - your 'briefing room'? - your flight planning room? - Weather Data?..and the space and room to teach these elements of flying? We need these facilitites to conduct flight training,..so if you are not affiliated with a school, at least you need to be affiliated with an FBO, and that's where/how you get your name around...
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What if you own the airplane, the facilities, and it is a private strip?

No association with an FBO needed... thus the need for business cards...
 
nosehair said:
Yes, but...what would your business card say? Where is your airplane? where is your 'office'? - your 'briefing room'? - your flight planning room? - Weather Data?..and the space and room to teach these elements of flying? We need these facilitites to conduct flight training,..so if you are not affiliated with a school, at least you need to be affiliated with an FBO, and that's where/how you get your name around...
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Im not planning on starting my own flight school here. Im just considering getting come cards out there for the people that might need a biannual flight review or the people that want to buy a plane or have all ready bought a plane but need flight training.
 
nosehair said:
Yes, but...what would your business card say? Where is your airplane? where is your 'office'? - your 'briefing room'? - your flight planning room? - Weather Data?..and the space and room to teach these elements of flying? We need these facilitites to conduct flight training,..so if you are not affiliated with a school, at least you need to be affiliated with an FBO, and that's where/how you get your name around...
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http://www.afit-info.com/?gclid=CN2p07vZ9pkCFSQeDQodSlarxQ

They are not affiliated with any fixed location.
 
I CFI out of ADH and I have my own cards. You can do that. I've even posted them at local bussinesses and hand them out each semester to my ground classes.
 
Are you working for OU as a flight instructor also?

As far as getting your name around, I'd go to the airports in your area and put a business card holder some place noticeable with your cards inside. At OUN, maybe right by Ozzie's (there's a little mantle with some other business cards on it). I would obviously ask permission before doing this.
 
nosehair said:
Yes, but...what would your business card say? Where is your airplane? where is your 'office'? - your 'briefing room'? - your flight planning room? - Weather Data?..and the space and room to teach these elements of flying? We need these facilitites to conduct flight training,..so if you are not affiliated with a school, at least you need to be affiliated with an FBO, and that's where/how you get your name around...
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The front seat of my truck or a card table set up in a customer's hangar served as my "facilities" for a coupla years.

If it was really cold a nearby coffee shop was perfect for doing ground.

As for weather data, Pilot My-Cast on my cellphone or, gasp, a call to FSS did the trick. Also had the side-effect of folks actually checking the weather before they headed out to the airport which was nice.

A little portable white-board was nifty for diagramming stuff and I kept copies of the Airplane Flying Handbook, Instrument Flying Handbook, Pilots Handbook of Aeronautical Knowledge and a few of my own docs to serve as handouts.

Worked out just fine.
 
FlySooner9 said:
Ok, so i have a question. Are CFI's allowed to hand out business cards at airports? I know Commercial pilots aren't allowed to "holdout" but does this change with a CFI? If not how do free lance CFI's get their name around?
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You got your answer, but let me add something a bit more global.

"Holding out" is probably more misunderstood than "logging PIC time".

There is nothing evil about "holding out." And nothing illegal about it. All "holding out" means is that your are letting the public know you are available for something. Where the problem comes along with the FAA is when you hold out for doing something the FAA doesn't allow you to do for the publcic.

You can't "hold out" your availability to provide transportation of people or property for hire without a 135 certificate because you are not allowed to make transportation available to the public without a 135 certificate. Of course, if you have that 135 certificate, you can hold out as much as you want to.

On the other hand, with your commercial certificate you can "hold out" your services as a CFI or a ferry pilot or a platform for photographers or a pipeline pilot and even fill out pilot job applications because those are all things the FAA allows you to make available to the public with just your commercial certificate.
 
FlySooner9 said:
Not yet, hopefully i will be in a year or so, right now they aren't hiring at all since our current instructors have no where to go.
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Yeah, that's what I heard when I went up there. Kinda stinks, I'm just hoping I'll be able to get a job when I have all the ratings.
 
Just to add to what Mark wrote. FAR 119 is the regulation that defines what 121, 125 and 135 operations are, what "holding out" is, and in what situations FAR 119 (and thus 121, 125 and 135), do not apply. FAR 119 (e):
"Except for operations when common carriage is not involved conducted with airplanes having a passenger-seat configuration of 20 seats or more, excluding any required crewmember seat, or a payload capacity of 6,000 pounds or more, this part does NOT apply to-
(1) Student instruction;
(2) Nonstop Commercial Air Tours....
(3) Ferry or training flights;
..."
 
Blackhawk said:
Just to add to what Mark wrote. FAR 119 is the regulation that defines what 121, 125 and 135 operations are, what "holding out" is, and in what situations FAR 119 (and thus 121, 125 and 135), do not apply. FAR 119 (e):
"Except for operations when common carriage is not involved conducted with airplanes having a passenger-seat configuration of 20 seats or more, excluding any required crewmember seat, or a payload capacity of 6,000 pounds or more, this part does NOT apply to-
(1) Student instruction;
(2) Nonstop Commercial Air Tours....
(3) Ferry or training flights;
..."
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Well, one small point ..... 119 does require pilots of nonstop commercial air tours to be on a drug test program.
 
PeterPilot said:
BIENNIAL. It is not the same as biannual.
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Neither one is the same as a flight review.

To the OP, if you're trying to drum up business make sure you're advertising the right thing. First impressions will be all you have if you're passing out cards.
 
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