Jwolf427

I just enrolled in ground classes and start September 2nd. Any one here with their private pilot license want to start me off with some good habits before I start developing bad ones?

deekay911

I did my PPL in the UK a few years ago, and fly here now. You will be taught/trained good habits during your course, and the challenge will be keeping those up and not sliding back when you are largely on your own - i.e. checklists, frequent instrument scans, FREDAC checks, keep your eyes outside the cockpit. Too many to name, but be **** about it, and don't treat it like driving a car. Its as much fun if not more, but not always so forgiving. Do a search because there are some other pilot threads here I seem to remember, and also a least a couple commercial pilots on the board, besides us lowly PPLs.

Jwolf427

Thanks for the advise Deekay911.

CalvinC4S

Pick a good CFI, not some kid that's building time for a career in another aviation field.

six gun

+ 1000 Good CFI is worth his/her weight in gold

Jwolf427

I am going up in the air on Sunday with a CFI that has over 16,000 hours of flight time.

Vorsicht

"He is most free from danger, who, even when safe, is on his guard."

— Publilius Syrus

therossinator

There are a ton of pilots here! There's even its own forum. https://rennlist.com/forums/aviation-172/ There are a bunch of smaller commercial pilots hanging around (I purchased my 993 from a Falcon pilot) and theres also an F-18 pilot running around. How will you know? Its like the running joke, "How can you tell if a pilot is at your party? They will tell you!" A lot of time its in their usernames or avatars. I myself came to Pensacola for flight school, I tried it but discovered that flying just wasn't the right thing for me. If you are starting military flight training that is a bit different flying style than commercial.

01coccobet

bad habits are always a threat
good-ones are safer
What kind of advises are you looking for?

USMCF18

A great instructor with substantial time is a huge help, but they are all pretty standardized these days. The technique with which they instruct is I think far more important, as you can be very easily turned off if their personality type does not match. Look for the quiet professional who knows what they are about, is firm in his/her standards, and is not prone to excitement or embellishment. In terms of bad habits, from my perspective of flying tactical jets for the last 16 years I have this to offer. Be relentless and meticulous in your studying and preflight planning. Once your wheels leave the deck and things start moving in miles per minute, your IQ goes down by at least 50 points and seemingly simple thought processes suddenly become hard. The more you sweat on the ground, the less you will in the air when things change...and they always do. No flight ever goes as briefed. Part in parcel to that is know your Emergency Procedures (EP's). Cold. Period. Trust me, when the spinning thing in front stops spinning and you start sucking up the seat cushion, there is no time to be heads down fiddling through a checklist. Lastly, HAVE FUN! An infectious positive attitude and a genuine willingness to learn will be your greatest asset, and you are embarking on one of the great adventures known to man. Enjoy it!

Steve Weiner-Rennsport Systems

Best advice, ever!!!!

Jwolf427

Thank you for the great advise!

993/907

"Situational awareness"; may not mean much to you yet, but it will!

Gordo

Falcondrivr

Lots of pilots here. Check out the aviation section down at the bottom of the forum list. As said above, the pilots are mostly easy to pick out by our screen names.

cgfen

Don't let circumstances or other people's priorities rush you into a bad decision.

have fun