Yes another IFR or Instructor topic........

[justwanttofly]

Good afternoon,

I'm just over the 100hr mark, and know that instructing is the path I want to take. My hope is actually to make a career out of it and become a class one. What I'm wondering is if it would be beneficial for me to get my mifr right away, or wait until I've been instructing for a while? Right now, I'm unsure if I can afford to do both, but will this hurt my chances of getting a job?

Also education wise, I attended university for 2 years, which was a failed attempt since my mind was set on flying. I'm looking at going back to college or university but I'm unsure as to what for. Any suggestions as to a program that might assist in my pursuit of becoming a career instructor?

Thanks in advance,

justwanttofly

[Big Pistons Forever]

Justwannafly

I waited untill I had about 300 hrs of instructing (600 hrs TT) before I did my MEIFR. Frankly compared to the instructor rating I found it pretty easy and I was ride ready with 11 hrs in the aircraft. This was because I was flying every day and the stick and rudder skills I used instructing were extremely valuable at freeing up brain cells for the IFR procedures. I also found that the skills and knowledge teaching the use of the VOR and ADF made using these navaids automatic. Finally because I was an employee I got a significant break on simulator and aircraft costs.

Flying instruction is primarily day VFR flying, and as you are PIC from the get go, building good airmanship and PDM skills is very important and only come from expereince and practice. You want to use your build up time to get as much hands and feet VFR experience as possible. So visit lots of different airports, do some good long cross countries, fly on windy days and work at accurate flying. Work at holding your altitutude and airspeed precisely, keep the ball in the middle and pick your touch down points

Good luck.

[Bede]

Sound's like me. Did bad on university the first try around, then gor a BSc through Embry Riddle in Professional Aeronautics. You will get credit for the courses you got above 60% on, plus courses for you CPL.
http://worldwide.erau.edu/degrees-progr ... utics.html

[KAG]

Good on ya for wanting to do what few are willing, make a career out of instructing. If this is the path you truely want then wait on the IFR, as most of your instructing will be on singles anyway.
Getting your IFR early usually means you need to spend more money to get it renewed anyway as it's unlikely you'll be instructing on twins within a year anyway.
BTW, I truely enjoyed instructing, especially in twinns.

Good luck.

[iflyforpie]

I did my MIFR before my instructor rating, but I did it as part of my CPL build up and training (started at about the 100TT mark too).

More expensive CPL (I actually was working for the company and got a superb deal though) and huge learning curve, but left me with only the instructor rating to complete after my 200TT (cannot do an instructor rating without CPL).

Even if you don't use your MIFR, it will come in handy when teaching instruments and multi-engine stuff.

[justwanttofly]

Thank you for your replies

Right now my hours are 50dual and 52solo, all in a c172M/N. Knowing I'm going into the instructor field what planes or configurations would it be worth while for me to get checked out in/build time on? (Taildragger, float, 152, DA-20, 172SP) How many hours on each would be beneficial?

Also, could anyone provide some suggestions as to what to do for education, that would help me in my pursuit of being a career instructor?

Regards,

Justwanttofly

[Lurch]

Leave the MIFR until you are getting ready to teach IFR, yes I do hate this, but it'll be cheaper for you in the end. Most Flight schools will give you an employee rate and some instructors will actually teach you for free.

The only aircraft time I have found valuable for instructing is tail wheel, it'll make you a better pilot and it's very hard to find experienced tail wheel instructors so you'll have an "extra" skill set then most of your peers. As per Cessna/Diamond time, forget it. Just time build by going somewhere fun and far away. The more you have experienced before becoming an instructor the better you will be.

Most importantly

HAVE FUN

Lurch

[mike123]

Also, could anyone provide some suggestions as to what to do for education, that would help me in my pursuit of being a career instructor?

I'll make a wild guess and suggest you get a degree in adult education.

[zed]

Quote:
Also, could anyone provide some suggestions as to what to do for education, that would help me in my pursuit of being a career instructor?

I'll make a wild guess and suggest you get a degree in adult education.

+1 But I sometimes wonder if child psychology wouldn't be as useful...

[justwanttofly]

Thanks everyone

I will for sure look into doing some tail wheel training, just need to figure out where I can do it in the Edmonton/Calgary area. As per the adult/early child education route I'm not sure, but I will look into it also. I think I'm going to look into getting a diploma or something in management and maybe go beyond that should I desire to afterwards.

Right now, I'm studying like crazy for my written which I'm told is very difficult, so I'm giving it my undivided attention. I'm flying once per week. Can provide me with some insight as to what flight exercises I should devote to that one day per week?

Justwanttofly

[Shiny Side Up]

Can provide me with some insight as to what flight exercises I should devote to that one day per week?

Perfect your landings. Most pilots at your stage of the game I've seen start to let them slide. Fly to somewhere whith the smallest runway you're comfortable with and do some circuits there. Switch it up every week, you never know where your first job is going to be flying out of, so being able to adjust to every field you can is a good skill to build. Many pilots fly out of the same runway for a majority of their time building and suffer for it.

Secondly I would advise if you can't find a taildragger or are unable to get a float rating that you try out other schools and instructors occasionally. Its good to see how different operations work and you'll get an idea for what you think is a good school verses a bad one when you start your job hunt.

[Big Pistons Forever]

Can provide me with some insight as to what flight exercises I should devote to that one day per week?

Perfect your landings. Most pilots at your stage of the game I've seen start to let them slide. Fly to somewhere whith the smallest runway you're comfortable with and do some circuits there. Switch it up every week, you never know where your first job is going to be flying out of, so being able to adjust to every field you can is a good skill to build. Many pilots fly out of the same runway for a majority of their time building and suffer for it.

Secondly I would advise if you can't find a taildragger or are unable to get a float rating that you try out other schools and instructors occasionally. Its good to see how different operations work and you'll get an idea for what you think is a good school verses a bad one when you start your job hunt.

+1

[Captain Obvious]

The Namao Flying Club, out at Villeneuve (west of Edmonton), uses a Citabria for tail wheel training. $110/hour (solo), $155/hour (dual).
http://www.namaoflyingclub.com/fleet.ph ... aft=C-GIBB

[HAWK]

These are all great suggestions, when you do the instructor rating check out Slipstream Aviations Preparatory Ground INstruction Notes . This is where you spend most of your time prepping for a flight with your class 1, and it's all the "homework" part of the instructor training. I pick mine up from Calgary Pilot Supply.

[zed]

Those Slipstream Instructor Notes sound pretty good. Too bad I never knew about them when I was doing up my PGI's. But then again I learnt quite a bit more just going through the process of creating my own. Add in the fact that it may be a bit pricey at $167.

Actually from a quick look the ONLY place I found that sells them is the Calgary Pilot Shop. Not even an Amazon or Chapters listing. So taking all that into consideration, I would probably still have taken a pass on those things.

[Hedley]

help me in my pursuit of being a career instructor?

Some slightly orthogonal advice to the above ...

There are two kinds of lifetime instructors.

The first group are like me - we have (usually non-aviation) "day jobs" and we fly and instruct evenings and weekends. I have been doing this a long time, and intend to still be doing it many years from now. This arrangement has been very good to me - I am NOT dependent upon aviation as my primary source of income, so I can choose to do the kind of flying and instructing that I want to. Note that I have more fun than any ten other people that you know

http://www.pittspecials.com/images/sps09.jpg

That's me, inverted in the yellow Pitts, doing an airshow in central america. I do a lot of tailwheel/aerobatic/multi-engine/homebuilt/antique/warbird/jet instruction, and I like to think that maybe along the way I helped some people not wreck their slightly eccentric airplanes, and not kill themselves. People not wrecking airplanes and not dying in airplanes is really important to me, but curiously unimportant to many other people I know. How bizarre. I digress.


The second group are the true "career" instructors, whom instruct full-time as their "day job" and their primary source of income. Even though this kind of instructor is scorned and ridiculed by many here, they are the true heroes of aviation - they have given the gift of aviation to an incredible number of pilots, and as such have had quite an impact on aviation in Canada, even though they might not watch an Airbus fly itself very much.

My advice to any prospective "career" instructor is that sooner or later, you should probably end up owning and operating your own FTU, for a number of reasons which will become apparent to you as you instruct. The FTU should not be too small, or too big. Carefully choose the location (and climate) of your FTU - it will make a tremendous difference.

And, good luck!

[x-wind]

I was an instructor on singles to about 1,000 hours. I moved across the country and did a group 1 instrument rating. Upon completion of the rating, in the 10-15 hr range, I excepted the job offer to be a multi-ifr instructor. Although I maintain the rating, I am no longer an active flight instructor.

I'd take the post secondary that your interested in. An aviation medical is the key to being a commercial pilot and you could loose it, think plan B. Also, to be a career instructor I don't think there is any particular discipline thats going to lend itself over another to getting a job. For what its worth, I've an aviation diploma and it didn't help in that first instructing job.

Hedley would be a good mentor for you it sounds like.