May 30 2017 issue of Flight School Business

VOL. 7-ISSUE 11-5/30/2017

TRAINING TRENDS

Project Preflight

How sharp are your customers’ preflight skills? There’s an easy and fun way to find out: a preflight challenge. The FAA holds a Project Preflight event at Sun ‘n Fun each year. This year’s challenge, conducted with SunState Aviation, yielded some surprises. READ MORE ›

NEWS

Flight Training Experience Survey opens

What better way to elevate the service you provide than by seeing yourself through the eyes of your clients? When your customers take the 2017 Flight Training Experience Survey, you get the chance to be nationally recognized in our Flight Training Experience Awards, including coverage in a special edition of Flight Training magazine, AOPA’s website, and AOPA Live. Plus, you’ll get invaluable customer feedback if you receive at least five valid responses to the survey. READ MORE ›

New, revised Airman Certification Standards published

Airman Certification Standards (ACS) for the commercial pilot-airplane certificate have been published, along with the first revisions to the ACS for the private pilot-airplane certificate and instrument rating for airplanes. All take effect June 12. Notably, the Area of Operation on slow flight and stalls calls for an applicant to “establish and maintain an airspeed at which any further increase in angle of attack, increase in load factor, or reduction in power, would result in a stall warning.” The current ACS requires the applicant to establish an airspeed approximately five to 10 knots above the 1G stall speed, at which the airplane is capable of maintaining controlled flight without activating a stall warning. READ MORE ›

Frasca updating UND simulator fleet

Frasca International has begun updating the University of North Dakota’s fleet of flight training devices by adding new simulators that feature the Garmin G1000 NXi digital avionics suite. To date, a Piper Seminole simulator has been delivered, with three more devices simulating the university’s Piper Archers and Seminoles scheduled for July. The process will span several years. READ MORE ›

More than 5,000 BasicMed pilots and counting

More than 5,000 pilots have taken advantage of the new BasicMed regulations. The rules took effect May 1. AOPA has a suite of online tools in its Fit to Fly resources section to help pilots learn more about BasicMed. If you have customers who have been out of the cockpit for a while, AOPA offers a Rusty Pilots program designed to get pilots back into flying. READ MORE ›

Bahamas welcomes BasicMed pilots

Florida flight schools: Your fly-outs to the Bahamas can include BasicMed pilots. The Bahamas Civil Aviation Authority announced that pilots can fly under the new FAA certification. The Bahamas is the first international destination to welcome BasicMed pilots. READ MORE ›

POLL

Cancellations

Do you charge for cancelled/missed lessons? Take this week’s survey.

Results

In the May 2, 2017, issue, we wanted to know if your flight school offers accelerated training. Here are the results:

<em>Flight School Business</em>

MARKETING

Gift certificates as advertising

You should sell gift certificates—and you should also donate them as prizes for local marathons and fundraising events. Ed Helmick explains why this can be a highly effective, inexpensive way to market your flight school. READ MORE ›

QUICK TIP

Airplanes only earn revenue when they fly. What can you do if a customer cancels a lesson or a rental? Keep a list of clients who might be available to fly on short notice. Encourage your flight instructors to find customers who are willing to fly solo or dual when someone else cancels.

SAFETY

What are you missing?

About 70 percent of all accidents can be traced to something the pilot did or failed to do. Performing an inadequate preflight leads to consequences that range from comical to catastrophic. David Jack Kenny provides more insights. READ MORE ›

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Flight School Business Editor:
Jill W. Tallman

Production Specialist:
Sylvia Horne

Advertising Production Coordinator:
Donna Stoner

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