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| SAFE represents more than 1,500 of the industry's top aviation educators in 49 states and nine foreign countries, including the majority of Master Instructors and numerous General Aviation Awards winners in all four awards categories. |
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Congratulations, SAFE Member Zoan Harclerode
2017 National Best Flight Instructor
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SAFE Member Zoan Harclerode, who instructs with Rocky Mountain Flight Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO, was honored last month as the AOPA National Flight Training 2017 Best Flight Instructor. Her training fleet includes a T-41B and T-41C, as well as a Cessna 172, Cessna 182 and a Beech Baron.
"The award was based on her passion for aviation, and care that inspires her students," said SAFE Board Chair David St. George. "According to the nomination forms, she always takes time to meet the individual's needs, whether that means help completing Veterans Administration paperwork, preparing study materials, or receiving some additional ground school to grasp a challenging bit of flight training learning."
Harclerode is the third SAFE member to win AOPA's Best Flight Instructor honor. In 2016, SAFE member Brenda Tibbs was the recipient, and in 2015 the honor went to SAFE member Todd Shellnut.
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Live Streaming Thursday, November 16 at 8 PM EST
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Famed aerobatic performer Patty Wagstaff and "The Spin Doctor" Rich Stowell will be featured live in an
interactive streaming seminar
at 8 PM Eastern (0000Z) presented by SAFE and Gold Seal Ground Schools. This seminar was rescheduled from August.
The two top aerobats will provide advice on teaching techniques to help students avoid the number one fatal accident scenario, inflight loss of control. For more on inflight loss of control, see the SAFE Resource Center.
This FAA "Wings" approved seminar is part of SAFE's CFI Professionalism series, created for CFIs and other aviation educators and featuring top instructors nationally giving their tips on specific subjects. The SAFE series has been running since July.
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SAFE Represents Members at
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SAFE Supporter Hal Shevers and SAFE Board Chair David St. George
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Flight Instructor members of SAFE were well represented at industry get-togethers this fall, including AOPA's regional events at Groton CT and the annual flight-training oriented Redbird Migration at Oshkosh WI.
"It was wonderful to meet SAFE members and our generous industry sponsors at Groton," reported SAFE Chair David St. George. "These regional shows have been drawing large crowds. They're ideal places for SAFE to connect with our members and supporters."
More than 6,000 people gathered to see the almost 500 GA airplanes landing. including a corporate jet with long-time SAFE supporter Hal Shevers of Sporty's Pilot Shop. Shevers himself was the pilot. David reported that the weather was warm for October and everyone enjoyed a dinner and music out on the ramp.
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| KSU Flight Program Installs Flight Data Monitoring |
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Kansas State University Polytechnic Campus is improving its training capability with a flight data monitoring (FDM) system in its Cessna 172 and Beech G36 aircraft. The program, used with existing hardware, was created by
CAPACG
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"Working with the company's FlyteAnalytics™ has allowed us to improve the quality of our training through our Flight Operations Quality Assurance Program," said John Dahl, teaching assistant professor. "Because of this, we're able to provide students with top-of-the-line education and training, furthering the experience matters mission of K-State Polytechnic."
"A solid flight data management program is a crucial part of a safety management system providing risk management and safety assurance," said Larry McCarroll, CEO of CAPACG. "It complements a safety management system and has the ability to process large quantities of flight data from current and future technically advanced aircraft."
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NOTAM Education Issued In FAA Safety Briefing
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 Just a month after SAFE called on the FAA to push for reform of the overburdened NOTAM system, the FAA Safety Briefing magazine has issued a
48 page PDF of a PowerPoint show
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which is excellent for helping new pilots understand the system.
This year, two of the top five FAA safety initiatives concerned the NOTAM system, including a key SAFE education priority, the inability of either ATC or pilots to distinguish between applicable or pertinent NOTAMs. In 2016, nearly two million NOTAMs were issued.
"Two million NOTAMs is an absurd burden for pilots searching for the one or two that may apply to their flight," said Kevin D Murphy, SAFE Communications Director. "It's like the common abbreviation used in social media posts, tl;dr, which stands for Too Long; Didn't Read." He added that the FAA Safety Briefing publication was ideal for helping students and other low-time pilots catch up on how NOTAMs work and how they are issued.
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What Really Happens When You Violate a Presidential TFR?
A Real-Life Story
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Rumors and myths about what happens when a pilot flies into a Presidential TFR have been rampant ever since September 2001. But when students ask their instructor "what really happens," what do you say? Something about interception, detention, or being shot down?
Finally,
a first-hand account of an inadvertent TFR violation
has been published by GA Safety Briefing, the FAA publication. It tells the story of one Dan Lightner of Carlisle PA, who relied on his iPad and a leading GPS navigation application for a warning. Unfortunately, an electronic quirk in his device caused a failure to display the area as a TFR.
"Showing a student this story will give them a much better understanding of what happens," said SAFE Communications Director Kevin D Murphy. "We thank Mr. Lightner for his bravery in making his experience available to other pilots."
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Update on ATC Privatization
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At press time, the U.S. House had not yet voted on legislation (HR 2997) that would remove the nation's ATC system from the FAA and turn it over to airlines and other commercial interests. The legislation is part of a larger bill to fund the FAA. 
"Many flight instructors don't realize the damage a privatized ATC could do to the flight training industry," said SAFE Board chair David St. George. "Among other things, an airline-controlled ATC could very well impose user fees that would devastate our industry. They could also shut out GA aircraft from major airports and change, or deny, many ATC services that are offered to GA today."
HR 2997 is being pushed by Pennsylvania Representative Bill Shuster, who said he still expects the bill to come to a vote but is unsure of the timing, since the House and Senate are both currently focused on tax reform.
The FAA's spending authority for programs expires on March 31.
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SAFE Toolkit Featured in FAA DPE Newsletter
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The
SAFE Toolkit App, the "go-to news and tools" application for professional aviation educators, was featured in the most recent
FAA Quarterly Examiner Update. The newsletter goes to all FAA Designated Pilot Examiners and FAA inspectors nationwide.
The Toolkit is available free to both Android and Apple device users and contains all the necessary CFI endorsements and experience requirements for all pilot certificates and ratings. In addition it offers near-real-time weather, Skyvector charts and FlightAware.
There are currently some 2,400 active users of the SAFE Toolkit.
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High School STEM Educator Symposium November 6 and 7
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Registration is still available for the two-day AOPA High School Aviation STEM Symposium, the only such event in the nation that specifically targets aviation and aerospace material high school teachers. It will be held in the American Airlines C.R. Smith Museum in Fort Worth, TX on November 6 and 7, 2017.
Registration
is $260, and includes admission to all education sessions and networking opportunities at an evening reception with cocktails and light hors d'oeuvres. It also features an exclusive tour of American Airline's C.R. Smith Museum, which houses a restored 1940 Douglas DC-3, the Flagship Knoxville and daily shows a 4K digital "Pursuit of Flight" video, featuring the history and physics of aviation from ancient times through the present.
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Preventable Tragedies: "Not How I Planned That..."
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 SAFE Board Member Parvez Dara, in a recent article in the SAFE Blog, points out that more than three-quarters of all GA accidents are attributed to pilot error, and asks, "If we as pilots know of all the various ways of crashing an airplane, why do we keep doing it?"
He cites basic pilot errors, including use of fuzzy logic and disregard of the most basic precautions that CFIs teach every day, such as a thorough preflight, even though it's rare to find anything wrong.
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New SAFE Blog Entries
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SAFE Chair David St. George argues that ratings, hours of dual given or accolades from the FAA are not sure indicators of a great pilot. "Personally, I would argue it is a passionate, professional educator who consistently prepares safe, confident, skillful pilots at many levels from a diverse pool of clients."
'Teachable Moments' are often small goofs that happen to result in self-correction, with guided feedback from the aviation educator. They are also one of an instructor's strongest learning tools. To learn how to apply such teaching techniques, read this blog entry.
Please dust off your writing skills and
send us an article for our SAFE blog...share *your* ideas and experiences.
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Master Instructor Activity
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A veteran of the United States Marine Corps and the Navy, Nick is a retired Naval Aviator who teaches for
Aviation Performance Solutions LLC
at Dothan Regional Airport in Dothan, Alabama. He specializes in upset prevention, recovery, stall / spin, and aerobatic training.
Lara Gaerte
of Fort Wayne, IN renewed her Master CFI accreditation in October through
Master Instructors, LLC.
This marks the sixth renewal of her Master Instructor designation.
Lara is the president as well as airplane division director of the Air Race Classic and is a FAASTeam representative in the FAA's Grand Rapids FSDO. Additionally, she serves as CEO, manager, and chief pilot of
Century Aviation,
a full-service FBO at Indiana's DeKalb County Airport.
The Master Instructor designation is a national accreditation recognized by the FAA and is earned through a rigorous process of continuing professional activity and peer review. This process parallels continuing education regimens used by other professionals to enhance their knowledge base while increasing their professionalism.
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Fly SAFE, please
Step Up for SAFE this holiday season and support us through
Amazon Smile (Everything you buy gives a percentage to SAFE at *no* cost to you)! Thanks.
David St. George, Chair
Society of Aviation and Flight Educators
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Copyright SAFE, Inc. 2017. All rights reserved.
SAFE, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) Tax-Exempt Public Charity
[email protected] |
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through FAA Safety.gov for Master Wings eligibility.
