2021 International Flight School Conference in Orlando Sees Strong Attendance and Industry Representation
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The time has come to stop delaying getting together for the flight training industry, and that meant getting OEM representatives, flight training providers, and industry representatives together in Orlando, FL for the 12th annual International Flight School Operators Conference at the Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando. If you are in the flight training community and weren't in attendance, you missed a big opportunity to engage with the flight training community and discuss key industry concerns.
Kicking off officially on Thursday, August 18th, conference host representatives from FSANA highlighted what work has been done through the last year, how the flight training industry modified itself through the effects of COVID, and what some of the expectations for moving forward look like.
FSANA is thankful to all the industry participants that joined each other for critical discussions, information sharing, and forecasting. The efforts of all of these organizations and individuals are a part of what makes our flight training industry more successful and effective at creating the trained workforce to serve in the pilot seats of the United States and beyond.
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Federal Agencies Update Flight Training Community in Panel
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Filling the typical first session slot for the conference, FSANA welcomed representatives from the FAA and TSA to talk with attendees about current federal activities and upcoming work that is potentially impactful to the flight training industry. Some were able to join in person, and some joined in a digital manner, but all were able to address attendees with good information directly applicable to their flight training efforts.
Everette Rochon and Trey McClue who work within the FAA focusing on airman testing and training sections highlighted some of the work that the FAA is currently doing and that may be upcoming in the near future relating to LODA concerns in experimental, primary category, and special-use aircraft, potential changes being considered with CFI renewal requirements and training requirements for new CFI applicants, along with the current status of the FAA Designated Pilot Examiner program and potential improvements that are being considered.
Johan Knudsen from the Department of Homeland Security followed their discussion with highlights noting that the TSA (expectedly) saw a significant decrease in training requests for non-US citizens during the past year as affected by COVID restrictions. His indications noted that through some extension of training approvals and with the lessening of restrictions over the past few months, those requests have returned to nearly equivalent levels as experienced in pre-COVID business periods. This is an indication that foreign student training is returning to more normalized levels for many flight training providers who focus on doing so for international customers.
Finishing the panel, Brian Throop, Deputy Vice President Air Traffic Services, from the FAAs Air Traffic spent time discussing how air traffic facilities were affected over the past year, how traffic control facilities responded, and how they have made changes to provide good air traffic control service to the aviation industry. This service is critical to many flight training providers who operate at or need to send their students to, airports with air traffic control facilities.
The interaction between the industry and these and other federal agencies is critical to collaboration and the continued efficient delivery of flight training services. FSANA is thankful and appreciative of the efforts this year’s participants and their teams give to the industry to help keep the flight training pipeline flowing.
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Airlines Note Coming Concern Over Hiring Pilots from the Flight Training Pilot Production Pipeline
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The flow of pilots to airline employment is a critical metric and target for most flight training providers. For many of the customers flight training providers serve, this is the end goal of their professional training efforts. As such, an important part of every FSANA conference is the integration of airline representatives into the program. This was no different this year.
Tyler Tenbrink from Piedmont Airlines and Nancy Hocking from JetBlue Airways spent an afternoon session briefing attendees on some of the effects on pilot hiring and recruitment as a result of COVID and as the industry moves forward. While the industry saw a drawdown of traffic for a period of time worst affected by COVID, that travel is coming back strong.
One of the major effects of COVID business decisions at airlines was offering many early retirement packages, of which many senior pilots took advantage. The result is that as airline travel again grows, those pilots are not returning to service and the airlines will need to backfill those positions. By some estimates, it appears that currently, airline travel is back to about 80-85% of what it was pre-COVID, but that the majority of those travelers are pleasure travelers. This has a major effect on the profitability of the airlines, as business travelers have traditionally been the most profitable. But as business travel comes back additionally, the airlines will need to serve a fuller volume of flight operations.
To do this, active hiring is expected in the very near future.
It was noted the industry should expect to see revised, and potentially highly attractive, hiring efforts and benefits being offered in the upcoming weeks and months.
We all know that active and vibrant airline industry is a positive thing for the aviation industry, but it will also have effects on the flight training industry. Many of the hirings that take place for service as pilots in airline operations recruit heavily from the flight instructor staff that training providers maintain and need to provide their services. This relationship is going to be critical as the industry goes forward to not only fill airline pilot positions but also to ensure that flight instructor staffing can be maintained to keep providing training for future generations of employees.
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FSANA Announces 1st Annual Designated Pilot Examiners Symposium October 26-27, 2021 in Nashville, TN
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FSANA is hosting the first annual symposium for the flight examiner community in Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday and Wednesday, October 26-27, 2021. Tuesday includes sessions beginning at 2:00 and an evening reception. Wednesday is packed with a full day of sessions. The symposium will bring together designated pilot examiners and those interested in becoming DPEs to share and exchange information which will lead to improvements in the examiner segment. FAA officials are planning to attend and participate.
The event warms up on Tuesday, October 26 at 2:00 pm with a session for those wanting to become DPEs in the future plus three general sessions. The following day is comprised of a series of general sessions along with a workshop where attendees will break into smaller groups.
Topics of importance to the work of DPEs and how the flight training community work together will include:
- Tips and tricks of DMS and IACRA for DPEs
- Delivering good customer service as a DPE while also providing quality testing
- Plans of action details and management
- How flight schools and DPEs integrate for success
- and many other topics
Designated pilot examiners (DPEs) form the backbone of the airman practical testing system in America. There are over 800 DPEs in the designee system and they are responsible for providing over 40,000 airman practical tests each year.
ROOM RESERVATIONS
For FSANA symposium dates October 26-27, 2021, reserve rooms by Monday, October 4 for a special rate of $139.00 single/double plus tax. After this date rates may be higher or rooms may not be available.
Group code: FSA
RESERVE A ROOM BY PHONE: 844-886-4136
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Pre-Conference Meetings Get Work Done Too
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While the official kickoff to the FSANA Flight School Operators Conference was on Thursday, August 19th, Wednesday was a day of meetings and work ahead of the main program content.
Beginning on Wednesday, FSANA committee members spent time discussing safety targets for the flight training industry. A hot topic for flight training providers
Proceeding into the mid-morning meetings, committee members and manufacturing representatives focused on the challenges flight training industry participants are experiencing with sourcing aircraft for flight training. Details about aging aircraft fleets, production capacity, and needs of flight training providers were shared and compared. The major takeaway from this is that there is a brewing problem regarding the lack of available, non-aging, and affordable aircraft assets that are likely to affect the structural ability of flight training providers to provide full pilot training throughput in the near future.
A last committee meeting for the DPE workgroup focused on progress being made with regard to reliable provision of practical tests throughout the training and testing system. Challenges were discussed with regard to the timing of availability of tests, pricing, and consistency of testing content. While these topics continue to pose some challenges, work is positively being made and the industry representatives and the FAA continue to work together closely to enhance and improve the quality of and ability to source pilot practical tests to ensure the throughput of pilot training is not hindered due to lack of testing capacity.
Final sessions on “the day before the conference” were focused on helping flight schools who might be interested in accreditation or those who are interested in starting new flight schools. Established schools and experienced industry professionals took the time to share experience and answer questions from attendees who are entering the business of flight training. There is no doubt that this is one of the strongest benefits of FSANA and the conference, the sharing of information that makes our entire training industry more effective and efficient.
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FSANA Youth Envoy, Afton Kinkade Receives First Vern Moyer Training Scholarship
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While joining conference attendees for a lunch discussion about her training progression, FSANA Youth Envoy, Afton Kincaid was presented with the first-ever Vern Moyer Flight Training Scholarship.
Afton is currently starting her flight training in gliders and has a career goal of flying for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA). FSANA is excited to continue to share her progression as the youth envoy.
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Sharing Information Between Flight training Providers Offers Improvement
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Historically, many flight training providers have been resistant to sharing their “trade secrets” of how they run their operations. Working to change that paradigm, FSANA has been bringing attendees together at its conferences for 12 years to share information to improve all flight training providers throughout the overall training system. A key part of this included a mix of seminars on a variety of topics.
Break-out sessions during the day helped flight training operators share information about marketing, use of simulators, employment relationships, aircraft maintenance, and asset utilization to name only a few.
Sharing information between flight training providers has the potential to share best business practices between operators to improve flight training throughout the system. A special thanks are due to the industry members and participants who worked hard to share information with attendees at this year’s conference.
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ARTICLES OF INTEREST FROM THE INDUSTRY
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DPEs Available to Travel to Help Training Providers Source Practical Tests
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FSANA has been collecting DPE names who have expressed a willingness to travel to help flight training providers secure practical tests since our last newsletter.
This list is published on the FSANA website and is kept up-to-date with contact information, so if you are a flight training provider who is finding a challenge of scheduling DPEs in your local area, feel free to reach out to these individuals and you may be able to have them help serve some of your local testing needs.
This effort is being made in general, but also as many DPEs have self selected to delay a return to providing practical tests during the effects of COVID-19 periods and in some locations. FSANA will continue to hep provide this information as the flight training industry continues to move forward with both new and existing students in all phases of their training.
If you are a DPE who is not on this list but would like to be, please let us know by emailing us at info@fsana.com with your email and phone number and we will add you.
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FLIGHT SCHOOL BUSINESS EXCHANGE
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College of DuPage seeks full-time, tenure track faculty member/s to teach Aviation courses starting in Fall, 2021. Faculty duties include classroom instruction, assessment, curriculum development, advising students, professional inquiry, committee work and engaging with instructional technology.
Teaching responsibilities may include both stand-alone developmental writing courses and co-requisite, accelerated, or paired sections of developmental and first-year college writing. Teaching assignments may include various delivery modes, such as face-to-face, on-line, hybrid and/or blended formats during days, evenings and weekends. Click here for more information.
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Flight Instructor Wanted - Potential to Transition to SIC Charter Work in Navajo
Teach basic and advanced flight and ground training with university affiliated school in Tobyhanna, PA at Moyer Aviation. If interested, contact vern.moyer@moyeraviation.com.
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International CFIs Available to Work
International CFIs available to work immediately with two years of work authorization in the United States. Most of the candidates have both CFI and CFII. Please contact Brett Hart (503) 726-8378 or email bhart@flyhaa.com if you have any openings.
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University Air Center Flight School, Gainesville Florida Looking for Certified Flight Instructors-Instrument for a full time busy flight school. We fly Piper Warrior, Cessna 172 (G1000), Cessna 182 (Garmin glass), Cessna 210 and Piper Aztec. We have the option of time as flight instructor then move into the Caravan for Part 91 operations then to our Charter department flying Citation Jets. Come join the UAC team! Email resume to PamL@universityaircenter.com.
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Flight School Needs Cessna 172 Aircraft Ocean City, Maryland
If you have Cessna 172 aircraft that might be useable in a flight training program, contact Mike at mfreed@flyoceanaviation.com to discuss possibilities.
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Tell us what is important to you as a school owner, manager or chief flight instructor. We will share comments in an upcoming edition of Flight Training News. Send your thoughts to info@fsana.com.
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FSANA SUPPORTING PARTNERS
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V I S I O N A R Y •• P A R T N E R S
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D E V E L O P E R •• P A R T N E R S
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B U I L D E R •• P A R T N E R S
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L E A D E R •• P A R T N E R S
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2021 BRONZE CONFERENCE SPONSOR
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Established in 2009, the Flight School Association of North America (FSANA) is the first and only association of its kind dedicated solely to the flight training industry. FSANA represents flight schools, firms that provide products and services to the flight training or aviation industry, and other supporting partners.
The Mission of the Flight School Association is to support, promote and advocate for the business of flight training; to provide knowledge, programs and services that help its members thrive and better serve their customers and communities; to foster best business practices; to educate and inspire youth; to increase the global pilot population; to improve general aviation safety; and to work in alliance with the aviation and aerospace industry.
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