Watching my wife go through flight training...

[NT5224]

Hi folks!

 

I’m really proud of my wife who’s currently going through her RAA flight training. Each weekend I’m there at the strip on pretence of mowing outside the hangar or tinkering with our aircraft, watching her flying her circuits with her instructor and doing a little dance each time she greases her ‘touch and goes’. I reckon she’s showing really aptitude and I’m really, really proud of her!

 

But also we now spent time discussing aspects of flying and the RAA training syllabus. She has questions for me and I try and explain things as well as I can to help her understanding of flight and airmanship. But funnily enough, the process of thinking things through to construct my responses and offer her advice on her training is almost certainly making me a better aviator too. I’ve already realised a number of errors and shortcuts I take with my own flying and am determined to correct them.

 

My wife isn’t bitten by the aviation bug but just sees flying as a practical skill to have, given that we own an aircraft.

 

Anyway, as I said above, really proud of her progress. Anybody else had a wife, husband or significant other go through flight training? If so, did it help your own flying too?

 

Cheers

 

Alan

 

 

[onetrack]

The experts reckon you should never try to teach a spouse or any offspring, to drive, fly, or otherwise teach them to operate anything.

 

The principle behind this is that you're teaching them your bad habits, that become bad family habits.

 

Not all spouses or parents are good teachers, either. It takes real talent, and some training, to become a decent teacher. Patience is certainly a highly desirable character trait for teaching.

 

Recognising where students are not picking up on the lessons being taught, is also important - as well as trying a different tack in the training method, to get improved results.

 

Then there's the relationship angle that tends to affect results, when as a spouse or parent, you're in "teacher" mode. Disagreements about methods or learning techniques can filter into relationships and affect them.

 

Someone professional from outside the family is most desirable as a teacher. There's no emotional attachment or close personal relationship to get in the way.

 

If you're learning and improving from discussing procedures and techniques with your wife, that's good. It shows she's learning properly from her professional instructor.

 

 

[Geoff_H]

Wish I could just get my wife to get into a light aircraft on the ground, let alone in the air. To give her her due, she travelled around the early days of owning the Mooney, though the copilot's hand strap got severely deformed. Then no way, sold the Mooney. Now building a single seat.

 

 

[SSCBD]

This is my worst nightmare - I am really terrified when she drives the car and I am in it.

 

 

[farri]

Hi folks!I’m really proud of my wife who’s currently going through her RAA flight training. Each weekend I’m there at the strip on pretence of mowing outside the hangar or tinkering with our aircraft, watching her flying her circuits with her instructor and doing a little dance each time she greases her ‘touch and goes’. I reckon she’s showing really aptitude and I’m really, really proud of her! :happy dance:Alan

G`Day Alan, I take it she`s flying a "Real Plane"?... ...Good on here and all the best with it! If you eventually fly together, don`t fight over the controls!

After landing on her first solo, a lady I instructed, got off the Drifter, layed down on here back, did a little dance with her arms and legs in the air, squealed for joy and said, and I quote, " If only my mother could see me know!"...I also instructed her partner and they flew together for several years, firstly in their Drifter then in their LightWing, nicknamed, " The Yellow Peril "...There are probably some on here who would know who I`m talking about.

 

This is my worst nightmare - I am really terrified when she drives the car and I am in it.

I got so fed up with Frances`s anxiety when she was with and I was driving that I came to the conclusion, it was better to let he drive, if I was in the car!... ...Works just fine! I don`t have any anxiety with her driving! We`re off to Cains this morning and I`ll just sit back and watch the world go by.

Frank.

 

 

[facthunter]

The theory you will teach "her" your bad habits may have some validity with some people but you might also have some valuable knowledge to pass on as well.. Knowing how to fly doesn't mean you can just teach people HOW to fly. You have to be able to pass on that knowledge in an effective way. An explanation that is perfectly OK for one may make no sense to someone else, and in the early stages you don't overload or confuse the student. There's a time to extend the complexity of the operation, like lowering flaps in a turn, sideslipping on approach etc. Common later on but not done initially.. Nev

 

 

[Old Koreelah]

...I’m really proud of my wife who’s currently going through her RAA flight training...

Great to hear, Alan. Some of us envy you; others are glad they can get away from the Mrs. and go flying.I'm with Frank- although I'd never admit it to her, I trust my wife's driving and enjoy the chance to watch the world go by.

 

 

[naremman]

My late first wife gained a Restricted Pilots Licence in the early 1980's, learning on our Airtourer. I left the the instruction entirely up to two very experienced Instructors. Whenever we flew together she was in the left seat and got the first call. The added bonus was navigation was my department, which was one of the few opportunities I had to successfully tell her where to go!

 

We often used to joke that should divorce ever be considered, if the lady was to initiate proceedings an aircraft would be in close proximity, and if the gent was kicking thing off it would be within a shopping mall.

 

 

[fatmal]

This is my worst nightmare - I am really terrified when she drives the car and I am in it.

Many years ago I saw a television interview with Juha Kankkunen (sp?), at the time World Rally Champion, and the interviewer asked him "When you go for a drive with your wife, who drives?"

His response - "She does, until she gets sick of me telling her to brake later, turn in here, gas it now - and then she lets me drive"

 

 

[dsam]

My “significant other” is a terrible back seat driver when I’m driving a car, but airborne, she couldn’t be a better passenger, so I’m very fortunate. I’ve suggested she could learn to fly too (from someone else, of course) but she shows no interest in learning.

 

I’m just happy that she is so comfortable being airborne (even when it is quite turbulent), and I can plan joint trips away without hassle.

 

 

[FlyingVizsla]

We both fly; I have more hours than him. Guess that's why he wants to do all the flying now.

 

As for driving, again I have more miles on the road, and with less accidents. That's why he keeps telling me how to do it, and insists on doing the driving.

 

As he keeps saying "I taught you all I know .... and you still know nothing .... "

 

Gotta luv him.

 

 

[Jiefuster]

A good sized second seat is importnat. Where else would you fit the fuel/tent/spare cothes/tie downs/.......

 

 

[facthunter]

My wife was a better navigator and planner than a back seat driver in a car. Her loading was SUSS though, as she would want to take too much stuff .She refuses to fly with others. (I must be doing something right) . Suffers from claustrophobia so a lot of Ultralights are out of the question. She liked Citabria Good downwards viz and solid feel.. I used to have her come on the controls for take off and landing but she doubted she would achieve a good landing if I was indisposed. Having your support capable of doing a landing has something going for it..You don't want some sort competition going on in the cockpit , though if that's likely. You must work as a team. This sat from yesterday. I got called to the phone Nev

 

 

[NT5224]

Yesterday I got an interesting new perspective on my wife's flying. I flew into our local airfield while she was training in the circuit. I first heard her voice just before I gave my own ten mile inbound call, then could hear her giving her circuit calls. She sounded great! I crossed overhead midfield as she was on finals and dropped into the downwind leg. It was just our two aircraft around and because her instructor wanted her to experience more circuit traffic, I followed her in the circuit for two 'touch-and-goes', before she stopped for a coffee break. Its the first time I've been in the air with my significant other -both of us flying separate planes!

 

As I wrote before, I'm extremely proud of her progress.... She'll make a great aviator!

 

Alan

 

 

[Guest Guest]

Yesterday I got an interesting new perspective on my wife's flying. I flew into our local airfield while she was training in the circuit. I first heard her voice just before I gave my own ten mile inbound call, then could hear her giving her circuit calls. She sounded great! I crossed overhead midfield as she was on finals and dropped into the downwind leg. It was just our two aircraft around and because her instructor wanted her to experience more circuit traffic, I followed her in the circuit for two 'touch-and-goes', before she stopped for a coffee break. Its the first time I've been in the air with my significant other -both of us flying separate planes!As I wrote before, I'm extremely proud of her progress.... She'll make a great aviator!

Alan

You followed her in the circuit? You obviously know your place....hehehe:oh yeah: My ex wife whom I sold many years ago never had any interest in aviation, just the money I made from it!!

[Yenn]

This idea that you may teach bad habits would be OK if instructors couldn't do so. the sad thing is that as far as car driving instructors go there are some I would not let loose with a perambulator. Their driving is poor and they have little idea of what is going on around them.

 

I would not want to teach flying, but I have taught many to drive heavy vehicles.

 

 

[Riley]

You followed her in the circuit? You obviously know your place....hehehe:oh yeah: My ex wife whom I sold many years ago never had any interest in aviation, just the money I made from it!!

You managed to sell your ex-wife?? My experience was the exact opposite. At the time, I would have been more than happy to turn her into a cash cow rather than just a great-expense single cow.

 

 

[Guest Guest]

You managed to sell your ex-wife?? My experience was the exact opposite. At the time' date=' I would have been more than happy to turn her into a cash cow rather than just a great-expense single cow. [img']https://www.recreationalflying.com/xf_step/upload/uploads/emoticons/016_ecstatic.gif.589e91a21dd797f2d651a6973a4d582e.gif[/img]

Haha, it's a figure of speech, either way the most obstructive part of my flying life was removed with glee & expense, never looked back!!

 

 

[Nightmare]

You followed her in the circuit? You obviously know your place....hehehe:oh yeah: My ex wife whom I sold many years ago never had any interest in aviation, just the money I made from it!!

It's a circuit, who was following who?

 

[PommyRick]

I'd be interested in my wife doing some flight training or a pilot companion course. She enjoys flying with me, but probably doesn't have enough interest to go through the full training program, but at least having perhaps 10 hours or so with an instructor would be a bonus.

 

 

[facthunter]

There were moves in that direction some years back. Don't think CASA ever supported it. It has to have some good aspects to it. Knowledge is not there to be just sat on or restricted where it could improve things. You can't forbid people from studying how to fly publications or reading on Instrument flying. Some things would be fraught with danger by limiting the experience available.. In the I/F situation, reading and basic simulators may engender a confidence not deserved regarding "Seat of the Pants" input which tends to bring low time pilots in this area unstuck. Real flight time is essential and recency needed.Nev