Originally Posted by
MEMpilot
I guess torture can change behavior in some circumstances.
On a similar note, has anyone ever done a Flight Review for a really out-of-date, low-time GA pilot? Or even been with a low-time student and seen the behavior of being very 'heavy' on the controls?
I feel like in eight months of instruction, I've become pretty comfortable with untrained strangers holding the yoke, but these guys made me very nervous because they tend to want to overpower you in controlling the plane. For instance, I did (still in the process) a Flight Review for a low-time, out-of-date GA pilot who hadn't flown in fifteen years. He wanted to overpower me on the controls during a hefty crosswind and when taxiing, he wanted to deflect the rudder pedals very wildly while ramping up the tach to 2000 RPM to get the plane moving! Even after reminding him many times, he still is very heavy on the pedals and yoke and feels it necessary to jam in an excessive amount of power to get the plane rolling out of parking, the runup area, etc.
What to do with these folks, I don't know---but I'm definitely not going to put my signature on a guy's logbook for Flight Review who man handles the aircraft.
These guys are most times the worst, because they think they "Still got it." Honestly, pull the mixture on them while taxiing if they push up 2000RPM again, and shut it down. Then tell them to get everything clear of the controls and demonstrate how you want it done, and that is the only way it is to be done. Being authoritative with this type of student is the only way to break them of the bad habits they have gained(or kept).