Teen Pilot
 

Any pilots out there who have experience with teens trying to get their private license?

My son is 15 and 10 hours in to the process and doing very well. Apparently FSX isn't a waste of time when it comes to preparing to fly for real.......

As a non pilot I have studied as much as I can about the process and been very selective in where my son trains and who is instructor is.

I am looking for anyone out there who has experience with teens and the experience of becoming a pilot.

We want to encourage his progress but want to make sure he is safe and has all the tools he needs before ever flying solo.

I started flying when I was 12. I flew all throughout my teens, soloed at 16 and got the private certificate at 17. I was so fortunate to have parents like yourself who saw something I loved and decided to let me chase that dream. 22 years later I'm at my dream job flying at a US major airline. I'm constantly thankful that my parents allowed me to fly at that age!

As far as using flight simulators... Go for it. I was always on my PC back then using flight simulator. I'd make flight plans, figure out approach charts, and even taught myself how to use VOR's and NDB's. It's all good and will keep your kid engaged when not flying the real thing.

Also, one huge piece of advice. This is easier said than done. Get an instructor that'll last. You don't want to constantly be changing instructors over the years if you can help it. Someone who can also be a mentor will help immensely when your kid gets a little distracted with other teenage stuff (trust me, it'll happen).
I'm still in contact with my old instructor to this day, and credit him with really shaping my perceptions of what I wanted to do with this career.

Good luck, and feel free to send me a PM any time.

Understand your concern, much like the mother Robin kicking the kid over the side. He'll be fine. an early start is the right way to go. The young pick it up in short order. Keeping their attention is a whole 'nother thing.:D

You know your son best. I have several children; some were ready to learn to drive when the arrived at that age, others not. Each was unique.

I've taught teens to fly, and I began flying when I was fifteen. I soloed when I was sixteen, did my private at seventeen, commericl at eighteen, and began flying commercially at eighteen. I'm not a spring chicken any more, and have been doing this my teen and entire adult life. In the early years, there were a number of times that passengers or clients asked to see my drivers license for an age check (sadly, no one ever asks now...).

There was no computer simulation when I was learning to fly. I think there's merit in the use of computer games (microsoft pesonal computer uses aren't simulators; they're games), but not to learn to fly. They can be used to reinforce lessons after the fact, but can cause bad habits and false learning to be carried into a lesson if used improperly. Take the lesson, learn a move, maneuver, or technique, then repeat it on the "simulation." Don't try to learn something on the home computer, then bring it to the cockpit.

Simulation is a very well recognized part of training, particularly in advanced aircraft where cost and capability limit what can really be done in the airplane. There's a big difference between a real simulator, which does simulate every aspect of the aircraft from sounds to actual instruments and cockpit to visuals to motion...and a computer game which uses cartoon graphics to make a two dimensional picture on a laptop screen.

A very simple tool for capitalizing on flight instruction is to sit in a chair after the lesson, or in the cockpit of the airplane on the ramp, and close one's eyes, and visualize everything that has been done. Repeat it, over and over. I used to have students come to the airport and sit in the airplane, grasp the controls, and "fly" in their mind. If they couldn't come to the airport, sit in a rocking chair and do it, put something in their hand to replicate the control, and visualize. A laptop game or "simulation" can have a similar effect of enhancing what's been learned and transferring the understanding and learning from the actual airplane.

Teens tend to suffer from judgement issues; they lack it, and it's up to the adult supervision to watch very closely to ensure that they're taught and exercising adequate judgement and restraint in their flying. There's no reason why a teenager can't fly, and youth isn't a barrier to flight. Know the student, know the student's habits and limitations, and work closely with those to help the student say safe, enthused, and to progress.

I started flight training at 15. In fact, I learned how to fly before I could drive a car. 20 years later and I'm still at it. As long as he stays motivated, he'll do just fine.

Also, as I flight instructor I agree 100% with John regarding the use of MS Flight Simulator. Bad habits are often 10 times more difficult (and costly) to unlearn than it is to learn something the right way from a flight instructor the first time.

Some wise words here and I concur. I've given thousands of hours of dual instruction to young and old. Younger kids tend to learn faster (like anything else) but sometimes lack maturity in decision making. I tell people I can teach anyone how to fly but judgement comes with time and experience. A private pilot license is a "license to learn" and nothing more. A new pilot learns "just enough" not to kill himself and hopefully his/her own limitations. The problem with younger kids is they have "no fear". Sometimes this is a positive compared to older students who let fear hold them back.

As far as MS flight sim, I think it creates more problems for primary training. Aside from learning how the instruments work, it teaches people to look inside the cockpit rather than outside. When you first learn how to fly you need to spend the majority of your time looking outside, developing a sight picture, looking at the horizon, etc.

I teach people to fly by engaging their senses. They learn to judge how fast a plane is moving not by a gauge but rather by the sound of the engine, the sound of the rushing wind, etc. When they are having trouble landing or with steep turns and looking inside too much, I cover up their instruments with a piece of paper. A computer doesn't help a student develop his senses, the feel of the yoke, etc.

That being said, simulators are excellent for more advanced training such as instrument flying. However, you need to develop real "raw" flying skills first.