Plastic Pilot

In Switzerland, the route to a private pilot license goes through evening classes to prepare the theoretical examination. These are not always fun and animated - I know, I’ve been the “teacher” for a couple of years in Geneva Aero-Club…

Hopefully, most student groups include one “different” student. It can be someone with a strong sense of humor, or with a particular background. Nothing negative here, aviation is not reserved to technical or academical persons. Students are here to learn, and teachers to help them.

When I was a student pilot, there was a guy in our group - candidate helicopter pilot - who initially had a restricted understanding of physics and aircraft knowledge. One the plus side, he never hesitated to ask, and this resulted in some astonishing questions.

I will always remember what he asked when the “weight and balance” course was nearly over. We were already packing our stuff and were close to get home when he raised his hand, and asked… “Does all aircraft have a center of gravity, or is that an option the manufacturer can include or not ?” As you might imagine, this has been followed by a long silence in the room. No one, even the teacher, knew if that was a joke or a serious question.

The next memorable question came out during the “Aircraft Knowledge” course. We were told how to drain the tanks after refueling, to make sure there’s no water left in the tanks. I don’t know if our favorite colleague did not listen from the beginning, but his question was “How can the engine work if we drain tanks after refueling ?” Don’t get it ? He thought we were talking about fully draining them…

Once again, no shame. When I became a theory teacher myself, I had to cope with such questions. I always preferred students asking than those pretending they understood anything which then failed the tests. The private pilot’s population is much more diversified than some tend to think, and there is no reason to discourage anyone.

I always thought there were three parts in the PPL theory syllabus: what is needed to fly, what is needed to pass the exam, and a part which is needed for both. Unfortunately many candidates never get to the end of the theory classes and decide to search for another hobby.

Sadly, the national authorities are not making the process easier, and to this respect Europe probably has something to learn from the US. Preparing for the IFR theory exam calls for a minimum of 200 study hours, and the examination itself lasts for not less than 4 days (in Switzerland).

Retrospectively, it took me much more time to get ready for that theory exam (1 year of week-end studies) than to actually learn to fly IFR (3 months, with one or two flights a week, some being cancelled due to winter / spring weather).

It’s a shame that because of how the theory is presented and checked, so many student pilots give-up before even sitting down in a plane. In a period where the number of pilots reaches an historically low level, a more pragmatic approach to training could change things. May be those with strange questions can be good pilots…