Pilot Course
The BHPA Club Pilot (Novice) rating
is only the start of your flying career. Anyone who
is still a CP a year or two after qualifying, is in
my opinion not taking their flying seriously. I consider
the skill level after qualifying with your school to
be the same as when you'd just passed your driving test;
you've only learnt enough to get through the test -
you still don't really know how to drive properly. A
few years, several dents and a couple of crashes should
sort you out eventually, but surviving flying crashes
isn't quite as easy as that.
As a Club Pilot, your BHPA third party
liability insurance doesn't cover you if you fly away
from a BHPA registered club site. So if you fly XC,
it's like driving with no insurance - it's your risk.
If you accidentally flew into restricted airspace and
were caught you could face a fine of up to £5,000.
Do you have enough money to pay compensation to someone
whose aircraft you caused to crash? Any serious injury
or loss of life could cost you and your family hundreds
of thousands of pounds or more.
So, having had your CP rating for
a while now, you're getting a bit more serious and want
to become a true 'pilot'. You now want to learn properly
and stop being considered a novice. This is normally
achieved within your club environment over time with
dedication, but a lot of people find this difficult
to achieve because of work and family restraints. This
is where I come in; I offer the whole package in one
box.
In order to become a Pilot, you will
need to learn how to navigate, read aeronautical charts
and learn much more about Meteorology, Air Law and Flight
Theory, not to mention improving your flying skills
and learning how to climb in a thermal*.
Still interested? Read on.
The object of this course is to get
you to do all the various practical tasks necessary
for you to be awarded your BHPA 'Pilot' rating. It will
involve flying at several different sites to get all
the tasks signed off.
To qualify for this course you will
need to have a minimum of 25 hours (more is better)
airtime since achieving your Novice Pilot (CP) rating.
The course will include the following:
- A copy of each of the following
books:
- Mark Dale's 'Pilot Handbook'.
- Dennis Pagan's 'Understanding
The Sky'.
- Trevor's Revision Notes
- A copy of each of the following
videos on DVD:
- Jocky Sanderson's 'Security In
Flight' .
- Jocky Sanderson's 'Speed To Fly'.
- Four days flying to hone
the following skills (the day and the order we do
them will obviously vary according to the weather
conditions of the day):
- Develop your skills for strong
wind take-off and landing.
- Work on improving your turns
to the point where you can demonstrate controlled
360 degree turns in both directions including
turn reversals.
- Take a look at your top-landing
and slope-landing skills and improve them where
necessary.
- Practice spot landing techniques
to enable you to land exactly where you want to
- whether that's on the top of the hill, the slope
or the bottom. This will involve improving your
ability to judge your glide angles and sink rate
and vary them as needed.
- Try to fly as many different
sites as possible to enable you to practice your
site assessment skills and work on improving them
if necessary.
- Work on improving your ability
to fly competently and safely in the company of
others, ensuring you maintain a good lookout and
comply with the Rules of the Air whilst also exhibiting
good airmanship skills.
- Work on the full speed range
of your glider so that you will be able to safely
demonstrate slow flight awareness and discuss
the relevant symptoms and dangers involved in
so doing.
- Practice 'big ears' so you
will feel comfortable with weight-shift steering
while they are in. Discuss when it is safe to
use them and when it's not and the reasons why.
- Learn to maintain directional
control whilst showing recovery from tucks of
not less than 50%.
- Discuss the techniques for
avoiding and recovering from stalls and spins;
and emergency rapid descent techniques like B-line
stalls and spiral dives.
- One two-hour lecture on each
of the following subjects:
- Airlaw.
- Theory of Flight.
- Meteorology.
- SIV and emergency techniques.
- Plus the following to finish:
- A one-hour pre-exam Q&A
session.
- A one-hour & 45 minutes
exam session.
- The BHPA fee to mark your exam
paper.
All flying will be under radio guidance
where necessary (radios will be supplied) with pre &
post flight briefings.
If you already happen to have any
of the books and videos I will of course discount the
difference.
The cost of the course is only £375.00
per person.
* Thermalling
is a separate skill and is not needed in order to achieve
Pilot rating. Once you've gained your Pilot rating,
joining us on one of our foreign flying holidays will
be the best way to learn how to climb in a thermal.
*************************************************
Pilot Lectures For Your Club
I regularly hold 'Pilot' lectures,
but if your club doesn't provide this service and you
would like to organise it for your club then I'll be
glad to oblige.
The cost will vary depending on how
far I have to travel - if you email me your phone number
I will call you so we can discuss your requirements
and the cost.
These lectures will cover all the
topics that need to be studied in order to pass the
BHPA 'Pilot' exam. Of course any level of pilot can
attend, but they will be heavy going for the newer pilot.
They will consist of the following:
- One two-hour lecture on Airlaw.
- One two-hour lecture on Theory
of Flight.
- One two-hour lecture on Meteorology.
- A copy of my Revision Notes.
- A one-hour pre-exam Q&A session.
- A one-hour & 45 minutes exam
session.
Pilots wanting to take the exam will
need to have a minimum of 25 hours airtime and have
had all their tasks signed off by your Club's Coaches.
I'm expected to check logbooks and will need each pilot's
'Application for Pilot Rating' form from their 'Pilot
Task Book'. If they don't have these forms/books, then
they are available from the BHPA office.
*************************************************
Trevor's Pilot Revision Notes
I've published a set
of revision notes to complement my lectures. They're
laser printed in full colour and ring bound for ease
of use. There is plenty of space for you to add your
own notes as you revise.
These are available by post if you'd
like a copy; the cost is only £7.50 inc. P&P;
click on the picture or here
to purchase.
These notes cover all that you need
to swot up on to get through your exam, including a
bibliography at the front detailing the reference books
I've used to source the material.
|
