The Federal Aviation Administration has forecasted tremendous growth in general aviation over the next 20 years, mostly due to large increases in the population of sport pilots. These future pilots will need to be taught by instructors who have the experience, interest, and appropriate attitudes to accommodate successful growth in light sport aviation. Flight instructors without a sport pilot rating are authorized to instruct in light sport aircraft but have little or no experience requirements with such aircraft before teaching. The purpose of this study was to determine the perceptions current instructors held about light sport aircraft. This was accomplished by surveying two different samples of certified flight instructors: a group of randomly selected flight instructors from the FAA national airmen database, and a sample of flight instructors registered with the National Association of Flight Instructors. Instructor perceptions about light sport aircraft are analyzed using statistical methods. Comments indicate a need for additional effort to ensure the delivery of safe, efficient, quality training in light sport aviation.

Aviation as an industry requires a high degree of precision at all times. Large amounts of stress have been known to decrease performance to undesirable levels. While stress reactions and the coping skills used after encountering stressful situations differ from person to person, generalities can be made by comparing differences between groups. A large number of pilot applicants receive initial training within a university flight program each year. In order to better understand the perceived stress level and the coping skills used by these students, the current research project administered a perceived stress test and a coping skills inventory to two groups of collegiate pilots: a first-year group (n 5 50) and a junior/senior group (n 5 32). Differences were found between the stress levels and coping skills used by this sample population.High risk industries such as aviation require consistently high levels of performance from employees, regardless of environmental pressures. This is especially the case in flight training, where flight students must adapt to the risks and hazards of the flight environment while learning a new, complex skill set. This can easily leave aviation students feeling overwhelmed. While individual differences play a large role in determining how students respond when placed in stressful situations, generalities can be made using larger groups of students. The current research study measured perceived stress levels and coping skills utilized by two groups of collegiate aviation students drawn from a large Midwestern university.

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A Midwestern university recently incorporated a very light jet aircraft into its training curriculum for the professional pilot degree. This model varies considerably from the traditional pilot training program in an academic setting. It also presented new challenges and human factors issues for the four instructors who completed training with these low time pilots. This qualitative study used a phenomenological approach to gather the perceptions, issues, and experiences of the instructor pilots working with the first cohort of 22 students to complete a 10-hour familiarization course in a very light jet. A longitudinal survey and a final face-to-face interview were used to gather instructor perceptions across the length of the program, provide recommendations, and summarize lessons learned that could be applied to future training environments. Preliminary findings indicate that instructors anticipated students would be most comfortable with operating procedures and use of the avionics. Instructors believed students would be most challenged by the crew environment, descent planning, and the speed of the jet.

This paper presents the findings of a phenomenological study of instructor pilot first-hand experiences when conducting training for collegiate flight students in a jet aircraft. While jet training has been conducted in simulators in the past, this was one of the first instances of training in an actual aircraft. A total of 22 students completed training in a very light jet aircraft during the spring semester of their junior year at the subject university. A group of four instructors conducted both simulator and flight training with the students. Surveys were used to collect data from instructors longitudinally throughout the length of the 16-week semester. At the conclusion of the training period, participants completed a structured interview. The results of those interviews suggested that students excelled in areas such as avionics programming, use of standardized operating procedures, and checklist usage. Students were challenged by the increased operating speeds of the jet aircraft, descent planning, and lesson preparedness. The instructors offered suggestions to enhance the course and provided a summary of the lessons learned.