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Flying with an Athletic Mindset

Learning to fly is a lot like learning to play a sport, where you start with the fundamentals.

Learning to fly is a lot like learning to play a sport. You begin by learning the fundamentals. [Credit: Derek Eckenroth]
Gemini Sparkle

Key Takeaways:

  • Aviation, much like athletics, requires consistent repetition and practice to achieve and maintain proficiency, and pilots returning after a hiatus should guard against overestimating rusty skills due to the Dunning-Kruger effect.
  • Learning to fly or returning to it after a break necessitates a structured approach, similar to an athlete's preseason training, emphasizing drills, fundamental review, and adaptation to evolving equipment or procedures.
  • For pilots re-entering aviation, key recommendations include leveraging online ground school, thoroughly reviewing the Pilot's Operating Handbook, choosing a supportive instructor, and cultivating patience throughout the relearning process.
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One of the laws of learning is that it requires repetition, drill, and a lot of practice. It takes as much time as it takes to learn a maneuver, and more time and practice to gain proficiency, yet there are some student pilots and CFIs who resist repetition, insisting that the maneuver has been learned and can be flown to standard after one lesson.

This is dubious at best, and can be an example of the Dunning-Kruger effect, a cognitive bias where people with limited competence in a particular domain—like flying—overestimate their abilities. It is particularly common with someone who took lessons in the past then returns to it decades later. It can be difficult to accept the fact there is some rust on those skills.

Meg Godlewski

Meg Godlewski has been an aviation journalist for more than 24 years and a CFI for more than 20 years. If she is not flying or teaching aviation, she is writing about it. Meg is a founding member of the Pilot Proficiency Center at EAA AirVenture and excels at the application of simulation technology to flatten the learning curve. Follow Meg on Twitter @2Lewski.

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