Learning to capture sight picture is an important element for student pilots. [Credit: Meg Godlewski]
Key Takeaways:
Student pilots must overcome instrument distraction by prioritizing looking outside the cockpit (90% of the time) to develop critical situational awareness and a "sight picture."
Developing a "sight picture" involves using external visual references to assess aircraft attitude during climbs, descents, maneuvers, and especially during takeoffs and landings.
Flight instructors play a crucial role in guiding students to recognize and apply sight picture, emphasizing visual references and safety procedures like executing a go-around when necessary.
To the student pilots out there: Show of hands—how many of you reading this wish you had a dollar for every time your CFI told you to look outside the cockpit? I’m willing to bet the flight instructors who read this are wishing they got a buck as well.
One of the first challenges a student pilot faces is getting your eyes outside the aircraft.
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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.
![Learning to capture sight picture is an important element for student pilots. [Credit: Meg Godlewski]](https://www.flyingmag.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/Sight-Pic-1-Large.jpeg)
