A New Homebuilt And Rusty Pilots

They expressed their nervousness, which was understandable. Who wants to show their flight skills to a critic when those skills are at low proficiency? It is human nature to want to show your best side, but a rusty pilot flight review will show the naked truth. I explained there is nothing wrong with being out of practice, and a flight review is not a test, but an opportunity to learn. Their anxiety acknowledged, we moved on to the needed practice.

Mike Hart

Sunday, June 02, 2019 at 12:00 AM ET

Verified

Key Takeaways:

A flight instructor conducted a comprehensive flight review for two rusty pilots preparing for the maiden flight of their newly built, high-performance tailwheel experimental aircraft, presenting a complex "stack" of aviation risks.
The training meticulously addressed skill degradation, the unique challenges of high-performance and tailwheel aircraft, and critical experimental test flight risks, especially engine failure on takeoff.
The article highlights that even significant and novel aviation risks can be safely managed and mitigated through a methodical approach, systematic training, and deliberate acknowledgment of potential dangers.

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Not all flight reviews are equal, and rusty pilots are not at all uncommon, but I recently faced a scenario that gave me pause. It read like the beginning of an NTSB report with a stack of extremely novel circumstances. My choice was either be one of the contributing factors to an accident or one of the mitigations. My goal was the latter.

I recently had the opportunity to provide a flight review for two pilots—a father and son—who had taken a roughly five-year break from flying. During that time, they built a new plane. It was now ready for its maiden flight, but they, as pilots, were not.