The Importance of Finding the Right Flight Instructor
There is a difference between checking the experience boxes on a syllabus and creating a pilot. Some flight instructors do the latter better than others.
There is a difference between checking the experience boxes on a syllabus and creating a pilot. [Adobe Stock]
Key Takeaways:
The article serves as a tribute to Spence Campbell, a highly experienced and revered freelance flight instructor (CFI) who passed away at 88 after decades of pilot education.
Campbell, with his wife Marie, founded and operated Aviation Training Center, a renowned facility specializing in instrument training, ground schools, and airline interview preparation that profoundly influenced hundreds of pilots.
He was celebrated for his calm, patient, and effective teaching style, emphasizing learning from mistakes and fostering good habits, even in high-pressure situations.
The author personally attests to Campbell's profound influence on his own piloting and instructing skills, noting that specific techniques learned from Spence are still applied today.
One of the best parts about being a teacher is knowing that you have made a difference in someone else’s life.
You probably remember your favorite teachers—they inspired, they challenged, they molded you into the person you are today. When one of your teachers passes away you can’t help but feel nostalgic.
CREATE A FREE ACCOUNT
Sign up to keep reading
Create a free account to continue. Already a member? Sign in below.
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.
