Private Pilot Flight Training and Instruction Flight Training Article Library | Back To 4VFR.COM Planned Instruction The military is a leading exponent of programmed instruction. Under such a program every thing in the future is based upon the building blocks of the past. There are no surprises or unexpected events. Every lesson is preceded by a flight briefing that covers in detail such things as required checklists, radio frequencies, departure, route, and retune procedures and maneuvers to be performed. For airwork or landings there should be selected variations that require differences in technique and airspeed. Your plan should include parameters for heading and altitude. Any enroute requirements should include ETA and airport comparisons for checkpoints as well as total time enroute. How well you fly is very much dependent on your knowledge of the aircraft systems. Any system failure will have a system crosscheck that you can use to evaluate separate the degree of difficulty that exists. By knowing how the system works, you can make the safe decision. Knowing the systems, of necessity, includes knowing the speed and performance limitations for every configuration. Every pilot must know what malfunction will ground an aircraft. There is risk in every flight. It is up to the pilot to assess the risk that exists when any aspect of weather, aircraft or pilot affects the margin of allowable error. Your decision not to fly exists up to the point of takeoff. Even the prepared pilot can be blind sided by the unexpected event. Of all the things that are covered in the POH and the FARs there are still far more waiting on the sidelines to surprise you. Written by Gene Whitt Flight Training Article Library | Back To 4VFR.COM