Plane Conversations

09/20/10

G’Day!  We were supposed to fly into Melbourne, but as is the case in all flying, sometimes the weather just doesn’t cooperate.  Melbourne’s weather was gusty with cold winds and low ceilings; so, we chose to bypass that part of the journey and remain in Sydney…perhaps another time.  Sunday, we let the SR22 rest and I did some sight seeing with the family.  

But on Monday I went out to the Bankstown Airport.  I traveled via the train and bus system since a taxi would have cost more than $100 each way and would still taken 40-50 minutes. I had a multi-day rail/bus/water taxi pass for $54; so, I tried it out and with some help of the locals (remember I had passed the English proficiency exam).  The bus dropped me off just at the street’s edge of the airport with just a short walk to Regal Air.

Backpack loaded, I strolled into the hangar where I met Peter Edwards the owner and director.  Regal Air is a Cirrus Maintenance Facility and another first class organization with an extremely skilled staff.  Peter and I discussed the routing that would provide a great tour of the city and surrounding area.  There’s a special route that, with ATC permission, takes you almost overhead of the famed Opera House and Sydney Bridge.  To get this permission, we had to file a VFR flight plan requesting the Harbor Scenic 1.

Peter and I did a thorough pre-flight on our SR22 that now had 14 hours.  This was only the second Perspective equipped model he’d seen and I offered up the left seat.  I think that he can fly anything with wings!  After a brief training session on the Perspective (especially the radios), we were off climbing to 1000 feet within the Class D airspace then on to 2000 as we headed further north.  The clouds prevented us from climbing much higher.

Automatically, we switched our transponder from 3000 to 1200 and soon thereafter contacted Sydney Radar for clearance into the filed route.  We were given another visual checkpoint to report (I’ve never done so much reporting of visual checkpoints in all my years of flying, by the way).  Once there, we were cleared for the air tour.  We made two circuits inside the harbor before we departed back to the north for some serious coastal flying .

Flying coastal is just that….flying along the coast line.  Today we flew at 500 feet, past all the famous beaches and across the approach end of Sydney International.  The airport wasn’t busy at the time; so, no worries about traffic.

Coastal flying over, we flew again to a visual arrival route checkpoint for the trip back to the Bankstown Airport.

Peter gave me invaluable instruction and served as a superior tour guide while in the air.  All that should help when Tim and the rest arrive into Sydney and want to do some Cirrus flying. Tim and crew arrived today for his concert tonight.  After that I expect we’ll have some good stories to tell of his flying adventures.  Cheers!

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09/18/10

We departed Brisbane today -  Tim in his chartered jet, me and my family in the beautiful Cirrus.  Aircraft payloads are limited not only by weight, but also by mass.  And that was the one thing I forgot to plan on.  We have luggage for two weeks of travel – three of the bags are oversized.  But, as they say in Australia, “No worries.”  The SR22 rear seats fold down; so, with one seat folded, we were able to pack it all in and still have room for my daughter….she was pleased.

My days of study and preparation were put to the test as I filed my first Aussie IFR flight plan.  In Australia, the pilot has to contact the radar controller to get an IFR code prior to taxiing if you plan on departing in visual conditions and then getting your IFR clearance - sort of like a composite flight plan in the US.  We began the flight in visual conditions and activated our IFR portion about two hours later.  The controllers were most helpful all along the way.

As we departed Archerfield visually, I explained to Brisbane Radar that I wanted to first fly a coastal route north to look for whales and then turn south for a coastal routing past my third waypoint before picking up my IFR flight plan.  She merely said, “You can expect that.”

Off to the north we went at 1000 feet and, sure enough, we flew over more whales on their migration. We then turned south towards the Gold Coast and onwards.  The regional controllers advised us regarding traffic along the way, pretty much like they do in the US.  The further south we went, the more the wind picked up and the turbulent the air became (south westerly winds here are like the cold north westerly winds back home). At that point, I activated the IFR portion of our flight plan and climbed to 5000 feet.  After confirming our route, it was pretty routine flying except that in the US we get a full route clearance. In Australia, every controller I was handed off to on the radio confirmed only the routing within his/her sector.  I had to read that back each time.  

I am very glad that I had studied the VFR arrival procedures into Bankstown.  They expect you to fly a visual approach if the weather is VMC and, unless you request an instrument approach well ahead of time, you might find yourself holding for a long time until you get an approach clearance.  Again, the Enroute Supplement was extremely valuable in describing the visual checkpoints, as was the Visual Terminal Chart for Sydney.  ATC likes for you to fly canned arrivals - no GPS direct stuff here!  So, I came in knowing the reporting points and was able to fly directly to Runway 11L. Oh and another thing, when they have parallel runways operating, they just tell you cleared to land on the left…no numbers.

The only things that I wish were better here are the taxiway markings.  For the most part they are non-existent.  When I landed at Bankstown and requested assistance finding the FBO here, the controller didn’t know how to instruct me to get there.  I had it marked on my airport diagram; but, since there were no taxiway markings, I was a bit unsure.  One of the security trucks was listening on the radio and he gave me some directions.  All in all it was a great flight with unbelievable coastal flying (sometimes as low as 500 feet!) followed by an uneventful IFR portion into Sydney. 

Monday, I head back to the airport to fly with some of the locals to get the best sight-seeing routes of the Sydney area.  Until then, Cheers!

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09/16/2010

Fly day!   Did I mention Tom (my instructor is never in a rush?)  My show time was 0800 and first thing Tom mentioned was breakfast. Well, I had skipped the morning meal to get into the air more quickly.  Tom suggested a breakfast place at Archerfield Airport…..so I ate.

Then after a bit more study, we started our flight from Brisbane’s historic Archerfield.  Our departure took us off to the west with a right turn out back to the east and initially leveling at 1000 feet.  Now, in Australia, they use a QNH altimeter setting. That means: when you set the local altimeter with QNH, it should read zero feet, not field elevation as it does in the US.

Did I mention that I’m flying a Cirrus SR22 with only seven hours on it?  This means we have to run the aircraft at about 80% power to properly break in the engine.  We climbed to 1,500 feet and headed south down towards the Gold Coast at 180 knots.  We got a great few of the pretty beaches and shiny buildings before making a U-turn, dropping down to 500 feet and flying back up the coast.   All this time, we kept a sharp eye out for planes, birds and whales.  Saw several of the former, but no whales this day.  Tom was an excellent tour guide and instructor.  We used our charts to navigate even though the Garmin Perspective in the Cirrus was operating in fine fashion.  We saw Captain Cook’s Deception Point, the Glass Mountains, etc. and more. 

The visual arrival was different than I’m accustomed to; but, all went well due to Tom’s teaching.  In Australia, when flying in Class D airspace (controlled by a Control Tower, just like in the US) everyone uses a transponder setting of 3000.  Once outside that airspace, they set the code to 1200.  No one directs you to do so, everyone just know to do it … it’s expected.  Our arrival required us to be at 1500 feet and to report over a specific landmark when approaching the airport from the northwest . With our code of 3000 set, we reported and were cleared for the visual for runway 28R.  With a mid-field downwind call, we were cleared to land and that was it.  The fun over for this morning.

I filled the afternoon going to the zoo and petting koalas and kangaroos.  They were both really neat creatures.  That evening was Tim’s first concert in country and he was very well received.  Tim and I are scheduled to fly on Friday; so, I’ll keep you posted  on that.

G’Day!

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9-14-10

We arrived in Brisbane as very tired humans and enjoyed a restful night at our hotel.  The following morning, after a hearty breakfast at the hotel, Steve Maltby (owner of Sunland Aviation) and I began the arduous task of working with the Civil Aviation Safety Authority (CASA) in trying to complete my temporary license to fly in Australia.  In the US, we may sometimes complain about our own FAA.  From my experience, the FAA is far and away much easier to work with than CASA is here.

I began the application process in July, but arrived here with it still imcomplete.  The big hang up for CASA was that my US license  was endorsed “English Proficient.”   That requirement was supposedly put in place to make us pilots in the United States compliant with international standards, since English is the international language for aviation operations.  Guess what—the endorsement doesn’t mean beans to CASA without an official English language test.  And from what I hear, the US will soon be administering such tests to all of us as well.

I spent most of my day on the phone, on hold, searching for someone to officially administer an English language test.  Steve came through like a superman!   While working on his own issues of paying bills, collections, and managing a 30-member team, he found someone to administer my test…Peter Franks. 

In the United States, Peter would be considered to be a Designated Examiner.  He invited us to his home and began to administer an official CASA English test in which I had to listen to numerous air traffic conversations with controllers speaking English but with a variety of country-specific dialects….sort of like someone from the south trying to communicate with someone in Brooklyn.  I had to copy clearances and explain what I heard to Peter.  I passed and now have an Australian English proficiency level of “Expert.”   Good thing I was in South Australia!  This process took ten frustrating hours to complete and it could not have been done if not for Steve getting through to a CASA team chief and getting them to realize that they had dropped the ball on this in a big way.

We emailed all the results (rather, Steve did) first thing the next morning in hopes that my license would soon follow.

9-15-10

The day began with good news! CASA promised to expedite my two-month-old paperwork and indeed they did—the license came in by 12 noon.  This day winds were holding up to 40 knots ( that’s pretty brisk for you non pilots); so, we remained on the ground and did some serious chart and flight planning study.  The Australian international flight plan forms are a bit different from the ones I’m used to; but, seem to work very well.  One big difference I learned is that your filed plan does not get you an entire route clearance as it does in the US.  Can’t wait for my first flight tomorrow!

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As a quick background, I am a very blessed guy, husband to a wonderful wife, father to two beautiful daughters. After serving in the United States Air Force for 20 years, then running a technology company, I had to figure a way to make a good living doing what I love – working around and flying airplanes.

So, armed with a lot of enthusiasm, I bought a flight school and partnered with Corporate Flight Management (CFM) in the process. Not long after that, I started a charter and aircraft management business, Harmony Air.

There are many, many great CFIs (Certified Flight Instructors) and pilots out there; but, sometimes location, hard work and fate help things along. That’s part of this story.  You see, I happened to teach Tim McGraw’s business manager to fly some years ago and sure enough not long after, I began teaching Tim to fly in a Cirrus SR22 , which I provided at our Cirrus Training Center at the John C. Tune Airport in Nashville. Like every, pilot he’s still learning but he does have his Private Pilot License and, between movies, albums, concerts, being a dad and husband, is working on his instrument flying.

Tim and I have flown to some pretty interesting places.  I was fascinated to be able to fly to the NFL Kickoff in New Orleans and to see the game from a suite. Trust me, this is not the typical CFI gig.  Now we are embarking on a really great adventure, Tim’s concert schedule has him touring in Australia and, you guessed it, I’m on my way there right now. And I am fortunate that my wife and youngest daughter are with me. My oldest daughter is in nursing school and could not miss a day, much less two weeks.

It has been a really long time since I’ve flown on a commercial flight; but, so far, American Airlines has treated us very well.  But, $10 for a sandwich?!  Really?!  As I write this, we’re sitting at the International Terminal at LAX awaiting our 16+ hour flight to Sydney and then on to Brisbane. It’s in Brisbane where I’ll get my SR22 check-out at the only Cirrus Training Center in Australia.  I’m looking forward to meeting Steve Maltby, the owner there.

A word of advice, before you go to Australia to rent a plane, do your homework. I began mine two months ago and there are still some issues I’m counting on Steve to help me resolve for my 90-day license to fly.  I plan on using that license to fly between concert venues in Brisbane, Sydney, and Melbourne.

Stay tuned for more news, pics and video……

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I haven’t written a blog in some time, and that really goes to show I’ve been busily trying to finish up my private pilot.  A few weeks ago I was studying fanatically for my written test.  Not being one who likes to “have my head in the books” (I learn better by doing), I pushed myself to put in the time to study. It paid off, because I easily passed, which was a huge relief to me.  It seemed at the time just before the test that it would be the biggest step in my path to becoming a pilot.  (I understand that would not be the case for everyone, but for me, takings tests is nerve-wrecking and makes me entirely anxious.)  But now that it’s done, I realize it wasn’t the hardest step. 

Now I’m of the opinion that my solo cross country is going to be the big one.  But wait a minute!  Wasn’t my first solo supposed to be the big one?  What I’m getting at here is that I’ve discovered that the path of becoming a pilot has challenges the entire journey – once I got over the hump of my solo, I then had the written test hump.  Now that I’ve done the written test, I’ve got the solo cross-country.  So, I can now see that once I’ve done the solo-cross country, it will then be the check ride and oral that will likely give me a few sleepless nights.  And after that, well, after that I have my license to get out there and REALLY learn how to fly!  I just need to relax and enjoy the feeling of achieving my goals.

So in a few weeks, I’m hoping to be ready for my check ride.  This is what’s left:

              
DUAL NIGHT X-COUNTRY      
          
LOCAL SOLO TIME 4 HOURS 
                  
SOLO 50 MILE X-COUNTRY 
                
SOLO 2 STOP 150 MILE TOTAL X-COUNTRY

CHECK RIDE PREP 3 HOURS

Am I still anxious about any of this?  Yeah, but my past accomplishments help me every day.   There really is no better feeling than that of accomplishment.  It is a motivator and a confidence builder, and with the highs and lows of learning to fly, it is as satisfying as clear blue skies.

 One more noteworthy comment:  having a great instructor helps.  Kirk has been invaluable in my progress.  He has pushed me when I’ve needed to be pushed, been patient when I’ve stumbled on the radio, praised me when I’ve done a great landing, and slapped my hand when I’ve taxied too fast!  Thanks Kirk.  I promise to slow down for my check ride!

www.wingsmqy.com

“The most difficult thing is the decision to act, the rest is merely tenacity. The fears are paper tigers. You can do anything you decide to do. You can act to change and control your life; and the procedure , the process is its own reward. “ Amelia Earhart

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In college, I took a class called International Strategies and Security.  I believe that I may have been the only non-military student in the class which, for a civilian, turned out to be like a Tom Clancy novel – only it lasted for a whole semester.  We discussed technology that just blew my mind.  I had no idea the things that were possible and I’m sure that what blew my mind then is Stone Age compared to what is possible now.

So yesterday, we talked a little bit about test flights Alaska Airlines is conducting to be greener both environmentally and economically.  I think that there is a lot to celebrate with that.  My one concern with their reliance (and more, with NextGen’s reliance) on satellite technology is the increase in solar storms projected over the next few years.  I am curious to see how the technologists will handle it.

Since the systems do rely on satellite communication, they will be vulnerable to solar flares and storms, the kind we discussed back in March, which brings me back to the same concerns I expressed then.  With so many new pilots being trained using only glass cockpits and satellite approaches, what happens when those systems are compromised?  Worse, what happens when those systems are compromised and the pilots don’t know it?  NextGen, RNP, OPD and RVSM (Reduced Vertical Separation Minimum) are all designed to increase efficiency by tightening up the airspace.  This precision puts more aircraft into smaller spaces.  Well, if a pilot was flying along a flight path ten years ago, he might have encountered another aircraft along the same path; but, since neither of them was flying with today’s degree of precision, there was still likely to be a safe distance between the aircraft.  However, with todays’ greater precision, the space is greatly reduced.  If all systems are operating as advertised, that’s no problem.  In fact, it’s positive situation.  However, if solar flares contaminate the positioning information, an aircraft may be hundreds of feet off position and not know it.  If two aircraft are in the same situation, but are separated by only a few hundreds of feet to begin with, well, you do the math.

The Federal Aviation Administration recently awarded $125 million to Boeing and other companies to develop greener aircraft, fuels and technology.   As aircraft become more advanced and the Gee-Whiz factor in them increases, by definition, they get further away from the simple, stick-controlled Stearman.  I love the advances, don’t get me wrong.  I just know that a great many young pilots are learning on advanced equipment and may not be learning some of the manual basics of their predecessors.  For now, the young group still has access to pilots trained without all of the gizmos.  Those pilots are available to act as mentors and assist the younger generation of aviators in gaining some wisdom, an invaluable asset, as Billy Minkoff pointed out last week.  His example of the new, accessible very light jet and microjet is perfectly appropriate here.  As precision flying gets more precise and pilot training gets further removed from non-precision equipment, without mentoring, how do we avoid the dangers of corrupted satellite data?

What technology and training do we develop to slow or halt the current trend as expressed by CFM Director of Operations Dwayne McMurry, “It used to be that the last words on a cockpit voice recorder were ‘Oh, (explicative)!’  What you hear these days is, ‘What’s it doing now?’ “

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In the New York times bestselling book, Delivering Happiness, Zappos CEO Tony Hsieh (pronounced “Shay”) chronicles the rise of Zappos .com from obscurity to profitability and finally to its now infamous  1.2 billion dollar acquisition by Amazon.com .  He outlines Zappos’ legendary focus on customer service and corporate culture.   As I read Hsieh’s book, I couldn’t help but imagine the possibilities and implications for those of us who love flying and aviation related businesses.

In the introduction, Hsieh, takes us into his thoughts as he prepares to announce to Zappos’ employees that Amazon was acquiring the company.  While the media was focused on the sheer size of the deal, Hsieh’s thoughts were elsewhere:

 “To all of us in the room, we knew it wasn’t just about the money.  Together, we had built a business that combined profits, passion, and purpose.  And we knew that it wasn’t just about building a business.  It was about building a lifestyle that was about delivering happiness to everyone, including ourselves.”¹

There are several things noteworthy in this quote.  One is the sense of team that you feel.  Hsieh speaks in terms of “us”  and “together”.  Clearly the focus is on something more than the bottom line.  Words such as “passion”, “purpose”, “lifestyle” and “happiness” all speak to the company’s core values and goals.  Hsieh notes later that, “We decided that we wanted to build our brand to be about the very best customer service and the very best customer experience.” ²  What Zappos discovered was that by creating a culture centered on these values and expectations,  profitability developed.  

 Zappo’s Rabid Dedication to the Customer & Employee

As I read, I would often seek out my wife to read her passages (some guys read poetry to their wives…so much for romance!)  I would begin with saying, “Can you believe that a company would do this?”   Here are a few examples: 

• Customer service that includes free, unannounced upgrades in shipping.  You place an order for shoes that should take 4 days to arrive and without warning –for free—they’re on your doorstep the next day.
• A reward system for employees for pursuing personal development.  A lending library of the best personal growth books was created in the lobby to do just this.
• Free shipping on all orders…and if the shoes don’t fit you can send them back for free!
• If they don’t have the shoe in stock, they will research three competitor’s websites and will direct the customer to the competitor.
• In 2008, Zappo’s was faced with making a round of layoffs.  Instead of the standard 2-week severance, they offered to pay each employee through the end of the year (which at the time was about 2 months).  They paid an additional amount for those who had been with the company 3 or more years.  They reimbursed laid-off employees for 6 months of COBRA payments.

This made me want to buy shoes, just to have the Zappos experience.  Which is exactly the point- the experience.

 The Zappos Experience- Happiness

In 2009 Zappos inserted a simple statement into their vision that reflects the underlying core value that is at the heart of their company.  It says, “Zappos is about delivering happiness to the world.”³

Hsieh and Zappos are not talking about some “fuzzy” notion of happiness, which many people equate with silly giddiness.  Instead, Hsieh studied the concept of what makes people happy and investigated ways to integrate his findings into his company.  In his book, he offers several frameworks to consider, such as our need for perceived control in our lives (having a say in our future and in our work), perceived progress (we can see that we are going somewhere—don’t we all hate “dead-end” jobs?), connectedness (being in relationships that are truly fulfilling) and meaning/vision (being a part of something larger than ourselves that we believe in). 

This type of corporate emphasis helped develop a company culture that focused on amazing customer service, which aimed ultimately at customer happiness.   While Zappos was certainly concerned with profitability and bottom line, they managed to never lose sight of the crucial importance of what they were delivering, but how.  I think this begins to intersect and have application for the aviation industry. 

What if a flight school moved into the realm of radical customer service?

As an industry it simply doesn’t appear that we’re asking the customer experience question.  And yet, in some ways, flying is all about experience.  It’s built into the act of flying.  But what isn’t built in is how we attract and retain customers by giving them an experience of service.  

For instance, let’s consider flight training.  How do we attract and engage the customer before they officially become a customer?  What could we do to serve them before we’re asking for their money?  

• How about having a pleasant lobby area and facilities that are well kept?  (Seriously, the urinal that overflows regularly should be fixed. Gross.)
• How about having snacks available for free?
• Coupons (have any Flight Schools tried Groupon.com) for flights?
• Free airplane rides.  Publicize well, donate a couple of hours on a Saturday to give rides to the community.
• Flight training material professionally produced and ready to be given to the new student.
• Aircraft that are clean, up-to-date, and well-maintained.  (If your preflight involves duct-tape, think again.)

 As a customer, what kind of experience might we give our customers if we:

• Randomly chose a student to receive a free hour of instruction?  They come in from the flight line only to discover they owe nothing. 
• Instead of having them buy more and more books and videos, develop a lending library
• If you have access to a twin or jet and space permits, let your student go for a ride
• Quarterly celebrations for new solos and new licenses.  Could be as simple as a cookout at the airport in honor of these new pilots. 
• Encouraged lifelong learning by giving seminars and offering guest speakers to the larger aviation community

What about instructors?

• Incentives for recruiting (Bonus for giving 5 or more discovery flights…extra for each one who begins training) 
• Bonus for each student who successfully receives their license
• Reward for longevity (create a stable base of instructors)
• Instructor dinners and socializing
• Opportunities for adding new ratings at reduced cost and free recurrency training.

These are just ideas, some of which might be difficult to employ.  How refreshing it would be to potential pilots and employees to discover a flight school with a culture that was geared to providing the best possible service and create what Hsieh calls a “WOW” factor. 

Whether we’re talking about flight schools or maintenance departments or FBO’s, I believe there is something to be learned from Zappos.  Imagine, tomorrow, what it would be like to be “WOWED” by your company in its relationship with you.  Imagine what it would be like to WOW your customers and the transformed relationship with them.   Imagine the impact of those combined experiences, the word of mouth that would ensue, and the absolute fun of being in the flying business.  

It begins with a commitment to developing or changing the culture and embracing a foundational shift towards clearly defined values and competencies that will shape the entire organization.  It is about delivering an experience that is first class and recognizing that our happiness is found not only in profits (which is certainly needed) but in living with passion and purpose. 

If Hsieh and Zappos can do it with shoes,  I believe we can certainly do it with airplanes. 

Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose, Tony Hsieh, Business Plus, New York: NY, 2010

 1. Page 11

2. Page 121

3. Page 177

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As I said yesterday, both the Phenom 100 and the 300 are single pilot certified and are designed to be flown by professional pilots, as well as owner pilots. The latter present a challenge as they are generally a group with little or no pure turbojet time.  Many have flown complex turbo prop aircraft but most owner pilots have spent little time in “fast movers” and lack a complete understanding of their roles and responsibilities in the ATC system. The solution lies in training and competent mentoring.  Embraer includes two “entitlement” training slots for pilots with the purchase of an Executive Jet. The training at ECTS is a thorough introduction into the Phenom and an accurate assessment of acquired skills and knowledge.   The problem is that training ends with the check-ride and subsequent type rating.   And, in any sphere, knowledge without wisdom is incomplete.

A typical type-rating oral exam consists of knowing aircraft systems and limitations along with the immediate action items associated with specific emergency procedures.  A more thorough oral drills deeper with questions involving the working relationships of systems and an understanding of why things work the way they do. The rating-ride is a carefully choreographed series of events that test specific learned procedures such as the loss of an engine on takeoff, the“V-1 Cut”, as well as single-engine approaches and landings.  The entire check ride is given within the confines of a single airport and is an accurate assessment of skills and accomplishment. The FAA oral and rating-ride are excellent tests of pilot preparedness for the unexpected problems that seldom (thankfully) occur in real life.  What a rating-ride can’t do is impart experience and judgment to a first-time jet pilot.  With experience comes wisdom and the safest way for the first-time jet pilot to get that wisdom is with the assistance of a mentor.

Slow down, you move too fast.
You got to make the morning last.
Just kicking down the cobble stones.
Looking for fun and feelin’ groovy.

 (59th St. Bridge Song by Simon and Garfunkel)

Up until recently, Air Traffic Controllers could logically assume that everyone in a jet “kicking down the cobble stones” was a pro-pilot or at least performed like one.  The advent of the personal jet has changed that.  Now anyone with a million dollars, or even less with financing, can buy a jet to look for fun and feel groovy hanging out with the big boys.  Herein lies the problem. The old instructor adage of “slow down and make yourself time for the approach” only works at the cabbage patch, but these personal jet aircraft aren’t staying in the cabbage patch.

A gap has developed between those who understand ATC and fly accordingly and those who feel as if ATC will accommodate their lack of skills and judgment. The saner parties have been the insurance companies who have insisted upon some level of supervision for low time aviators. Insurance companies, at a loss for how gauge skills and judgment, have resorted to insisting on a certain number of hours (usually 25) of supervised flying.  Typically those hours are flown in the course of business for the newly minted personal jet aviator.

Perhaps a better way to ensure the safety and success of the owner-flown community would be to adopt the commercial aviation technique of mentor flying for newly type-rated jet pilots by creating a private IOE (initial operating experience) process. Airlines have long recognized that meaningful mentor programs consist of more than the supervised “drilling of holes” in the sky.  A truly effective mentor program imparts a higher level understanding and competence to the new pilot.

With training fresh in the mind of the newly typed pilot, the mentor reinforces good technique and emphasizes the “real world” application the newly learned skills.  And it takes both training and experience to protect your Phenom investment.

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After 23,000 flight hours, I’ve just added my 7th type rating. 300 of those hours are in the Phenom 100.

The math reflects my propensity to stick  to an airplane when I find a good one and the Phenom 100 is a great airplane that does everything asked of it. My affinity hasn’t waned; so, what, then, would lure me away?  The siren song of the Phenom 300; Embraer’s latest Executive Jet offering.

I mentally questioned the ability of Embraer to improve upon the value proposition of the 100, and I was somewhat skeptical that the engineers from Brazil could score two home runs in a row. Duh!  Now I wonder what the gang in Wichita must be thinking. (Option 1: Look for a new job, or Option 2: add more sand to bury their heads deeper?)  I intend to keep flying the 100: but, to anyone out there with a 300 – you go guys!

Flight training is evolutionary. 

You go the first time to initial training and then you go back every year for recurrent training.  You don’t expect to add much because they are just getting you through the paces; but, maybe you learn something new in year two because there is something going on with the development of the aircraft. 

Last summer, I attended Phenom 100 initial training at Embraer CAE Training Services (ECTS), a joint venture between Embraer, a world-class aircraft manufacturer and CAE, a world-leading provider of aviation training.  In spite of the impressive pedigree, the venture experienced quite a few teething problems with the rollout of the first Phenom and I experienced them first-hand.  When I returned to the facility, my expectation was that my second experience would be much the same as my first one.
I was totally surprised when I arrived at CAE Simuflite in Dallas for Phenom 300 transition training.  Arriving on a Monday morning, my colleagues and I were greeted in the front lobby by no fewer than nine bright-eyed and effusively cheery CAE employees. Just after checking in, one of the greeters asked me if I needed directions to my classroom.  Since the schedule handed to me had been printed on a handy, pocket-sized card that wouldn’t get lost in the paperwork shuffle, I replied that I couldn’t miss it. I introduced myself to one of the greeters, Walter Slazyk, and in the course of conversation found that Walter was the CAE Center Leader. 

Different?   I’ll Show You Different! 
Aircraft transition courses typically focus on differences between the “old” airplane and the “new” one. The object of the training program is to prepare you for your check ride, rather than to just impart knowledge to you.  After all, this is a business.  My course was scheduled for one day of ground school followed by three days of simulator instruction and a check ride. I expected a mundane recitation of facts and figures, which I would have to regurgitate during my Friday oral exam. Instead, I was met by Steve Ford and Steve Simpson who both plowed into the whys and wherefores of aircraft systems and flight characteristics – so much more useful than the dry facts and figures.
During my Phenom 100 training process, delays in the certification of the simulator necessitated that my training be accomplished in the airplane.  Times have changed, though.  The new Phenom 300 sim has excellent fidelity and clearly mimics the feel and performance of the airplane. (Turning on the radar and taxiing over runway centerline lights are two great examples.)  On the whole, my expectations were exceeded, by a long-shot.
Both the Phenom 100 and the 300 are single pilot certified and are designed to be flown by professional pilots, as well as owner pilots. The latter present a challenge as they are generally a group with little or no pure turbojet time.  All of these pilots go through ECTS and get the best training the company has to offer.  The training is great, but how do these pilots get the experience they need to form sound judgment?  Join us tomorrow as we discuss the importance of good mentoring programs.

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