All flight instructor courses at American Air are taught by Steve Shaner. Steve has been giving professional ground and flight instruction for over 49 years. He was also one of the few FAA-Designated Pilot Examiners chosen to conduct the initial Flight Instructor Check Rides for over 32 years. Steve has a 100% first –time pass record for his Flight Instructor students. For instructors nationwide, the average first-time pass rate is only 67%. Steve’s students not only passed the test, they did outstanding each time. Steve spends the time to make each Flight Instructor student an “experienced instructor” by the end of the course. Extensive, in-depth ground and flight training to a much higher level, combined with many hours of practice teaching and critiques, produces a Flight Instructor candidate who is well-prepared for all of the tests and to be able to give high-quality, professional instruction on the first day after graduation teaching real students. A graduate from this program at American Air must pass 2 very comprehensive practice check rides before taking the real check ride. The approximate ground and flight hours mentioned on these courses can fluctuate significantly up or down, depending on the student’s ability, quality of previous training, and current proficiency. Many hours of study and home practice teaching are also necessary.
Certificated Flight Instructor (CFI) Course
The initial CFI course includes at least 150 hours of one-on-one ground school and at least 40-50 flight hours. Approximately 80 hours of preflight and post flight ground briefing is needed. The flight training is conducted in our Piper Archer LX with the G1000 NXi glass cockpit and our simulator. If a student takes 3-4 lessons per week, it takes about a year to complete this course.
Certificated Flight Instructor – Instrument (CFII) Course
The Instrument Flight Instructor course (usually added after obtaining the initial CFI) includes typically 60-80 hours of ground school and practice ground presentations by the student. Usually 50 – 60 hours of flight instruction and practice flight teaching by the student are needed. Additionally, approximately 70 hours of pre and post flight briefing time is usually needed. The flight training is conducted in our Piper Archer LX with the G1000 NXi glass cockpit and the simulator is used for both analog and glass cockpit instruction. If a student takes 2-3 lessons per week, it usually takes approximately 9-10 months to complete this course.
Certificated Flight Instructor – Multiengine (CFIME) Course
Currently, American Air does not have a multiengine aircraft, so students in this course would have to provide their own aircraft. The Multiengine Flight Instructor course (usually added after obtaining the initial CFI and CFII) includes 30-40 hours of ground school and student ground teaching practice and 30-40 hours of flight training and student flight instructing practice. Additionally, approximately 50 hours of pre and post flight briefing time is usually needed. The flight training is conducted in an airplane provided by the student and in our simulator. Also, a few hours of flight instruction is given in the Piper Archer LX with G1000 NXi if the student has no glass cockpit experience. If a student takes 2-3 lessons per week, it usually takes about 4-5 months to complete this course.
The training hours and completion times shown here are obviously much higher than at an average flight school. Some “pilot factories” can do “quickee courses” in far less time and much cheaper. Our training is all about “thorough and safe”, with the highest standards of professionalism offered to each of our clients.