FAAST Blast — Week of December 13-19, 2010
Biweekly FAA Safety Briefing News Update
FAA Holds Public Meeting to Address CFI Renewal Process
The FAA hosted a public meeting to consider feedback on how to improve the Certified Flight Instructor (CFI) biennial renewal process covered under Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations (14 CFR) section 61.197. More than 30 attendees, ranging from pilot advocacy group members to flight school owners, engaged in a discussion of how successful the Flight Instructor Refresher Clinics (FIRC) have been in transferring relevant information to CFIs, and what else the FIRC providers can do to enhance safety in the GA community at large.
"This meeting provided valuable information to help us modify and update future guidance for FIRCs and in the process helped us leverage constructive public input from many key stakeholders," said FAA Aviation Safety Inspector Greg French, who also chaired the meeting. A revised Advisory Circular on FIRC guidance is currently in development and will include many of the core topics discussed during the Dec. 6-7 meeting. If you would like to provide input on improving the role of FIRCs, please send your comments to: 9-AWA-AVS-AFS-FIRC@faa.gov.
Between a Rock and Hard Spot
Handling an engine failure inflight is something all pilots are trained to prepare for early on in their careers. But as author and Master CFI Doug Stewart points out in his FAA Safety Briefing article, "Between a Rock and a Hard Spot," handling a partial power take-off can complicate even a well-rehearsed mitigation strategy. Stewart offers a personal account of a "lessons learned" moment in his own Cessna Cardinal RG when he found himself on the back side of the power curve on takeoff, and with trees closing in fast.
"My best techniques were not enough to overcome the fact that we did not have the power—or airspeed—to climb fast enough to clear the pine trees," said Stewart. Learning from his experience, Stewart now realizes a ground roll and obstacle clearance calculation would have led him to the correct decision of aborting the flight. "That choice might have led to some damage to the airplane, but it would have kept an abnormal airspeed indication from developing into a life threatening emergency," Stewart added. For more on how to best prepare for partial power takeoffs, see the article on page 11 of the Nov./Dec. 2010 FAA Safety Briefing.
Got Winter Flying Plans?
With the dwindling number of daytime hours this time of year, it's a good idea to brush up on night flying safety skills. Review night flying articles in the Nov./Dec. 2008 FAA Safety Briefing available at http://www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/2008/. Fly safely!
Produced by the FAA Safety Briefing editors,http://www.faa.gov/news/safety_briefing/
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