Conclusion

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Jonathan Hopkins

Patten gives the thumbs-up to hold short of runway 30 after supervising his student perform a run-up, which ensures the engine performs appropriately.

Patten has been San Carlos Flight Center’s Chief Pilot since Sep. 2020 and has experienced a lot in his time flying. But he has rarely encountered an unsafe or life-threatening situation.

“The closest scary experience I had was when I was flying with another student that already had a pilot certificate. We were operating at, you know, some high-elevation airports (in a Cessna), where the performance is not good.”

Patten is talking about high-density altitude, a state which harms a propeller’s grip on the surrounding air and creates a smaller upward force on a plane’s airfoils, decreasing the aircraft’s performance. This causes longer takeoff and landing rolls. 

“The pilot was approaching the airport faster than normal. So I was giving some suggestions like: ‘let’s try to get the plane configured and slowed up to an approach speed.’ But that was a little late. On landing, we started to veer off the runway.”

So the pilot decided the landing was unsafe and executed a go-around.

“The pilot observed that things weren’t going the way they should be going, and instead of trying to salvage the situation, the best thing the pilot did was go around. In other words, execute the maneuver to bring the plane away from the dangerous situation, climb back up, and then attempt to land again, this time in a more stable situation,” Patten said.

All pilots make mistakes, and correcting them is a crucial skill. 

“It’s really more important to make sure that everything is safe, and if it doesn’t look good to you, know to go around early rather than keep your approach going,” Patten said.

While training books like the PHAK mention how to execute procedures like go-arounds, flight instructors reinforce these processes through practice. A flight instructor’s impact on a student’s career is monumental for this reason, and it is the instructor’s priority to know what and how to teach to keep students knowledgeable and safe.

Flight instructors are also vital in ensuring the function of the commercial industry. Commercial pilots require 1,500 hours to obtain their ATP, and additional hours for simulator training, type ratings, and other training. More importantly, instructing is pivotal to developing excellent safety within the aviation industry.

“Aviation instructors are on the front line of efforts to improve the safety record of the aviation industry. Safety, one of the most fundamental considerations in aviation training, is paramount,” says the FAA’s Aviation Instructor’s Handbook.

But despite its high demands, instructing is an enjoyable job and a valuable career.