Instructor Responsibilities

The Core Responsibility

The flight instructor's central job is to produce safe, competent, well-judged pilots. Not to fill logbook hours. Not to push students toward solo or checkride before they're ready. Not to maximize the school's revenue.

Two principles to internalize:

• "A learner's failure to perform often results from an instructor's inability to transfer the required information." Before blaming the student, look at your own teaching.
• "Emphasize the positive because positive instruction results in positive learning." Negative instruction (yelling, shaming, sarcasm) creates fear; fear shuts down learning.

The Aviator Code of Conduct

• General responsibilities of aviators — uphold safety, professionalism, and the reputation of general aviation
• Passengers and people on the surface — operate without undue hazard to others
• Training and proficiency — maintain and demonstrate currency; recommend training when needed
• Security — comply with TSA guidance; report suspicious activity
• Environmental issues — minimize noise, fuel waste, and ground impact
• Use of technology — leverage avionics and tools without becoming dependent on them
• Advancement and promotion of GA — be an ambassador to the public

Professionalism — Six Characteristics

• Sincerity — be genuine. Students see through performance.
• Acceptance of the student — meet them where they are. Their goals, background, and pace.
• Proper language — clean, clear, and free of jargon the student hasn't learned
• Appropriate appearance — dress matters more than ego likes to admit. Look like a professional pilot.
• Demeanor — calm, focused, supportive. Not anxious, distracted, or hostile.
• Safety — model the safety culture you want students to adopt

Dealing with Student Stress and Anxiety

Stress is normal in flight training. Pathological stress is not — recognize it and respond.

• Watch for signs: tunnel vision, fixation, rapid breathing, perspiration, hesitation, errors that don't match the student's earlier proficiency
• If the student is no longer learning, stop the lesson. A bad lesson is worse than no lesson — primacy applies, and a stressful failure is the experience the student carries forward.
• Set a reasonable pace. Don't push through emotional limits.
• Build in successes. End lessons on a positive note when possible.
• Address the underlying issue — financial stress, schedule pressure, family — outside the cockpit. Acknowledge it; you don't have to solve it.

Student Pilot Supervision

• The CFI is responsible for the student's pre-solo training and for endorsing them when ready
• Solo endorsements are aircraft-make/model specific. Each authorization to solo a different aircraft requires its own endorsement.
• Cross-country solo flights require a separate endorsement specifying the route, including each leg, after the CFI has reviewed the planning
• The CFI's responsibility extends to every solo flight a student makes under the CFI's endorsement — verify currency, weather, and aircraft squawks before signing

The Flight Review (FAR § 61.56)

Every certificated pilot must complete a flight review within the preceding 24 calendar months to act as PIC. The CFI conducting it is responsible for:

• Evaluation of piloting ability — to standards appropriate to the certificate held
• Pilot supervision — for the duration of the review
• Minimum content: 1 hour ground (operating rules, ADM) + 1 hour flight (maneuvers appropriate to the certificate)
• Not a checkride — the standards are safe, not "ACS perfect"
• Endorsement language is specified in AC 61-65. If the pilot doesn't meet the standard, the CFI does not endorse — but recommends additional training instead

Special cases:

• Holders of new certificates within the preceding 24 months are exempt
• WINGS program — completion of one phase satisfies the flight review requirement
• SFAR 73 (R-22 / R-44) — the review must be in the same model and includes specific topics (autorotation, low-G, low rotor RPM, governor-off RPM control)

Practical Test Recommendations

The CFI signs the recommendation that authorizes a student to take their practical test. The signature is a regulatory statement: "This applicant has received the required training and is prepared for the practical test."

• The CFI must have personally observed satisfactory performance of every task in the relevant ACS
• The recommendation is given only when the CFI is genuinely confident — not because the student wants to schedule the test
• An over-eager recommendation that produces a checkride bust hurts the student more than the delay would have
• Track record matters — instructors with a high pass rate get an easier ride from FSDOs and DPEs

Additional Training and Endorsements

The CFI is responsible for additional training and endorsements throughout a pilot's career:

• Complex aircraft — high-performance, tailwheel, pressurized (one-time endorsement per category)
• BFR / WINGS — recurrent training
• IPC (Instrument Proficiency Check) — required after 6 months of instrument inactivity
• Type-specific training — model-specific operations beyond the basic certificate (R-22 SFAR 73, etc.)
• Refresher training — pilots returning after a long break

See the Endorsements page for the regulatory citations and template language.

Professional Development

The CFI is responsible for maintaining their own knowledge and skills.

• Re-read the handbooks (FAA-H-8083-9B, 8083-21, 8083-25) periodically — they update
• Stay current on FAR changes and FAA guidance (AC updates, InFO bulletins, SAFO bulletins)
• Attend recurrent training: FIRC (Flight Instructor Refresher Course), simulator-based recurrent, type-specific training
• Read accident reports — every NTSB rotorcraft accident is a teaching case
• Get regular flight time as the student, not just as the instructor. It's easy for an instructor to slip into bad habits when no one is watching.

Renewal — Every 24 Calendar Months

The CFI certificate expires at the end of the 24th calendar month after issue, renewal, or reinstatement. Five renewal paths:

• Pass an FAA practical test for any flight instructor certificate
• FIRC (Flight Instructor Refresher Course) — 16-hour course, online or in person, ending within 3 months prior to expiration
• Successfully recommend at least 5 students for practical tests in the preceding 24 months with at least 80% passing on the first attempt
• Hold a position requiring CFI privileges for at least 6 months in the past 24, evaluated as having satisfactory performance — typically Part 121/135 check airman or Part 141 chief instructor
• Reinstatement after expiration — full practical test required if expired more than 3 months

The CFI's Regulatory Exposure

Every signature in a student's logbook is potentially a piece of evidence. The CFI is exposed to:

• FAA enforcement for inadequate training that contributes to an incident
• NTSB review following an accident involving a student
• Civil liability if a student causes property damage or injury

Mitigations:

• Document everything — lesson records, student-pilot endorsements, weather, aircraft squawks, decisions made before flight
• Don't endorse until you've personally observed the relevant skills
• Carry instructor liability insurance (separate from the school's coverage)
• If something goes wrong, cooperate with investigators but speak with an aviation attorney before making formal statements