Scenario Based Training

Traditional flight training is skills based. The instructor introduces the new pilot to a particular maneuver. The pilot practices the maneuver with the instructor coaching until the performance falls within the tolerance set for the FAA practical test. New pilots develop skills this way. But they do not practice decision making which leads to the effective and safe use of those skills.

Scenario based training has the new pilot plan specific flights under the guidance of their instructor. The scenarios created by the instructor are plausible flights based on the specific pilot’s interests and situation. The scenarios take the new pilot through the decision making process as they will experience it once they earn their pilot’s certificate. Skills are developed along the way, but in the context of how the pilot could be flying in the future. The progression of training is to gradually transfer the decision making from the instructor to the new pilot. Scenarios grow from simple to complex as the new pilot develops knowledge and decision making ability along with stick and rudder skills.

The goal of flight training is to develop pilots who are safe and effective members of the aviation community. Scenarios can be both real flights and thought experiments or a combination of the two. Here are two possible scenarios. The first would be appropriate for an early flight lesson. The second would be for someone getting close to taking their practical test with the FAA.

Early lesson scenario

The new pilot has decided to put her house on the market. Her realtor, learning she is a pilot, suggests they get some aerial photos of the house. The flight will be to the house where the pilot will circle while the realtor takes pictures. The pilot will manage the risks of the flight with regard to weather and obstacle avoidance. The pilot will brief her passenger. The pilot will navigate to the house using pilotage (navigation by referencing landmarks). The pilot will execute turns about a point, a maneuver required for the practical test, correcting for current wind conditions. The pilot will then navigate back to the airport and properly enter the landing pattern.

Late lesson scenario

The pilot is going to visit relatives in Detroit for a wedding anniversary party the next day. This will be their first flight over a large body of water, Lake Michigan. The plan was to leave by midafternoon. However, the pilot’s partner was held up at work. The soonest they can leave now appears to be 6 pm. The pilot would plan the flight based on the original departure time and then modify the plan based on changes in the circumstances provided by the instructor. The pilot will use actual navigation tools available and real weather forecasts. The pilot will manage the risks of the flight by accurately evaluating the relevant information available.