Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

5 Answers

Flight instruction on a voluntary basis

Asked by: 3384 views FAA Regulations, Flight Instructor, General Aviation, Private Pilot

Good Evening, I worked for a flight school in the US as a flight instructor for couple years and my FAA CFI and AGI certificates are still current as well as my second class medical certificate. I am planning on coming back in the US as a visitor for 6 months. One of my friends just bought an airplane and asked me If I could train him in it on a voluntary basis. Is it possible? Thank you for your time. Berthe      

Ace Any FAA Written Test!
Actual FAA Questions / Free Lifetime Updates
The best explanations in the business
Fast, efficient study.
Pass Your Checkride With Confidence!
FAA Practical Test prep that reflects actual checkrides.
Any checkride: Airplane, Helicopter, Glider, etc.
Written and maintained by actual pilot examiners and master CFIs.
The World's Most Trusted eLogbook
Be Organized, Current, Professional, and Safe.
Highly customizable - for student pilots through pros.
Free Transition Service for users of other eLogs.
Our sincere thanks to pilots such as yourself who support AskACFI while helping themselves by using the awesome PC, Mac, iPhone/iPad, and Android aviation apps of our sponsors.

5 Answers



  1. Mark Kolber on Jul 05, 2013

    Sure, why not? Pretty much run-of-the-mill Part 61 instruction.

    Your biggest issue will be liability exposure. To keep it short and succinct, the typical owner’s policy does NOT protect the pilot’s CFI from liability exposure. Common CFI errors are believing they are covered by such things as meeting “open pilot” requirements or being named on the policy as either a “named pilot” or “insured,” but, if you read and understand the policy, that is generally not the case.

    For example, the typical aviation policy’s “commercial purpose” exclusion is broad enough to cover any instruction for hire. If you’re not charging your friend (if that’s what you mean by “voluntary”) this particular exclusion might not apply to you, but if you plan to rely on your friend’s insurance to protect you, you need to review the insurance contract with someone who understands these policies and get recommendations on what specific policy endorsements you will need.

    I say “generally” for a very important reason: these policies are not uniform and regulated like car insurance; they can be very different from each other.

    +3 Votes Thumb up 3 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. Sam Dawson on Jul 06, 2013

    The only thing to add to what Mark wrote is to consider your legal status in the US. Are you a citizen or are you visiting? I am not sure about the immigration laws, but if you are a foreign national on a tourist visa it may be an issue.
    Having written that, if you keep it between you and your friend I don’t think immigration will spend much time trying to track you down.

    +3 Votes Thumb up 3 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  3. Mark Kolber on Jul 07, 2013

    Excellent point, Sam.

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  4. Berthe Deloin on Jul 07, 2013

    Good afternoon,

    thank you both! yes Mark, you are right about the liability exposure. I was thinking that maybe the AOPA could help me with that and I am already a member. I know that they offer CFI policy. I won’t charge my friend because I can’t do it on a tourist visa it is not legal.

    Sam, I just asked an immigration attorney if I can give instruction on a voluntary basis on a tourist visa. Waiting for an answer…

    I will get back to you as soon as I know.

    Thanks

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  5. Jim F. on Jul 07, 2013

    Since you said you’re an AOPA member, you can’t go wrong with posing the question to their Pilot Information Center (PIC): http://www.aopa.org/Pilot-Resources/Pilot-Information-Center.aspx

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes


The following terms have been auto-detected the question above and any answers or discussion provided. Click on a term to see its definition from the Dauntless Aviation JargonBuster Glossary.

Answer Question

Our sincere thanks to all who contribute constructively to this forum in answering flight training questions. If you are a flight instructor or represent a flight school / FBO offering flight instruction, you are welcome to include links to your site and related contact information as it pertains to offering local flight instruction in a specific geographic area. Additionally, direct links to FAA and related official government sources of information are welcome. However we thank you for your understanding that links to other sites or text that may be construed as explicit or implicit advertising of other business, sites, or goods/services are not permitted even if such links nominally are relevant to the question asked.