Welcome Guest. Sign in or Signup

3 Answers

Tips for MEI to be?

Asked by: 2434 views , , , ,
Flight Instructor

I am training for the MEI rating. I have the checkride scheduled in September with the same DPE I used in March for ME commercial. I'm flying the same Seminole with the same instructor. The CFI is a current charter pilot and not looking to build time to move on. Good, knowledgeable guy.

I'll be flying roughly once a week, taking a couple hours vacation each Friday morning while it's "only" in the low 80s!

This will be my initial airplane instructor rating, though I've been instructing in gliders since 2013. I have two opportunities to teach ME locally when ready. I'm 60 and not looking to build time and leave...

Long intro to ask this experienced group for suggestions on what you think I should read, know, watch, print, study, tips/tricks to teach well and stay out of trouble, etc. I'm constantly amazed at what experience I see on the website.

Thanks!

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.

3 Answers

  1. Best Answer


    KDS on Jul 16, 2020

    I might start with a history lesson.

    Flight instructor certificate used to say \”Airplane\”. No single or multi in the rating. Unfortunately, the accident statistics began to show a lot of fatal accidents involved CFI\’s who had recently added multi to their commercial certificate and then started teaching in multi\’s. So, somewhere in the 1970\’s, the FAA made the differentiation between single and multi on flight instructor certificates. However, they did not feel it was necessary to go all the way to include seaplane or landplane. So, today, a flight instructor who adds seaplane to an existing pilot certificate has also increased their authorization to include instructing in seaplanes of that class.

    Today, a CFI has a level of restriction placed on them by 61.195(f), but caution when teaching in different types is still well warranted. A Seminole is a wonderful trainer. It is very forgiving. But there are a lot of multi\’s out there that are not forgiving. With a CFI that includes multi, a person could legally jump into one of them and do a BFR with a pilot who has not done engine out procedures since before he bought the airplane.

    The big advantage you will have over other CFI\’s is that the young people with their eye on some job will take chances to build time, particularly in multi\’s. That can have disastrous results. Being willing to say I can do that legally, but I am not going to do it is a wonderful safety feature.

    When you start training, do not feel that the minimum altitude allowed for a maneuver is the point where safe and unsafe meet each other. It is a matter of degrees. If more altitude makes it safer, go ahead and climb up and extra 2,000\’.

    I am sure your CFI talked about, and that is blocking the rudder. Do not be bashful about using that safety technique.

    Lastly, I\’ll add this reminder that we all have to learn the hard way. It is not the bad student who will get you in trouble. It is the really good one. With the bad student you are spring loaded to react. With the good one the instructor lets their guard down and then gets caught by surprise. In a multi, it is even more dangerous than in a single.

    +2 Votes Thumb up 2 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  2. LTCTerry on Sep 19, 2020

    Follow up – I passed the MEI check ride today!

    0 Votes Thumb up 0 Votes Thumb down 0 Votes



  3. LTCTerry on Sep 19, 2020

    And thank you to KDS for the thoughtful comments above. They seem even more on point rereading them today that when I first posted my question.

    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.