The FAA is seeking public input on modernization of rules governing Part 141 “pilot schools.” The agency issued a notice Tuesday announcing online public meetings on the updating of the regs on March 10 and 11 from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Eastern. Information on registering for the Zoom meetings is here. The agency says that although the section has been amended over the years, some of its sections are based on regs written in the 1940s. “Modernizing part 141 is essential for addressing challenges pertaining to certification, certification management, examining authority, and evolving technology and learning methods,” the notice says. “The objective of modernizing part 141 is to increase safety and create a foundation for a more structured and robust training environment to aid in the reduction of general aviation fatal accidents.”
The notice says public engagement from the flight training industry is needed to ensure the modernization effort can best address the historic shortcomings. “Collaboration is encouraged to stimulate the innovation of a modern Part 141 that will serve the needs of current and future pilot schools, as well as provide a robust and safe training environment that instills the necessary knowledge, skills, critical thinking, and aeronautical decision making in its pilots to create a safer national airspace system,” the notice says.
I hope this isn’t code for “the FAA wants to let the flight school industry set it’s own rules.”
For some people, they would just as soon see 14 CFR be replaced with 14 WWW (Wild Wild West). You can see that here in the avbrief comments on many occasions.
St Charles Flying Service in St Charles Mo. has been teaching people to fly utilizing our FAA approved 141 School since 1974 and I feel we know what we are doing. We know the program, if used properly is a very good program, but like any program currently in the Flight training system the 141 program could use some updating. I am in the process of requesting input from our current staff of 141 Flight Instructors, asking them to put any suggestions to improve the program in writing and get them to me and my Chief Instructor to forward on to the FAA as soon as possible.
I learned to fly at a 141 school in 1972. It was great to sit down with my “file” and my instructor and see what I needed work on and what I had down pat. It was easy to get ready for the next lesson. There were phase checks with different instructors along the way to be sure nothing was missed and to get another opinion on progress. I had time under the hood and even shot a no gyro surveillance approach as they were called then. With 37.5 hours under my belt I took my ride with an FAA examiner that lasted 7 minutes, one trip around the patch. He had me log it as .7 and signed me off so that he wouldn’t get in trouble. I was well ready coming out of a 141 school and when asked about the best way to learn that is my go to answer. I understand that as with anything else there are good and bad schools and I hope that through this input program the FAA can keep the good and eliminate the bad.