In this seminar, designed primarily to be viewed by flight instructors, we will examine the obligations of the role of flight instructor, and look for ways good instructors can push themselves to improve.  Most importantly, we’ll show all the important ways that flight instruction differs from being a pilot, as outlined in the FAA’s Aviation Instructor’s Handbook.

If you are a new flight instructor who is passionate about effective instruction and looking for tips to improve your effectiveness, please join us.  Commercial pilots who may be considering flight instruction as a career may also find value in this seminar.  High-time flight instructors may already know much of these items, but are welcome to view the presentation as a refresher of what our profession aims toward.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Master Sergeant John Addams, and Senior Airmen Cameron Roelofs to discuss the Travis RAPCON and its ATC services.  In this seminar they will cover how Travis accommodates basic service to VFR aircraft, and the benefits of receiving VFR flight following within their airspace.  They will also explain some of the ways that Class E airspace relates to Travis AFB, and why it’s important to be talking to Travis RAPCON while operating in their airspace.  Lastly, how pilots can be direct, clear, and concise on the radio while talking to ATC.

The presenters are also eager to take questions from the GA flying community.  If you have ever wondered about the approach operations at Travis AFB, or if you want to learn more about their services and experiences; you won’t want to miss this seminar.

Master Sgt John Addams from Olympia, WA. Currently the Assistant Chief Controller of Travis RAPCON. He’s been in the Air Force going on 18 years.

Senior Airmen Cameron Roelofs from Grand Rapids, MI. He’s been in the Air Force for 3 years and is one of our most talented controllers and trainers.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

Flying through in the many airspaces of California requires a high degree of situational awareness and sophisticated radio skills.  And yet, radio communication is rarely taught as a specific subject during private pilot training.  Usually, new pilots just absorb what they hear on the frequency around them, both good and bad.  Although some radio techniques are covered in ground school, rarely do student pilots get the time devoted to demystifying this often-confusing subject.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Herb Patten, Assistant Chief Pilot, AGI and CFI and Dan Dyer, Chief Pilot and CFI to show how to perfect your communication and phraseology.  They will cover radio phraseology from the basics through advanced ATC services with emphasis on flight following and flight service stations.  This seminar will include many examples on how to recognize bad radio calls, and how to fix them. Learn how to make radio communication easier and safer for all pilots.

If you are interested in becoming better at your radio, you don’t want to miss this seminar.

Dan Dyer is a flight instructor and Chief Pilot of San Carlos Flight Center.  He has been instructing for 15 years, has over 4,000 flight hours, and is the Bay Area’s local expert in crosswind landing instruction. He is known for finding simple and innovative ways to explain complex topics and regularly speaks on advanced ground school topics.  Find out more about Dan at www.sancarlosflight.com or contact him at dan@sancarlosflight.com

Herb Patten is the Assistant Chief Pilot at the San Carlos Flight Center, a CFI and an FAA certificated advanced and instrument ground instructor who teaches private pilot ground school at San Carlos Flight Center. He is a commercial pilot with an instrument rating, has over 1,500 hours and flown into at least 120 different California airports. He is the current chairman of the Upwind Foundation, famous for its Upwind Summer Scholarship Program. In 2015, Herb was named a Master Instructor by the National Association of Flight Instructors.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

Human body dynamics are complicated on the ground, and really interesting when you take them up thousands of feet in elevation.  The reduction in ambient air pressure can cause various impairments that directly affect safety of flight.

Join AGI Michel Vidal-Naquet as he reviews important Aeromedical Factors such as the four types of hypoxia, the impact of medicines and alcohol on the human body, and how the human eye and mind can be fooled by various spatial and visual illusions.  He will also go over some common over-the-counter medications that pilots might not consider to impair their ability to fly, but may actually be dangerous.

Come and join this online seminar in the ground school refresher series to review the impact of flight on the human body and become a safer pilot.

Michel Vidal-Naquet is an advanced ground instructor and an instrument rated private pilot with about 680 flight hours.  He started flying in 2013 after settling in the Bay area to work as a computer scientist and engineer.  His passion for aviation began during his early childhood when his family first took him on international flights.  He brings a scientific point of view to his flying, and is always learning.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

Although the IFR Rating is challenging, earning it will definitely make you a safer pilot.  It also opens up new options for departing on your cross country trip even when the weather is less than VFR.  Even more so, for aspiring pilots looking to get into the commercial aviation world, this is the next logical step to take.  Join AGI and CFI Herb Pattern as he will share his experiences of working towards an IFR Rating.  He will share the challenges they encountered and the rewards of the rating, along with sharing what the advantages are of having an Instrument Rating.

If you are looking to pursue your instrument rating, this is the seminar for you.

Herb Patten is the Assistant Chief Pilot at the San Carlos Flight Center, a CFI and an FAA certificated advanced and instrument ground instructor who teaches private pilot ground school at San Carlos Flight Center. He is a commercial pilot with an instrument rating, has over 1,500 hours and flown into at least 120 different California airports. He is the current chairman of the Upwind Foundation, famous for its Upwind Summer Scholarship Program. In 2015, Herb was named a Master Instructor by the National Association of Flight Instructors.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

As SCFC eyes reopening the club to member flights, San Carlos Flight Center has invited CFI Mariana May Barrato to chart a course through recurrency.  What are the safest, most efficient ways for pilots to get back in the air.  What are the regulatory requirements?  What knowledge areas likely need attention?  How can a pilot structure the first few flights back to build back full capabilities.  In this seminar, Mari will cover those topics, and provide an outlook on what to expect coming back into flying.

With many of us begging to take to the skies, we must take into consideration the safest ways to do so.  Come join us and find out.

Mari May Baratto is a Certified Flight Instructor and an FAA Instrument Ground Instructor with experience teaching both Private and Commercial Pilot students. A commercial rated pilot both in Brazil and in the United States, Mari has a diverse background flying through different airspaces, especially through one of the country’s most intimidating areas, the Washington DC SFRA. Mari has been recognized as a 2018 Distinguished Flight Instructor by AOPA.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

If it has been awhile since you sat through ground school, you may be due for an airspace refresher.  In this safety seminar, we will review the different classes of airspace that are found in the United States.  We’ll cover their shapes, sizes, operating rules, and also cover special use airspace.  Want an easy way to keep confusing Class G airspace rules memorized, use the Flight Center’s method that teaches there are 3 types of Class G airspace, Class G-low, Class G-mid, and Class G-high.  Do you know the differences between them?  Where would you look it up?  What happens to Class D when the tower closes?  How well do you know airspace?

This safety seminar is open to current and aspiring Private Pilots, and will be of particular interest to students pilots and those who are preparing for a flight review.  You will leave the seminar with a renewed understanding, and probably a few memory aids to take with your on your next flight.

Sid Basu is a CFI ASEL, Commercial ASEL, AMEL and Instrument rated pilot with over 1500 hours total time and about 1000 hours dual given. He has been flying since 2008 and has been instructing at San Carlos Flight Center since 2017.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Instrument Ground Instruction and commercial pilot Dave Kramer to discuss the benefits of tower enroute control.  In this seminar, Dave will review what TEC routing is, how to find the appropriate route, how to file it, and how to fly it safely and effectively.  TEC Routes have been available for a long time, often used in Southern California and have often been underused. By attending this seminar you will realize the benefits of using this type of routing, and impress your friends on your next IFR flight.

If you want to get on the ground at your destination faster, you won’t want to miss out on this seminar.

Dave Kramer MD, an ophthalmologist for over 30 years, is an instrument rated, tailwheel, complex and high performance endorsed commercial SEL pilot as well as a basic and instrument ground instructor with an interest in weather. He has been flying since 2012, has over 1100 hours of which over 500 have been in the IFR system.  He also enjoys long cross country flying, night flying and flying in the LA area.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation thought safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2019 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Space is often limited so it is important to sign up early. SCFC members may choose to watch the seminar live over the web at home, or recorded at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access.