San Carlos Flight Center invites Chief Pilot and CFI Herb Patten to guide us through an exploration of unusual airspace, seeking how to remain compliant with regulations in spite of confusing chartered airspace.  Together we will discover the unusual and different airspace defined in 14 CFR part 93 special air traffic rules.  We will investigate unique special military areas and tools to check their status.  Herb will elucidate the differences between VFR corridors and VFR flyways. Finally, the discussion wouldn’t be complete without exploring class Echo surface areas and a nod to history with a review of airspace classified as TSRA.

Pilots of all backgrounds and ability levels are welcome to attend and participate in this interactive review and exploration of airspace.

Herb Patten is the Chief Pilot at 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 flown over 2,500 hours in more than 130 different California airports.  He is the current chairman of the Upwind Foundation, famous for its Upwind Summer Scholarship Program. In 2021, Herb was named a Distinguished Flight Instructor by AOPA.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 500 recorded safety seminars.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Chief Pilot and CFI Herb Patten to guide us through an exploration of unusual airspace, seeking how to remain compliant with regulations in spite of confusing chartered airspace.  Together we will discover the unusual and different airspace defined in 14 CFR part 93 special air traffic rules.  We will investigate unique special military areas and tools to check their status.  Herb will elucidate the differences between VFR corridors and VFR flyways. Finally, the discussion wouldn’t be complete without exploring class Echo surface areas and a nod to history with a review of airspace classified as TSRA.

Pilots of all backgrounds and ability levels are welcome to attend and participate in this interactive review and exploration of airspace.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation through safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2023 as a Distinguished Flight School for the third year in a row.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 500 recorded safety seminars.

In this seminar, Travis will review the requirements to be a CFI, the test elements outlined in the Practical Test Standards and highlight the important safety considerations that CFIs bear the responsibility of. He will share how he studied for each knowledge and flight area along with the methods he used to be ready to take the practical test. Many CFIs tend to rush the training process only to leave their students behind struggling to understand the material. It is the CFIs responsibility to ensure they are ready to teach their students, and that starts with a competent instructor.

If you are working on becoming a CFI, join us for this presentation to understand the process along with gaining an understanding on certain ground and flight emphasis topics.

San Carlos Flight Center and FOG invite pilot and New Cuyama Airport Ambassador, Steve Sappington to discuss New Cuyama (L88) airport operations and flight planning considerations. We have asked him to share with us what pilots flying into L88 need to know, including special considerations such as noise abatement procedures, surrounding wildlife, terrain, and weather patterns. He will utilize visual imagery and other flight planning software to help emphasize his points, and conclude his presentation with an overview of things to do in the area.

If you ever considered venturing to New Cuyama, this will be an informative head start to your flight planning. We hope you can join us for this presentation, and for our subsequent FlyOutGroup (FOG) fly-in event, more details TBA at the end of the seminar.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.

San Carlos Flight Center invites Professor Emeritus, ASA Author, and CFI Dale Wilson to discuss the human-factor elements responsible for VFR flight into IMC. VFR into IMC is still the number one cause of fatal general aviation weather-related accidents. Why is this? In this seminar, join Dale to find out. He will also explain mitigation strategies to help you avoid getting trapped by this deadly threat.

We invite all pilots to tune in for this presentation to increase awareness of the decision-making process and overall flight safety.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive.

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You may also be interested in the continued next seminar of our Radio Communications series, accessible by clicking the link here.

Flying through SF Bay Area airspace 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 Chief Pilot Herb Patten and pilot Dan Dyer to bridge the communication gap, help newer pilots understand the structure of radio and how to improve their own.  The presentation will begin with a review of radio communication phraseology and use.  What part is structured?  What part is unstructured?  What words are good official phraseology, and what words are considered jargon, slang, or poor grammar?

If you are new to radio communication or just want a great review to fill gaps in your pilot education, please join us for this unique opportunity.

Dan Dyer is the founder of the San Carlos Flight Center, and has built the motto of Safety, Community, and Adventure for over 8 years.  Dan was an instructor for 15 years, accumulated 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 [email protected]

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.

With over 20 years of flying as a charter pilot, Capt. Ben Taber has had numerous unforgettable moments in the cockpit. In this seminar, he will discuss his memorable times as a charter pilot, often when something did not go as planned and he was forced to adapt to a situation.

If you have ever wondered about the daily experiences professional pilots face, this is ought to seek your interest.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.

Sam will review basic propeller knowledge for pilots, including design differences between the major manufacturers, fixed pitch vs. constant speed operation, realistic evaluation of propeller condition before flight, and the inherent dangers of deferring propeller (or any other aircraft) maintenance. She will discuss some of the common propeller Airworthiness Directives that are owner-operator responsibility (not just mechanics). Finally, she will explain the differences between overhaul, dynamic balancing, and other major types of propeller/governor service.  This is all supported with numerous photos and years of anecdotes (some amusing and some amazing).

Propellers are an essential part of flight, and pilots should gain a better understanding about them. If you want to gain more knowledge about what keeps you flying, we encourage all pilots to attend.

Samantha Bloodhart moved to the Bay Area in 1994 from Ohio to open Sullivan Propeller Specialists with her partner Brian Sullivan. Sullivan Propeller has been in business in Hayward since we opened, now 23 years. She is a licensed FAA Repairman. Currently she is the voice of Sullivan Propeller – handling most of the administrative tasks as well as front-line on customer service. Samantha is also the primary administrator for our Repair Station and handles all the FAA requirements/compliance issues as such. Bloodhart founded Sullivan Propeller in 1994, along with Brian Sullivan.

San Carlos Flight Center (SCFC) is the SF Bay Area’s most dynamic flying club, committed to building general aviation through safety, community, and adventure. AOPA has consistently recognized SCFC in their Best Flight School survey, most recently in 2022 as a Distinguished Flight School.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.

To clear this up, San Carlos Flight Center welcomes back former Chief Pilot Dan Dyer, who covers this topic in CFI new hire training and as part of SCFC’s CFI Finishing School. Dan will cover all FIVE times the nose of the aircraft may yaw suddenly, requiring pilot action to stabilize. He will also show that most of these aerodynamic forces work IN BOTH DIRECTIONS, and explain their origins and in which flight conditions each is strongest. Finally, he’ll explain the two most commonly missed left-turning tendency questions from CFI hiring interviews.

Every single engine, propeller driven pilot will need to account for these tendencies with rudder control, regardless of how deep their understanding of the aerodynamic principles involved are. If you would like to push your knowledge of the FIVE left turning tendancies, tune in to this presentation.

SCFC is committed to promoting safety in general aviation through our regular safety seminars and guest speaker programs. Livestream access is free for everyone, but recorded seminars are available solely to members at a later date. Click here or contact a SCFC member service rep at (650) 946-1700 for more information about online access to our web archive of over 400 recorded safety seminars.