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I was hosting a group of friends over the Fourth of July weekend when a familiar conversation took an unexpected turn. I’d been talking with a friend—a CFI I often fly with—about practicing short-field backcountry techniques, when another friend, a regular passenger but non-pilot, looked at me with surprise.
“You take flight lessons?”
The disbelief in his voice was unmistakable. The unspoken question hung in the air: I’ve been riding with you all this time, and you still need lessons? I thought you knew how to fly!
My CFI and I explained the importance of staying current and proficient, and the value of having another pilot catch creeping bad habits. My non-pilot friend nodded, satisfied enough to keep flying with me. But it struck me that many people—non-pilots and pilots alike—don’t fully understand what ongoing training really means.
There’s far more on the currency menu than most of us order.
Plenty of pilots seem to avoid CFIs except for the bare minimum: a Biennial Flight Review (BFR) and, for instrument flyers, an Instrument Proficiency Check (IPC) when their currency lapses. I get it. An hour of slow flight, stalls, and reviewing airspace rules—then flying a rented 172 through the same maneuvers—doesn’t excite many people. Reciting lost-communications procedures and grinding through canned approaches rarely inspires anyone to file IFR.
But as consumers of training, we get to choose what we buy—and there’s far more on the currency menu than most of us order.
I approach every flight with an instructor with a plan of my own.
I approach every flight with an instructor with a plan of my own. I don’t just show up because the calendar says it’s time. I bring specific goals, real-world questions, and skills I want to sharpen. My annual IPC isn’t about checking FAA boxes; it’s about tackling challenges I’ve faced over the year and flying approaches that have pushed me—or even tripped up more experienced pilots.
The BFR offers even more flexibility. I haven’t done a “traditional” one in over a decade. Instead, I’ve met the requirement through backcountry training, aerobatics, new-aircraft checkouts, and advanced ratings. In each case, I set my own objectives. The result? A review that’s both more useful for me and more engaging for the instructor.
Thinking creatively can make recurrent training fun, relevant, and genuinely valuable. As I was preparing for AirVenture, for example, I realized that prep could double as a BFR. The ground review covered the NOTAM, performance planning, and the unique demands of Oshkosh airspace. The flight itself involved holding 90 knots for miles while following ground references, absorbing last-second runway changes, landing precisely on a dot that might shift just before touchdown, and occasionally performing a go-around or 3,000-foot high-speed taxi. That’s far more challenging—and rewarding—than the standard BFR script.
My flying has improved significantly because of these “lessons.” I don’t stress about currency, and I fly with greater confidence. I’ve become a firm believer in continual training, and I encourage you to keep taking flight lessons—but take ownership of them.
Bring scenarios and challenges that matter to you. Push yourself. Ask your instructor to critique and stretch you. Make the training real, relevant, and enjoyable. You’ll find yourself flying better, worrying less about calendar dates, and smiling when someone inevitably asks, “You still take flight lessons?”
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When I was a T-38 IP flying with student pilots, we would schedule two IPs to get in a T-38 and conduct what we called Follow On Training (FOT) flights. It was two IPs who got to practice what we instructed students on a continuing basis, be it landings, aerobatics, instruments, or formation (with two other IPs in the other jet). Later, when I was flying F-16s as an IP for newly minted fighter pilots, we would schedule two IPs to fly together in a 2-ship without any students, and we called that Continuation Training (CT). Both FOT and CT flights provided a great opportunity to get honest, informative feedback on what you did right, what you did wrong, and areas where you could improve. It was an opportunity to get/give pointers to make each of us better pilots.
Those sound like awesome training opportunities. I’d jump at a chance for that experience in a heart beat!
Another great article, Serrhel!
Serrhel Adams I love reading such positive articles about flying the reinforcement of continuous learning proud to say I enjoy flying with you. I feel very comfortable and I know my wife won’t fly with anybody else other than commercial pilots and even some of those are . Keep up the good work keep learning that way you keep yourself and Patty safe on every flight kinda like diving just as many asses decent just as many takeoff in good landings blue skies, my brother.
Now. if you were aloft when your PAX asked that, it would have been the stuff of legends. Perhaps, a cooked response for the next time: “Yes, I do take lessons. In fact, I’ve had one…wait maybe two if you count my disco flight. I still haven’t figured out landing yet though but my CFI thinks I’m a natural. Oh? Don’t worry. I know there is a checklist somewhere in here and I’ve watched a lot of YouTube videos – it really doesn’t look hard.” Something like that.
Maybe the expression should be, “A good pilot is always taking flying lessons.”
I feel like I’m in a Seinfeld Episode. I now need to recreate the scenario to use some of these comebacks. Very funny!
Amen. I’m still a student pilot after 40+ years and thousands of hours.
/r
I am in a flying club and in the flying club are CFIs and CFIIs. If you are a student pilot you have to know that some CFIs/CFIIs teach to accumulate hours towards their ATP to go with the airlines. That means they would be more than happy to fly with you and count their hours towards the 1500 if you are already a pilot. Not every CFI/CFII is in that category. One thing to just remember, they are teachers and as such they all have their own teaching style and approaches to teach principles. I would say find one that provides both positive reinforcement (affirmation) as well as instruction/take aways that make you a safe pilot.