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What to Expect During Your First Flight Lesson

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Flight school is a time of new experiences and tons of stuff to learn. To prepare you, your first flight lesson is a combination of everything you’ll be doing for the next few months while you earn your pilot license.

There are times when you’ll be bored by paperwork, times when you’ll be drowned in new information, and times when you’ll get to experience what it’s all about — the joy of flying an airplane. 

5 Things to Expect on Your First Flight Lesson

Getting your pilot license is probably unlike anything you’ve ever done. Everyone’s a little nervous when starting a new path, so here’s a preview of some things to expect on your first flight lesson.

Starting the Paperwork

To begin flight training, you must register in the flight school’s system.

There are a lot of rules that schools must follow when beginning new private pilot students, so be prepared to spend some time with your instructor getting all your paperwork completed.

You’ll be asked to provide your passport or birth certificate to prove you’re a US citizen.

If you aren’t a citizen, the school will direct you to a TSA website where you’ll have to apply for approval to begin flight training.

The TSA approval process involves a background check and a few extra steps, so there is a delay before you can begin flying. But you can usually still go on a ‘discovery flight’ and begin doing ground lessons while you wait. 

your first flight lesson

An Outline of Things To Come

One of the biggest things you accomplish on day one is to learn how it all works. You’ll buy all the textbooks you need — whether your school uses digital or paper books. Most schools keep a small selection of items to get new students started.

If there are any additional supplies you’ll need to buy, your instructor will tell you where to shop or suggest where to order them. In addition to your textbooks, you’ll also need:

Among all these books and all this paperwork, you’ll be given a course syllabus that outlines what you’ll do on each flight lesson.

This is key to your flight training because it means you’ll never be surprised. By reading what happens on the next flight, you’ll know what to study. 

Your instructor will also go over each phase of your flight training so that you can understand how the system works. Each school is a little different, but most will require you to complete three phases of training: pre-solo, cross-country training, and checkride preparation. 

At this point, you might feel like you’re getting too much information too fast.

Don’t worry; your instructor will help you along the way.

Always feel free to ask questions as you go if you don’t understand something, and don’t hesitate to ask for more information or a recap during the next lesson.

Looking for a Ground School?

We’ve put together a list of the best private pilot ground schools that will best prepare you for the FAA written exam.

Learn How to Preflight the Plane

A lot of work goes into getting you and the plane ready to leave Terra Firma.

Slowly, you’ll learn each piece of the puzzle: checking the weather, planning the plane’s performance, calculating the weight and balance, and pre-flighting the aircraft. 

Preflighting the airplane is usually something you can start learning on day one. The instructor will preflight anyway, so you’ll follow along and listen to them describe what they’re looking for. 

A Fun Flight

The actual flying portion always goes by quickly; most first flight lessons spend less than an hour in the plane.

Despite that, you’ll be bombarded by new sights, sounds, smells, and experiences, so it can be exhausting work, even if it is a ton of fun. 

Because you’re just starting, your instructor won’t expect you to have studied or prepared. The purpose of the flight is to go up and expose you to what it’s like — to give you a preview of what you need to be ready for on flight two. 

first flight lesson

After starting the engine, your instructor will probably teach you how to taxi the plane to the runway and possibly how to take off.

Once in the air, you’ll learn the basics of climbs, turns, and descents. You’ll also learn some landmarks and get a feel for what it’s like flying out of your new home airport. 

Ready to land?

Depending on the weather conditions and how you feel, the instructor may ‘talk you down’ by simply telling you how to get the plane on the ground. If not, no worries; you’ll be landing on your own soon enough!

Lots of Homework

Every flight ends in a debriefing, where your instructor will sit with you to chat about the flight and what’s coming next.

This is when you need to be braced for the homework that’s sure to follow. You’ll learn to use the syllabus to look up what’s ahead and then find the maneuvers and knowledge areas in the textbooks to study. 

Flying is extremely expensive, so students must study hard before they show up for another flight lesson to maximize their time in the airplane.

You do not want to waste time having your instructor explain things while in the air — not only are you burning fuel and money, but you’ll also not remember most of it.

You’ll know you’re ready to move ahead if you can explain the upcoming maneuvers and exercises to your instructor before you even get in the plane.

first day of flight school

Ready for Takeoff?

Most first flight lessons last two or three hours, with less than an hour spent in the air.

But it lays the groundwork for the rest of your flight training, and you’ll want to start forming good habits by studying the materials before you come in for flight two.

Then, in each lesson, you’ll learn more pieces of the puzzle that make up a whole flight. It may seem incredible now, but in only about ten flights, you’ll be doing nearly everything on your own.

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