DGS wrote:
Another thing that left a bad taste in my mouth. After the flight was
plane and realized he didn't have his seatbelt fastened. He laughed
about the fact that he had forgotten to do so. As I then followed him
out of the plane I realized that I hadn't had mine fastened either. He
then apologized for forgetting to have either of us do so, but I could
tell that it didn't really bother him. I dunno, I guess it's not a
big deal, but I really kind of want someone who maybe takes it all a
little more seriously.

Actually, this IS a big deal.

First off, it's a violation of regulations. You both needed to have your
belts secured. And, on a turbulent day - as you described - it's a safety
issue; the belt helps keep you in the seat, and helps keep you in control
of the aircraft.

Second, it implies that he didn't use a checklist. My checklist shows
this in two places -- before engine start, and before takeoff. I suppose
it's possible that he used a checklist that didn't have this somewhere, it
doesn't seem likely to me.

Besides the flight safety issues, this will also affect your training.
You want to be trained by somebody you want to emulate, since you will end
up emulating your instructor. You're better off being trained by somebody
who takes this more seriously, to ensure you're trained to take it
seriously as well.

.... Alan
--
Alan Gerber
PP-ASEL
gerber AT panix DOT com