Originally Posted by C-FFKQ (42)

First off, I have Asperger's. Secondly, I'm a long-time glider pilot and instructor. I (and my club) have trained several student pilots with Autism Spectrum Disorder over the years, some successfully, some not.

The main area I see as problematic is "Executive Function". This is partly the ability to problem-solve, to create a series of logical steps to reach a desired conclusion. "What if" situations can be very difficult, especially as the stress levels increase. Keeping control of emotions is also part of Executive Function, so not getting into a panic situation as the stress rises can be a challenge.

One conversation I had with a parent when I wouldn't send a kid solo... "How well does he drive the car?" "Oh, we don't trust him to drive the car!" "Then why do you expect me to turn him loose in an airplane?" He was technically a decent student pilot -- when things were going well -- but he could get frustrated and "shut down" when things went awry (Like being asked to divert to a different runway, even with plenty of safety margin).

Just remember, "If you've met one person with autism, you've met ONE person with autism" (Dr. Steven Shore). Find out the weaknesses and work on them.. Find out the strengths and use those to offset the weaknesses. It might take longer to get to solo, the person may never solo, the person may get through the training without problems. It all depends on the person.

- John