What to expect from a Biannual Review

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jorgeelizondom

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Nineties' pilot
Hi,
I'm back after 20 years and been flying with an instructor in preparation for my biannual.
I've also been doing the king knowledge test course.

Can you please walk me through the biannual review process? what should I expect?

Thanks
 
OOC, why aren't you asking the guy you're flying with now? Will he be the CFI that does your FR?

jorgeelizondom said:
Hi,
I'm back after 20 years and been flying with an instructor in preparation for my biannual.
I've also been doing the king knowledge test course.

Can you please walk me through the biannual review process? what should I expect?

Thanks
Click to expand...
 
jorgeelizondom said:
Hi,
I'm back after 20 years and been flying with an instructor in preparation for my biannual.
I've also been doing the king knowledge test course.

Can you please walk me through the biannual review process? what should I expect?

Thanks
Click to expand...

Only 20 years? No sweat:wink2:

The process is you fly with an instructor who (should) try to help with any weak areas and who signs off the review as complete if they are satisfied.

Speaking as a fresh retread myself - the instruction is part of the flight review it's not really a two step process (prep then test). You and your instructor should be sorting out what you most need to work on to get you back to PTS standards. I had no problem with most of the air work (slow flight and even under the hood) but I had to pound out several dozen landings to get them sorted out well enough that the instuctor was happy signing me off.
 
Biannual review??? Is there some new requirement to do twice a year reviews instead of the once every other year biennial review? ;)

For the later it is just a general going over of the basics of knowledge and flight. Each one I have been through has been a lot of fun. If in doubt on the knowledge end get yourself the ASA guide. Each biennial is tailored to the individual, their ratings and goals. Mine usually also includes a instrument proficiency check in addition to the requirements per my request.
 
ScottM said:
Biannual review??? Is there some new requirement to do twice a year reviews instead of the once every other year biennial review? ;)
Click to expand...
That was probably the reason they dropped "biennial" from the reg. Heck people go to the "liberry" for books, "ax" questions and don't know the difference between "loose" and "lose." How can you expect them to understand "biannual" vs. "biennial"?

Nineties - that wasn't a slam on you. It's much too common to be a slam on anything but the educational system.

For a more serious answer, those who said this is something between you and your CFI are correct. A lot depends on where you were when you stopped flying. I did one of these for a guy who had a 15-year layoff. But in his case, he had a commercial certificate with single and multi ratings and had been a CFI, so his experience and skill level was relatively high when he stopped. For him the flying part was almost like the proverbial "riding a bicycle" and he was ready to go after just a few flights.

The program we came up with together was:

Ground - he took a ground school quiz to gauge where his knowledge was still strong and were it was weak and studied on his own to make up the difference. That, and sole later oral quizzing, became his "ground."

Flight - The initial plan was that there would not be just one flight. The first flight was pretty basic. Go up do some stuff and try to get a couple of landings in. Based on that we had a plan to bring him back up to his certificate/rating skill level. After a long layoff like that, I also insist on at least one cross country flight - at least long enough to get a different terrain view and deal with a different airspace, and some landings with at least a 10-kt crosswind component.

In our case, we probably flew more than we needed to. We seemed to have a drought on crosswinds that year. But in his case, the timing of the signoff was less about me being comfortable with him than he being comfortable with himself.

But the point is that once you get past some basics - that you should have the knowledge and skill level of your certificate, what you need to get there after a long layoff is very individual.
 
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I just did my CFI and the examiner i had is very particular about the wording of things. a "biannual flight review" no longer exists. It's just a "Flight review". but that's neither here nor there.

when asked this question on the ride i simple pulled out the private PTS and went over it. It's that simple.

Good luck, have fun and welcome back to aviation! (though one can never really leave this amazing world ;) )
 
As others have noted - a biannual flight review never existed. Not to be a pedant, but we are in a field where details do matter.
 
Rotor&Wing said:
Now awaiting the next 3 or more post chiding the OP for mistakenly using a wrong term....:rolleyes2:
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Actually I'm chiding the guy above me, not the OP, for making the same mistake as the OP even after the correction was made in the thread. I understand the OP's mistake. I don't quite get a newly-minted CFI making the same mistake except as a lack of attention to detail.
 
Just to be a pendant, it's seems common usage has added a meaning to biannual. Get into the 21st century you picky wordsmiths:

dictionary.com said:
bi·an·nu·al  /baɪˈæn
thinsp.png
yu
thinsp.png
əl/ [bahy-an-yoo-uh
thinsp.png
l] –adjective

1. occurring twice a year; semiannual.

2. occurring every two years; biennial.
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Joe
 
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Hi Nineties,

Welcome to POA and back to aviation :thumbsup: I'm sure that as you fly w/ the CFI you will learn what you need in order to be back in the game.

Where are you training?

Let us know how it goes.... AND, questions are welcome so keep asking.

Jean
 
Areeda said:
Just to be a pendant, it's seems common usage has added a meaning to biannual. Get into the 21st century you picky wordsmiths:
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All you're doing is validating the point I made earlier about the educational system. Bad vocabulary has become so much the norm that "biannual" now officially means once in two years and 4 times in two years.

At least is solves one important aviation issue - not understanding the FAR has nothing whatsoever to do with the way they're written (seems there's a new thread just started that talks about HP and tailwheel "ratings").
 
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I take reaponability for the "ratings". Meant endorsement but didn't realize what I had done till someone pointed it out to me. Then I really felt smart...
 
Thank you all for your comments.
I live in mexico but have a US certificate so I'm flying quite a few hours with a mexican instructor before going to the US to do my Flight Review. As I said, I'm also working hard relearning all the ground stuff.

Again, thank you all for your suggestions.


Flight Review, Flight Review, Flight Review, Flight Review... I think I will not forget it now.
 
Your Federal CFI is going to do Airspace, Airspace, Airspace. It's all gone ICAO. Gone is the crackerbarrell- went out the window.

No more TCAs, no more TSRAs, etc.
FRZ and "T"FRs.
Nothing really has changed except TFRs, and you want to be equppied so that the BLACK helocopters don't come after you.......

61-98 remains the bible.
 
bbchien said:
Your Federal CFI is going to do Airspace, Airspace, Airspace. It's all gone ICAO. Gone is the crackerbarrell- went out the window.

No more TCAs, no more TSRAs, etc.
FRZ and "T"FRs.
Nothing really has changed except TFRs, and you want to be equppied so that the BLACK helocopters don't come after you.......

61-98 remains the bible.
Click to expand...
There are still TRSAs. Check out KRFD, there is one there.
 
You might also sign onto www.faasafety.gov. Once there, look in the courses for "Flight Review Prep Guide"

"This course offers a structured guide to reviewing the regulations and advisory material you need to know to complete the ground portion of your flight review and, more importantly, to fly safely in the national airspace system. Completing this course in advance of your scheduled flight review will allow you and your instructor to use your ground time more efficiently.

Each chapter includes links to online material and related media, which are integral to the course. Although some of the course is self-contained, it is primarily intended to be a guide to conducting your own review and study of the material. Links to many online resources (including the online Aeronautical Information Manual (AIM)) are provided. Even so, you may want to have paper copies of the regulations (14 CFR 91, 14 CFR 61) and the AIM close at hand as you work though the review. The AIM will be especially helpful in the flight environment chapter of this course."

After you've registered, you might try this direct link: https://www.faasafety.gov/gslac/ALC/course_content.aspx?cID=25&sID=99&crID=74594
 
All of the above are great suggestions for re-training. You did say that you have been out of flying for 20 years.

I highly suggest taking a Private Pilot ground school class in addition to the aforementioned reading assignments. You will be amazed by both how much you remember...and how much you forgot. Let's not forget what else has happened in the past 20 years....The Internet, Weather Briefings, GPS, G1000 etc, Airspace changes and much more.

Have fun!
Scott Johnson
www.sticknrudder.com/2010.htm
 
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