AI Classes, Airplane Coordination, and a Giveaway
October 2026
October 29, 2026 at 9:00:00 AM
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Using AI as a CFI and as a Learner Class is a Hit
We are teaching a class on using AI as a teacher and learner. It’s a one-day class designed to show you which AI tools to use and how to use them for Flight Instruction and as a Pilot/CFI in training.
The class included a mixed-age group, but everyone understood and could use the information. There is time for hands-on practice in the class as well. If you can use a web browser and open a PDF, you can get this pretty quickly.
The class focuses on the following:
How to record ground lectures, preflight briefings, in-cockpit instruction, and post-flight briefings, and make summaries of those.
Making Flashcards from Summaries to study later.
Making a podcast that you can listen to on the drive to or from the airport.
Generating quizzes and Pre-Solo knowledge tests on the fly.
Making an interactive workbook from transcribed audio files.
Taking long-form lesson plans and making 5-minute preflight briefings - considering your learners' strengths and weaknesses
Using Zoom’s note-taking to get a transcript of your lesson/meeting.
How to use your watch or phone to listen to the lesson and create summaries as long or short as you want.
Which AI tool is right for what task? We cover 5 AI tools in this class.
It seems like a lot, but time flies, and everyone leaves with ideas for how they'll start using the information in their next lesson.
We were the first and currently the only CFI class teaching this.
This class is part of our 7-day CFI class that we offer once a month. It’s on a Monday. You simply need to register for the first day and either attend in person or remotely. Not all classes are in person, so check on our calendar to see.
How do you coordinate an airplane?
It's a question that comes up all the time. Fortunately, it has an easy answer, but many CFIs can’t explain it without using the airplane's inclinometer (Ball). The problem with “Stepping on the Ball” is that you've already let the airplane become uncoordinated and are reacting to it instead of preventing it in the first place.
Let's look at the formal definition, and then I’ll show you how to coordinate the airplane and keep it that way without looking at the ball.
An airplane is coordinated when its longitudinal axis (spinner to tail) is on its flight path. So, if the whole airplane is moving straight ahead but its tip-to-tail isn't pointed there, it is uncoordinated. Skid. If the airplane is turning and the whole airplane is moving in an arc but the tip-to-tail is outside of that arc, the airplane is slipping. If it’s inside of the arc, it’s skidding.
Great, so how do you manage that? How do you keep the airplane from slipping or skidding?
It’s not difficult, but you need a little practice. Let's go through it.
People say it’s seat of pants, but it really isn’t. If you are sitting in a chair and the airplane skids or slips, you'll feel it where you contact the seat. The problem is that it's hard to sense that because there isn’t much motion or sliding. If you use your shoulders instead, when you are slipping or skidding, you'll lean toward the left or right window. Because your shoulders are higher, they move more than the seat of your pants. Way easier to detect.
The basic idea is that if you aren’t purposely uncoordinated, you shouldn't feel any motion toward either window. You must be straight up and down with no leaning. If you are doing a forward slip, crosswind takeoff, or landing, you must be uncoordinated so you will lean. In all other situations, you need to remain straight up with absolutely no leaning toward any window. If you feel the slightest movement toward a window, press the pedal that keeps you upright. After a short while, you will become more proactive and find the airplane stays coordinated. There is no need to “step on the ball,” because you aren’t letting the airplane slip or skid. Try it out and let us know how it works for you.
Take along a bottle (Not that kind!)
Some items are worth taking along on every flight—headset, EFB, Battery Backups, Phone, sick bag, and the like. One item you should include is something to use if someone, or you, has inner-ear or sinus problems during flight. This can be a painful situation and, even on the ground, may be hard to resolve.
A fast-acting decongestant spray can really help. The brand name for this product is Afrin. It works quickly and is very effective.
The main issue with this drug is that you can become dependent on its use over a relatively short period of time. So, it’s intended for sporadic use, not regular use.
The spray bottle is compact and easy to carry. Add it to your must-take items, and when the situation arises, you’ll have a potential solution. It's also approved for the PIC to use during flight as well as passengers, crew, etc.
An additional CFI class offered over three Weekends
To help some of you get your CFI without taking off from work for the ground side of things, CFI Bootcamp is offering our 7-day class over three weekends. That leaves one day short, but we're adding an hour to the other days to keep it to three weekends.
The content is the same as in our 7-day class.
Also, the three weekends are not in a row. There is one weekend break so you can catch up on other things you need to do when you aren’t working. This format also allows time between the concentrated weekend lessons to do some reading, self-study, etc.
This is currently being offered twice in the first quarter of 2027. Weekends: Jan 16-17, Jan 23-24, and Feb 6-7. The last weekend always falls on the last two days of our 7-day class, so there will be students from that class for you to interact with.
The other class will be the Weekend of Feb 20-21, Feb 27-28, and Mar 13-14.
Those are the only two classes we have set up at the moment. This will let us see whether demand exists to add other classes for the rest of the year.
POP-UP CLASS: December CFII Ground School!
We've just added a special 3-day CFII Ground School to our December training calendar!
Looking to add your Instrument Instructor rating before the end of the year? We've opened an additional class to help CFIs sharpen their instrument knowledge and develop the instructional skills needed for the CFII practical test.
Our 3-Day Accelerated CFII Ground School focuses on understanding IFR operations and, more importantly, learning how to effectively teach them.
Here's what we'll cover over three days:
IFR Regulations & Currency: FAR Parts 61 and 91, instrument rating requirements, recency of experience, and Instrument Proficiency Checks (IPCs).
Navigation Systems & Flight Instruments: VOR, ILS, NDB/ADF, GPS, attitude instrument flying, and pressure and gyroscopic instruments.
IFR Procedures & Approaches: Holding, departure and arrival procedures, enroute charts, precision and nonprecision approaches, GPS, and WAAS.
Weather & IFR Flight Planning: Weather briefing tools, ForeFlight, the Graphical Forecasts for Aviation (GFA), and cross-country planning.
Teaching & Checkride Preparation: The Flight Instructor Instrument Airplane PTS, IFR training syllabi, lost communications, emergencies, and student practice teaching IFR lesson plans.
This isn't just three days of listening to lectures. You'll practice teaching IFR concepts, work through instructional exercises, and complete targeted assignments designed to help prepare you for the responsibilities of an instrument instructor.
Class Format: Three consecutive days of instructor-led training, with remote participation and a Palo Alto classroom option described in our course format.
If you've been waiting for another opportunity to complete your CFII ground training, December is your chance.
View the December Class & Register
Some IACRA applications can be processed via Zoom instead of in person.
A DPE or ASI can perform certain administrative functions via video call. Most use Zoom for this. Here is a list of what can be done in this manner without the need to meet in person. The DPE must have specific authority by the addition of these tasks on their CLOA. (Authorization) So not all DPEs can do every task.
Ground Instructor Certificates
Flight Instructor Recency of Experience updates
Military to FAA certificates
Removal of type rating limitations when the experience requirements have been met.
Validation of Wings Credit
This topic came up the other day on our Power Hour aftershow. There was a person who needed to have a Student Pilot Certificate issued before OCT 31 so they could apply for a particular scholarship. Her instructor was on vacation and not available. The person asked if one of us could help out.
Unfortunately, processing the IACRA for a Student Pilot Certificate requires the Instructor, Inspector, or DPE to physically verify the ID prior to signing the application. So, we couldn’t help.
To meet the deadline, the person either needs to make an appointment at the FSDO or find a CFI at a nearby airport willing to do that.
Preston KPAO (BIG SMILE & WIN )
We wanted to share a picture of one of our happiest students, now a CFI, whom we helped get their certificate. This is Preston. He trained with us at our Palo Alto, CA location. He was always upbeat and great to work with.
He trained hard, attended our 7-day class, and, of course, completed our online course beforehand. He attended a remote class, but he was in our classroom, Zooming from there. I was doing an in-person test the week of his checkride, so we could meet.
When we got the picture from his Instructor, we had to show it. We hope you get a shot like this too.
Congratulations, Preston!
We're Giving Away TWO CFI Training Packages!
Thinking about earning your flight instructor certificate? This one's for you.
We're selecting two lucky applicants to receive access to two of CFI Bootcamp's core training programs:
42-Hour Online CFI Course: Build your knowledge of the Fundamentals of Instruction, technical subject areas, and the material you'll need to teach confidently.
7-Day Accelerated CFI Ground School: Take what you've learned online and put it into practice through structured, instructor-led training designed around the CFI practical test.
Together, these programs are designed to help you move from studying the material to actually being prepared to teach it.
Two applicants. Two training packages. One opportunity to move your CFI training forward.
Apply for the CFI Ground School Giveaway
FINAL APPROACH Is Back — November 5th!
Thursday, November 5, 2026 | 8:00 PM Eastern
Working toward your CFI certificate but not entirely sure what you should be doing next?
You're not alone.
Between lesson plans, FOI, endorsements, right-seat flying, and checkride prep, it's easy to spend time on the wrong things or complete tasks out of order.
That's why we're hosting FINAL APPROACH, our free live workshop designed to help you map out the shortest realistic path from where you are today to your CFI checkride.
During the workshop, we'll cover:
What you should already have completed
What deserves your attention next
Where you might be wasting valuable time
What you can accomplish independently
When you actually need an instructor
How to organize your remaining training efficiently
The goal isn't to give you more to study. It's to help you understand what comes next.
Save Your Seat for FINAL APPROACH
Our Holiday Sale Is Approaching. Are You Ready?
We're getting closer to one of our favorite times of the year at CFI Bootcamp.
If you've been thinking about starting your CFI training, adding your instrument instructor rating, or picking up additional study resources, you may want to hold off on that purchase just a little longer.
Our upcoming Holiday Sale is on the horizon, and we're preparing special opportunities across our training programs and courseware.
We're not revealing everything just yet.
Keep an eye on your inbox. You'll want to see what's coming.
Pro Tips:
Coordinate with your shoulders, not your seat. You’ll feel a slip or skid much sooner through your shoulders leaning toward a window than through the seat of your pants — use that to stay proactively coordinated instead of reacting to the ball.
Keep a decongestant spray (Afrin) in your flight bag. It’s fast-acting for inner-ear or sinus pressure in flight — approved for PIC, passengers, and crew — but it’s for sporadic use only, not a daily habit.
Match the AI tool to the task. Recording and summarizing lessons, making flashcards, generating quizzes, or cutting a long lesson plan into a 5-minute preflight briefing each call for a different one of the five tools covered in the AI class — pick for the job, not out of habit.