Flight Training Web Site New And Improved
There's a new sister to
AOPA's website. The GA advocate has completely redesigned its
Flight Training Web site to make it more user friendly, easier to
navigate, and more logical and relevant to both the student pilot
and the certificated flight instructor (CFI). And for current
pilots, there is no better place on the Internet to send someone
you know who is interested in learning to fly or who has started
their flight training.
AOPA says the new Flight Training Web site is so much better
than the original. If you want a quick overview, just click on the
button in the upper right-hand corner of the home page to take a
"quick tour" of all the new features.
The AOPA design team started with a "clean screen" and took a
look at what student pilots really need in a Web site. They asked
the experts -— the CFIs staffing AOPA's toll-free pilot
assistance hotline.
They answer more than 140,000 phone calls and e-mails a year,
many of them from student pilots. So they've come to know the most
"frequently asked questions" (FAQs) from students. And they've
developed some of the best resources to help answer those
questions.
AOPA says it looked at the best way to present this information
on a Web site. So knowing what a student needs, developers divided
the site into the key flight training phases: pre-solo, solo,
maneuvers, cross-country, and flight-test preparation. Within each
section, there are FAQs that link to illuminating articles for even
more information, interactive courses and quizzes, a flying skills
area, and a special topics area.
The site is full of "rich media" that take advantage of the
special properties of the Web to present information in new and
exciting ways. Trying to learn all of those confusing signs and
markings in the "big airport" environment? There's an interactive
"flash card" quiz from the AOPA Air Safety Foundation that will
help you burn it all into your memory.
"QTVR" technology allows you to pan around a complex airport
environment and a control tower to get a better understanding of
what you'll be facing the first time you head for the "big"
airport.
One of the most valuable features is the "Virtual Flight Bag," a
compendium of everything that's needed to plan a safe and fun
flight, including links to weather, NOTAMS and temporary flight
restrictions (TFRs), AOPA's Airport Directory Online, and AOPA's
Real-Time Flight Planner.
The Learn to Fly selection answers questions like "Is it safe?
What will I fly? How much will it cost?"
But it also offers a good primer on how it all works —
from the basics of aircraft operation to the workings of air
traffic control.
The CFI section holds answers to many of the working flight
instructor's questions, from properly worded logbook endorsements
to the AOPA Air Safety Foundation's Instructor's Guide to the
Presolo Written Test. There's also a video to show CFIs how to
attract and retain more students.