Themes Will Double Down on Training Instructors, Mentorship, and Wellbeing

The National Association of Flight Instructors has opened up its annual networking and training event, the NAFI Summit, running from October 15 to 17 later this year.

The Summit revolves around "Excellence in Flight Instruction", acting as their mission statement and motto in one. NAFI doesn't like the way flight instruction has become a stopover job on the way to bigger aircraft and better paying employers. That is an unbecoming attitude to have for such a fundamental building block of aviation. As such they strive to instill a more professional, serious approach to flight instructing as a career, providing members with the kinds of tools they need to succeed.

This year, presentations and talks will center around one arm of a thematic trident: "training the trainer, mentorship and peer support, and pilot well-being.” 

To drive home the point, the Association has already confirmed its keynote speakers for October, including  Doctor Susan Northrup (pictured), Federal Air  Surgeon for the FAA; and Bruce Landsberg. He'll bring experience from two different career tracks, drawing on his time as Senior Safety Advisor for an aviation association, and his work as Vice Chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board. The Association confirmed that this year will see the return of the Designated Pilot Examiner (DPE) panel, always a point of interest for instructors. The DPE shortage continues, and the industry is hungry for more examiners all around the country - those who take their job seriously enough to stay involved in things like the NAFI tend to show the kind of dedication the FAA desires. Topping it all off is a new forum on "Pilot Mental Health and Well-Being," understandable given its high profile in recent working groups in the wake of some embarrassingly public near-accidents.

The Summit will be capped off with a gala dinner by every aviator's in-laws, John and Martha King. The NAFI recently got approval to become a 501(c)(3), making contributions tax deductible for those who want to support its mission.

FMI: www.nafinet.org