Survey of Flight Instructors’ Experiences in Communication Training

This article reports the results of a survey of flight instructors’ experiences in communication training. The author administered a self-report survey of flight instructors (N=102) at an upper Midwestern university flight program. The flight instructors who responded to the survey reported a range of flight experience as a flight instructor between zero hours and 6,000 hours of experience. The survey featured four open-ended questions that asked for information about courses or training in communication flight instructors received, experiences that helped improve their ability to communicate effectively, training in effective communication with students, and participation in crew resource management courses. Instructors reported sources of training and experience in communication as including flight instructing, coursework, their flight instructors, FAA materials, and daily life. The author concludes with a brief discussion of training implications and areas for further research.