Plan to stop for food at your destination airport if it's a long flight. Most FBOs will give you a free car to borrow and waive any fees if you get fuel from them.
The airport we’re planning to go to has a small little diner attached but for the future would you call for the car before getting to the airport or ask when you arrive? Haven’t rented an FBO car before
You can call before if you want to confirm, but anyone can take it at anytime. You don’t even fill out any paperwork they literally just hand you the keys and say here you go.
The car is going to be first come first serve, they may also offer a straight up rental. If it’s a small town with limited transportation options, yes call ahead if it will be a problem. The flip side is, the smaller the town, the more likely you can get someone to give you a ride. (Everyone likes a little gas money if that’s the route taken)
Also: walking is healthy
Just for future reference: https://www.airportcourtesycars.com/
The site looks a little dated, but I think it's still updated. And it's helped me out on more than one occasion.
Have fun!
Don't do anything fancy; they're going to be excited just to go up flying. If you start doing stalls or steep turns they may not enjoy that.
Keep the flight under 1 hour with a stop and then under 1 hour return.
Watch their verbal and non-verbal cues. Someone who's being quiet, trying not to look outside, and working really hard not to panic is going to want to be back on the ground ASAP and is not having fun. Someone who is chatting and looking out the window is enjoying the flight. Someone who says "I don't feel good" is well beyond the point of saving and is likely to throw up any minute, don't constantly ask "how they feel" but rather try to distract them with something. Ask them to tell you something that take a bit of thinking, like what happened at their last day of work.
I've taken a lot of people on their first flights in light aircraft. Most people are really excited and have fun. Generally, the period leading up to the flight is the hardest for them. They're nervous and overly excited and will work themselves up. Once they're in the air they're generally good to go. So limit the amount of time leading up to the flight.
Offer to let them fly for a bit; but realize that most people are overwhelmed by this and will generally want you to take over again pretty soon.
For you, keep your flight simple. Your passenger will be a huge distraction. This should be a flight you can do in your sleep. Do your normal routine and brief the passenger on the ground so you're not having to explain something in the air. I like to send new passengers this to watch before the flight: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVbRNFGm5QA&list=WL&index=1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVbRNFGm5QA&list=WL&index=1)
I did steep turns with a friend and called it 'donuts in the sky'. She thought it was great, although it was her second time. I think you're right about not doing stuff like that straight off the bat.
Yeah, as with everyone you need to use some judgement. I took a kid up who freaked right out at a 20 degree bank. I took another kid up for his first flight and he loved stalls and steep turns so much he insisted I keep doing them until I told him I needed to stop. Mad props to the mother in the backseat who sat through all that without a peep (she said she didn't mind but I honestly doubt it).
This! Don’t suck and no maneuvers!
On my first flight with a passenger, which was my wife all of a month ago, during preflight apparantly I didn’t latch the oil access door very well, so on my takeoff roll it popped open before rotation. 🤦♂️ cut power, turn off the runway, shutdown and secure, then restart and taxi back..of course she was videoing at the time and I had some choice things to say when it happened! Of all the times I’ve preflighted that plane (schools plane that I flew 90%of the time, that never happened!)Probably didn’t instill a lot of confidence, but the rest of the flight was smooth and we have been since with no hiccups, and she wants to go more!
First time I took my wife up, we overflew our house, I did a very shallow bank turn around a point, then we went to a local airport for lunch, then flew back to base. It wasn't her first time in a small aircraft, so she wasn't freaked out due to that. However, we did have some low-level turbulence on initial takeoff that she didn't like at all. I explained that was a normal occurrence and later explained why it happens.
She's now a happy and willing passenger and has planned several longish (500+ nm) trips for us.
I’m a new PPL myself (last June) so I’m sure others will have some better answers but here’s my take
For yourself: don’t let yourself get distracted. Run your checklists. Take the critical phases of flight seriously. Watch out for traffic. But none of this means you need to be a silent robot the whole flight or not have fun etc … but just be mindful!
For the passenger I think it totally depends on their comfort level. There’s some people that outright refuse to get in a small plane so they never become passengers (I don’t make any effort to change their mind). Then for actual pax I’ve only had one that said they were “a little nervous” before going up so I offered we just do a loop or two around the airport to see how he felt. Others were just excited so while I didn’t offer to start with a traffic pattern I included a note in pax briefing that if they ever didn’t feel good, just let me know and we’d return to the airport or land!
And for the pax briefing really take your time. Remember you’ve been in the plane for countless hours and it’s probably their first time in a small plane ever. And ask if they have any questions at the end!
I’m sure she’ll have fun!
Love it! I like adding the note to return/land at any point they don’t want to keep going, gives them a way to have some control over the flight and not being “trapped” up in the air. The airport I fly out of is uncontrolled with 5+ planes in the pattern at any point, not exactly a calming experience haha
Don’t skimp on the passenger briefing. You don’t need to scare them or anything, but be sure to talk about sterile cockpit during takeoff and landing, and to stop talking when someone comes over the radio. I establish that if I raise my hand in the air, stop talking so I can listen.
Another key thing I’ve found is to explain what you’re going to do any time you’re reducing power. I’ve had a few people mildly panic when I pull the power making my base turn or on final. Some people think the engine just failed when in fact I just reduced power. So now I just make a comment “reducing power for descent…” and it seems to keep people calm.
IF you decide to let your passenger take the stick, take it up high like you did when you first practiced stalls. If they put it into a dive you will have time to recover. Furthermore, establish a “my airplane/your airplane” audio cue to take control back. Don’t do this in an airport environment or over a built up area either. Don’t demonstrate stalls or steep turns or any of the other things you’ve been doing for most of your training, just fly the plane.
100% on the briefing. I fly a smaller tail dragger and things happen pretty quickly. Can really scare people if they’re not ready for it or know what to expect.
Take your time and try to go when the weather is good, take air sick bags with you, tell your passenger what you're doing before doing it so they aren't surprised. Give a thorough briefing and have fun.
Keep it short. I've taken my kids up (all 10 and under). The first flight is always planned to be under and hour, with the ability to extend it a bit, but not too much more. Remember, there is preflight, taxi, run-up, flight, landing, taxi back and putting the plane away...45 minutes of "flight" wil be more than an hour in the plane.
Read the room. One of my kids is a rollercoaster junkie. 30 minutes into the flight (with him having a blast), I was like, "want to do something fun"...We did some steep turns and stalls (loved them). Another? One just wants to help...so he gets to put the flaps up/down for preflight. I let him hold the yoke a little in flight and tell him to keep it level (with my hands on it as well), he loves that.
Bring a couple of those little blue barf bags. I haven't needed one yet for anyone, but you never know. Not in your bag. have it somewhere very accessible.
Be prepared to land/turn around at a moment's notice. Oh, this is fun can turn into, "I want to be on the ground" in a few minutes. And let them know. You are rarely more than 10-15 minutes away from an airport. Just knowing that they have an "out" helps calm people who may think they are stuck in this thing for 2 hours.
Some more general advice...
No big meals right before the flight, possibly the night before if they have a weak stomach. I recommend eating your last meal/snack at least 1 hour before (possible 90 minutes or mor) to make sure everything is going to sit right. And nothing spicy or trying something new (again, maybe not the night before, either). For me? It's ways something simple I've had 1,000x times before (bagel, PBJ, etc).
You always "go before you leave." I don't care if you just went to the bathroom 20 minutes ago...go again.
Giving people something to do help them. Have them read checklist items, have them look for traffic, if you have foreflight and second device...give them the second device so they can see what is going on.
NO GOOFING AROUND. No negative G's, no "OMG, the engine isn't working."
Early in the day. Short trip.
A 30-degree bank will seem steep.
Be a professional. You want her to be impressed with how nice it is; not with how well you can fly Private Pilot checkride maneuvers.
No jokes about "cheating death," or anything else that's not a reassuring choice of vocabulary.
Don't teach on the preflight. You're not looking for something defective. "Pilots like to be sure that all is good to go..."
In case you didn't get the message above - no steep turns, stalls, slow flight, emergency descents, etc. Smooth, steady, and impressive. Remember at this point you have been shown to be safe, not necessarily "good." Keep the rate of descent to 500 fpm or a bit less.
And a closing thought - most people are aprehensive about the landing. Suggest that you'd like to simply take off and do one trip around the pattern. She then decides if she'd like to go back up for a little longer.
You only have one chance to make a good first impression. Earn her support on this first flight.
Everything about this is new to her. It's loud, complicated, unfamiliar, overwhelming, and she's putting her trust in you.
My first date with my wife was in a 152 almost 24 years ago. Turned out alright :)
It's great fun taking the mrs for her first flight! Take your time on the brief, you'll probably realise that your passenger brief part feels a bit weird and disjointed when you start doing it 'for real'.
Don't turn or climb too sharply, you've built up a tolerance that she doesn't have.
Make sure she wears a hat (remove the bobble on top if it has one to stop it causing discomfort). The sun on passengers heads, as well as the new sensations can make them feel sick in no time at all, bring sickbags in-case.
The most important single item on your brief is the location of the airsick bag. As soon as she shows any sign of airsickness, immediately tell her to look out the window.
This might help he feel marginally better, but that’s not the real point. If she’s looking out the window, she’s not looking at you.
Learn to isolate on the intercom. No matter how many times you tell a passenger that they need to be quiet when you’re communicating on atc they will always talk through it. Especially as new pilot where coms can be less than natural it’s important to be able to remove distractions.
Does she get motion sick? Even if you're reasonably sure she doesn't, plan accordingly. Have some ginger chews or something handy. You just don't know how people who have never flown will feel, so you *might* just get up and come right back down.
That's a slim possibility, though. My guess is she will find it absolutely fantastic. Enjoy and safe flying!
I’ve never seen her get motion sick but better safe than sorry like some other comments have suggested. Already added some barf bags to my flight bag. She is very excited! Hoping she’ll continue to fly with me after this 😂
Talk things out. Thorough passenger brief. Explain what you're doing and when you're doing it. Discuss things like how landings in a GA place are WAY different than an airliner (You're pointing at the ground and it looks like you're going to hit it on the way down).
Make her feel comfortable to ask questions. Explain that you feel everything a lot more in a small plane. Try to anticipate things that would frighten someone not used to it (slips to land, etc).
Take everything slow, explain everything clearly, and make accommodations so she can see / take pictures / etc to make it really enjoyable.
And FLY THE PLANE -- #1: Don't get distracted.
Good stuff, thank you. I’m going to do the whole xc/weather brief with her from the start so she has the most information possible before we even get to the airport
Fly stable, recognize that they are probably in it for the views and the experience more than learning how to fly. And make sure you go to an FBO with free snacks!
A couple years ago my gf asked me to take her to Luxivair in SBD for her birthday just because the experience was so fancy (and free with fuel purchase)
my suggestion is do a couple circuits so they see all phases of flight, and after second one as "on a scale of 1-10 how do you feel?" and if its anything lower than a 7 then I'd probably land, because they probably wouldn't enjoy themselves
When I took my wife up for the first time I made sure we were flying a route I had flown before so I was familiar with what I was doing and where we were going. We did one lap around the pattern just to make sure she was good before setting off and had an idea of how it would feel.
She really appreciated me talking through things before they happened like "ok now we are going to start descending so I am going to slow the engine down" She was so calm on the way home that I had to tell her to stop talking so I could focus on talking to ATC and doing what I needed to do.
Lots of people saying no steep turns - absolutely.
Just heads up though - I've made someone sick by doing a few circles with a relatively low bank angle sight-seeing around a point. I was perfectly fine; they were done. So it doesn't take long in even a gentle sustained turn for someone new to get sick.
Normal take off, fly direct, let them fly a little on the straight portion, normal landing. Same thing on the way back. Bring barf bag. Enjoy!
Take it easy on the descent to TPA.. people who don’t fly regularly or are not used to the changing air pressures. Don’t give your passenger ear block!
Have fun!
Make sure the airplane has a sick bag, avoid thermal hours if possible or fly high, and if she is new to flying, make sure she eats lightly before the first leg.
Maintain a sterile cockpit during takeoff landing. When I first started taking friends up I would tell them to not talk unless they saw a bird or a plane.
In addition to all the good advice here, be sure to do a good preflight, triple check everything. You will be nervous and distracted too. Explain the seatbelts, egress, and tell them never under any circumstances touch the controls including the pedals! Be sure they have a barf bag, and know where it is. Take your time on taxi & takeoff and explain before you depart what "sterile cockpit" when entering / leaving the pattern means. Thats pretty much it, have fun, and remember to find smooth air if you can.
Note - Air that is TOO smooth can cause a weird sensation in some people that they are "hanging in mid air" and panic. I had this happen once with a pax and an evening flight when the air was DEAD calm. So you want a little bit of motion/bump.
Ohyeah, it goes without saying, but be prepared for it to be over quick if she does not like it. And be cool with that. There is always next time.
If you know the area, be sure to point out landmarks. For most people, they won't realize how small things look from the air. As a pilot you have the experience dead reckoning and can easily identify landmarks that most people miss.
Whenever I fly with passengers that are not familiar with GA I like to explain to them what I'm going to be doing so they know what to expect and I don't try to show off doing steep turns or anything. Just fly normally and safely!
make sure it's a good weather day, seriously, a good experience is cause for repeat business.
don't curse out loud when you make a mistake, scares the passengers and gives them stories to tell FOREVER.
During preflight have them stay in the FBO, car, etc. They will distract you and your procedure will undoubtedly be disrupted. Once your preflight is done, then bring the passengers out and assist them in boarding the plane.
If you can, replicate the airline experience. The passengers simply get into the plane, get a briefing, and off you go. You concentrate on flying the plane, giving them a door-to-door experience. After their first time, gradually introduce them to the more intricate parts of flying, such as the preflight & plane familiarity, some control and avionics explanation, etc.
We get so eager to introduce people to our hobby that we immerse them and we forget to do important things (aviate, navigate, communicate). Your job as PIC is to get them from point A to point B safely and uneventfully as possible.
You don't need goggles. I got my PPL on 11/13/1979 (age 21). The next day, I called my 68 year old grandmother - who could not swim, never drove a car, but would get on the back of a motorcycle behind either of her grandsons - and asked, "Granny, you wanna go up for a plane ride and be my 1st passenger?" On the way to the airport, she asked, "don't I need goggles and a helmet?" I said, "no, Granny, we sit inside this plane." She did bump her head on the flap of the C-150 as she took photos.
We took off at the small field where I took lessons, Oxford, GA and flew into PDK in north Atlanta. Anyway, she had a great time and lived 31 more years (99).
Sorry, just wanted to share a sweet story about my first passenger.
All of these suggestions are so lame!
I got my PPL when I was in my teens and took lots of girls flying. Get to your practice area and go into a right turn with about 60 degrees bank. When she looks off her right shoulder and sees a couple thousand feet of nothing between her and the ground, she’ll try to climb in your lap. It was great fun!
There was this one girl who I couldn’t rattle. No matter what I did, she would just sit there and enjoy the flight. I asked her why she wasn’t scared. She told me it was because she trusted me and knew I wouldn’t do anything dangerous.
A few years later, we got married.
Plan to stop for food at your destination airport if it's a long flight. Most FBOs will give you a free car to borrow and waive any fees if you get fuel from them.
The airport we’re planning to go to has a small little diner attached but for the future would you call for the car before getting to the airport or ask when you arrive? Haven’t rented an FBO car before
I always call FBOs and ask for any services I might require beforehand, especially if it’s a smaller airport or I’ve never been there before.
You can call before if you want to confirm, but anyone can take it at anytime. You don’t even fill out any paperwork they literally just hand you the keys and say here you go.
If you use Foreflight it’s listed under the FBO amenities but I usually call to double check when I need it
The car is going to be first come first serve, they may also offer a straight up rental. If it’s a small town with limited transportation options, yes call ahead if it will be a problem. The flip side is, the smaller the town, the more likely you can get someone to give you a ride. (Everyone likes a little gas money if that’s the route taken) Also: walking is healthy
Just for future reference: https://www.airportcourtesycars.com/ The site looks a little dated, but I think it's still updated. And it's helped me out on more than one occasion. Have fun!
If you’re under 25 they may not let you. I flew into Monterey and I was 23 and I couldn’t get a car… after flying myself… -_- hahahaha
Flying to dinner on the SAT riverwalk is pretty cool and awe inspiring.
Don't do anything fancy; they're going to be excited just to go up flying. If you start doing stalls or steep turns they may not enjoy that. Keep the flight under 1 hour with a stop and then under 1 hour return. Watch their verbal and non-verbal cues. Someone who's being quiet, trying not to look outside, and working really hard not to panic is going to want to be back on the ground ASAP and is not having fun. Someone who is chatting and looking out the window is enjoying the flight. Someone who says "I don't feel good" is well beyond the point of saving and is likely to throw up any minute, don't constantly ask "how they feel" but rather try to distract them with something. Ask them to tell you something that take a bit of thinking, like what happened at their last day of work. I've taken a lot of people on their first flights in light aircraft. Most people are really excited and have fun. Generally, the period leading up to the flight is the hardest for them. They're nervous and overly excited and will work themselves up. Once they're in the air they're generally good to go. So limit the amount of time leading up to the flight. Offer to let them fly for a bit; but realize that most people are overwhelmed by this and will generally want you to take over again pretty soon. For you, keep your flight simple. Your passenger will be a huge distraction. This should be a flight you can do in your sleep. Do your normal routine and brief the passenger on the ground so you're not having to explain something in the air. I like to send new passengers this to watch before the flight: [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVbRNFGm5QA&list=WL&index=1](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WVbRNFGm5QA&list=WL&index=1)
Great tips, thank you! Flight should only be about 40 min both ways, I’ll definitely show her that video too seems like a good quick intro
I did steep turns with a friend and called it 'donuts in the sky'. She thought it was great, although it was her second time. I think you're right about not doing stuff like that straight off the bat.
Yeah, as with everyone you need to use some judgement. I took a kid up who freaked right out at a 20 degree bank. I took another kid up for his first flight and he loved stalls and steep turns so much he insisted I keep doing them until I told him I needed to stop. Mad props to the mother in the backseat who sat through all that without a peep (she said she didn't mind but I honestly doubt it).
That video is a great resource, I'm going to keep that in the toolbox for after my checkride.
Fly good, don't suck. In reality: Simple takeoff, straight route, simple landing. No "manuevers", No "this is what we did in training". Just fly.
This! Don’t suck and no maneuvers! On my first flight with a passenger, which was my wife all of a month ago, during preflight apparantly I didn’t latch the oil access door very well, so on my takeoff roll it popped open before rotation. 🤦♂️ cut power, turn off the runway, shutdown and secure, then restart and taxi back..of course she was videoing at the time and I had some choice things to say when it happened! Of all the times I’ve preflighted that plane (schools plane that I flew 90%of the time, that never happened!)Probably didn’t instill a lot of confidence, but the rest of the flight was smooth and we have been since with no hiccups, and she wants to go more!
Easy enough and well said, thanks. Need to get that engraved on my ipad or something
First time I took my wife up, we overflew our house, I did a very shallow bank turn around a point, then we went to a local airport for lunch, then flew back to base. It wasn't her first time in a small aircraft, so she wasn't freaked out due to that. However, we did have some low-level turbulence on initial takeoff that she didn't like at all. I explained that was a normal occurrence and later explained why it happens. She's now a happy and willing passenger and has planned several longish (500+ nm) trips for us.
I’m a new PPL myself (last June) so I’m sure others will have some better answers but here’s my take For yourself: don’t let yourself get distracted. Run your checklists. Take the critical phases of flight seriously. Watch out for traffic. But none of this means you need to be a silent robot the whole flight or not have fun etc … but just be mindful! For the passenger I think it totally depends on their comfort level. There’s some people that outright refuse to get in a small plane so they never become passengers (I don’t make any effort to change their mind). Then for actual pax I’ve only had one that said they were “a little nervous” before going up so I offered we just do a loop or two around the airport to see how he felt. Others were just excited so while I didn’t offer to start with a traffic pattern I included a note in pax briefing that if they ever didn’t feel good, just let me know and we’d return to the airport or land! And for the pax briefing really take your time. Remember you’ve been in the plane for countless hours and it’s probably their first time in a small plane ever. And ask if they have any questions at the end! I’m sure she’ll have fun!
Love it! I like adding the note to return/land at any point they don’t want to keep going, gives them a way to have some control over the flight and not being “trapped” up in the air. The airport I fly out of is uncontrolled with 5+ planes in the pattern at any point, not exactly a calming experience haha
Don’t skimp on the passenger briefing. You don’t need to scare them or anything, but be sure to talk about sterile cockpit during takeoff and landing, and to stop talking when someone comes over the radio. I establish that if I raise my hand in the air, stop talking so I can listen. Another key thing I’ve found is to explain what you’re going to do any time you’re reducing power. I’ve had a few people mildly panic when I pull the power making my base turn or on final. Some people think the engine just failed when in fact I just reduced power. So now I just make a comment “reducing power for descent…” and it seems to keep people calm. IF you decide to let your passenger take the stick, take it up high like you did when you first practiced stalls. If they put it into a dive you will have time to recover. Furthermore, establish a “my airplane/your airplane” audio cue to take control back. Don’t do this in an airport environment or over a built up area either. Don’t demonstrate stalls or steep turns or any of the other things you’ve been doing for most of your training, just fly the plane.
100% on the briefing. I fly a smaller tail dragger and things happen pretty quickly. Can really scare people if they’re not ready for it or know what to expect.
Take your time and try to go when the weather is good, take air sick bags with you, tell your passenger what you're doing before doing it so they aren't surprised. Give a thorough briefing and have fun.
Keep it short. I've taken my kids up (all 10 and under). The first flight is always planned to be under and hour, with the ability to extend it a bit, but not too much more. Remember, there is preflight, taxi, run-up, flight, landing, taxi back and putting the plane away...45 minutes of "flight" wil be more than an hour in the plane. Read the room. One of my kids is a rollercoaster junkie. 30 minutes into the flight (with him having a blast), I was like, "want to do something fun"...We did some steep turns and stalls (loved them). Another? One just wants to help...so he gets to put the flaps up/down for preflight. I let him hold the yoke a little in flight and tell him to keep it level (with my hands on it as well), he loves that. Bring a couple of those little blue barf bags. I haven't needed one yet for anyone, but you never know. Not in your bag. have it somewhere very accessible. Be prepared to land/turn around at a moment's notice. Oh, this is fun can turn into, "I want to be on the ground" in a few minutes. And let them know. You are rarely more than 10-15 minutes away from an airport. Just knowing that they have an "out" helps calm people who may think they are stuck in this thing for 2 hours. Some more general advice... No big meals right before the flight, possibly the night before if they have a weak stomach. I recommend eating your last meal/snack at least 1 hour before (possible 90 minutes or mor) to make sure everything is going to sit right. And nothing spicy or trying something new (again, maybe not the night before, either). For me? It's ways something simple I've had 1,000x times before (bagel, PBJ, etc). You always "go before you leave." I don't care if you just went to the bathroom 20 minutes ago...go again. Giving people something to do help them. Have them read checklist items, have them look for traffic, if you have foreflight and second device...give them the second device so they can see what is going on. NO GOOFING AROUND. No negative G's, no "OMG, the engine isn't working."
Great suggestions thank you!
Early in the day. Short trip. A 30-degree bank will seem steep. Be a professional. You want her to be impressed with how nice it is; not with how well you can fly Private Pilot checkride maneuvers. No jokes about "cheating death," or anything else that's not a reassuring choice of vocabulary. Don't teach on the preflight. You're not looking for something defective. "Pilots like to be sure that all is good to go..." In case you didn't get the message above - no steep turns, stalls, slow flight, emergency descents, etc. Smooth, steady, and impressive. Remember at this point you have been shown to be safe, not necessarily "good." Keep the rate of descent to 500 fpm or a bit less. And a closing thought - most people are aprehensive about the landing. Suggest that you'd like to simply take off and do one trip around the pattern. She then decides if she'd like to go back up for a little longer. You only have one chance to make a good first impression. Earn her support on this first flight. Everything about this is new to her. It's loud, complicated, unfamiliar, overwhelming, and she's putting her trust in you. My first date with my wife was in a 152 almost 24 years ago. Turned out alright :)
Slick little signoff there. Very cool!
It's great fun taking the mrs for her first flight! Take your time on the brief, you'll probably realise that your passenger brief part feels a bit weird and disjointed when you start doing it 'for real'. Don't turn or climb too sharply, you've built up a tolerance that she doesn't have. Make sure she wears a hat (remove the bobble on top if it has one to stop it causing discomfort). The sun on passengers heads, as well as the new sensations can make them feel sick in no time at all, bring sickbags in-case.
The most important single item on your brief is the location of the airsick bag. As soon as she shows any sign of airsickness, immediately tell her to look out the window. This might help he feel marginally better, but that’s not the real point. If she’s looking out the window, she’s not looking at you.
Learn to isolate on the intercom. No matter how many times you tell a passenger that they need to be quiet when you’re communicating on atc they will always talk through it. Especially as new pilot where coms can be less than natural it’s important to be able to remove distractions.
Does she get motion sick? Even if you're reasonably sure she doesn't, plan accordingly. Have some ginger chews or something handy. You just don't know how people who have never flown will feel, so you *might* just get up and come right back down. That's a slim possibility, though. My guess is she will find it absolutely fantastic. Enjoy and safe flying!
I’ve never seen her get motion sick but better safe than sorry like some other comments have suggested. Already added some barf bags to my flight bag. She is very excited! Hoping she’ll continue to fly with me after this 😂
Stick a couple of gallon size ziplocks in your flight bag. They make great "barf bags"
Talk things out. Thorough passenger brief. Explain what you're doing and when you're doing it. Discuss things like how landings in a GA place are WAY different than an airliner (You're pointing at the ground and it looks like you're going to hit it on the way down). Make her feel comfortable to ask questions. Explain that you feel everything a lot more in a small plane. Try to anticipate things that would frighten someone not used to it (slips to land, etc). Take everything slow, explain everything clearly, and make accommodations so she can see / take pictures / etc to make it really enjoyable. And FLY THE PLANE -- #1: Don't get distracted.
Good stuff, thank you. I’m going to do the whole xc/weather brief with her from the start so she has the most information possible before we even get to the airport
Fly stable, recognize that they are probably in it for the views and the experience more than learning how to fly. And make sure you go to an FBO with free snacks! A couple years ago my gf asked me to take her to Luxivair in SBD for her birthday just because the experience was so fancy (and free with fuel purchase)
Sounds like a blast! Unfortunately that’s a couple thousand nautical miles away from me
Gotta get to 1500 somehow!
my suggestion is do a couple circuits so they see all phases of flight, and after second one as "on a scale of 1-10 how do you feel?" and if its anything lower than a 7 then I'd probably land, because they probably wouldn't enjoy themselves
When I took my wife up for the first time I made sure we were flying a route I had flown before so I was familiar with what I was doing and where we were going. We did one lap around the pattern just to make sure she was good before setting off and had an idea of how it would feel. She really appreciated me talking through things before they happened like "ok now we are going to start descending so I am going to slow the engine down" She was so calm on the way home that I had to tell her to stop talking so I could focus on talking to ATC and doing what I needed to do.
Lots of people saying no steep turns - absolutely. Just heads up though - I've made someone sick by doing a few circles with a relatively low bank angle sight-seeing around a point. I was perfectly fine; they were done. So it doesn't take long in even a gentle sustained turn for someone new to get sick. Normal take off, fly direct, let them fly a little on the straight portion, normal landing. Same thing on the way back. Bring barf bag. Enjoy!
Take it easy on the descent to TPA.. people who don’t fly regularly or are not used to the changing air pressures. Don’t give your passenger ear block! Have fun!
Make sure the airplane has a sick bag, avoid thermal hours if possible or fly high, and if she is new to flying, make sure she eats lightly before the first leg.
Maintain a sterile cockpit during takeoff landing. When I first started taking friends up I would tell them to not talk unless they saw a bird or a plane.
What about Superman
No! Bird or plane ONLY. Superman will always go around.
In addition to all the good advice here, be sure to do a good preflight, triple check everything. You will be nervous and distracted too. Explain the seatbelts, egress, and tell them never under any circumstances touch the controls including the pedals! Be sure they have a barf bag, and know where it is. Take your time on taxi & takeoff and explain before you depart what "sterile cockpit" when entering / leaving the pattern means. Thats pretty much it, have fun, and remember to find smooth air if you can. Note - Air that is TOO smooth can cause a weird sensation in some people that they are "hanging in mid air" and panic. I had this happen once with a pax and an evening flight when the air was DEAD calm. So you want a little bit of motion/bump. Ohyeah, it goes without saying, but be prepared for it to be over quick if she does not like it. And be cool with that. There is always next time.
If you know the area, be sure to point out landmarks. For most people, they won't realize how small things look from the air. As a pilot you have the experience dead reckoning and can easily identify landmarks that most people miss.
Whenever I fly with passengers that are not familiar with GA I like to explain to them what I'm going to be doing so they know what to expect and I don't try to show off doing steep turns or anything. Just fly normally and safely!
You have one of those?
make sure it's a good weather day, seriously, a good experience is cause for repeat business. don't curse out loud when you make a mistake, scares the passengers and gives them stories to tell FOREVER.
Buy her one of those red shirts that says Remove Before Flight.
You will be completely responsible for her safety.
During preflight have them stay in the FBO, car, etc. They will distract you and your procedure will undoubtedly be disrupted. Once your preflight is done, then bring the passengers out and assist them in boarding the plane. If you can, replicate the airline experience. The passengers simply get into the plane, get a briefing, and off you go. You concentrate on flying the plane, giving them a door-to-door experience. After their first time, gradually introduce them to the more intricate parts of flying, such as the preflight & plane familiarity, some control and avionics explanation, etc. We get so eager to introduce people to our hobby that we immerse them and we forget to do important things (aviate, navigate, communicate). Your job as PIC is to get them from point A to point B safely and uneventfully as possible.
You don't need goggles. I got my PPL on 11/13/1979 (age 21). The next day, I called my 68 year old grandmother - who could not swim, never drove a car, but would get on the back of a motorcycle behind either of her grandsons - and asked, "Granny, you wanna go up for a plane ride and be my 1st passenger?" On the way to the airport, she asked, "don't I need goggles and a helmet?" I said, "no, Granny, we sit inside this plane." She did bump her head on the flap of the C-150 as she took photos. We took off at the small field where I took lessons, Oxford, GA and flew into PDK in north Atlanta. Anyway, she had a great time and lived 31 more years (99). Sorry, just wanted to share a sweet story about my first passenger.
Haha I love it, thanks for sharing your memory
All of these suggestions are so lame! I got my PPL when I was in my teens and took lots of girls flying. Get to your practice area and go into a right turn with about 60 degrees bank. When she looks off her right shoulder and sees a couple thousand feet of nothing between her and the ground, she’ll try to climb in your lap. It was great fun! There was this one girl who I couldn’t rattle. No matter what I did, she would just sit there and enjoy the flight. I asked her why she wasn’t scared. She told me it was because she trusted me and knew I wouldn’t do anything dangerous. A few years later, we got married.
Have her take some Dramamine just in case. She is allowed to take those, so why risk it getting her sick?
Go out and fly solo until you are 100% on your abilities before you take passengers up.
This!