Tonight was the last class session that I will teach this semester. Stage three exam then the final for them. Paperwork for me! They have been planning a crosscountry with their teammates for part of the last couple of classes. I've taught a bit on human factors ... and aeromedical factors, then let them get with their team and practice their new skills planning a trip. Some of them totally get the performance stuff ... some rock that little E6B ... we're got some pilots emerging. I like it.
Their planning looked ... like beginners ... which they are. I brought in a clean sectional and drew a crisp line with a pencil like they insisted on doing. I kept on enlarging it on the overhead... everyone was having a good time, but no one could see the line. I sat on the stool and got them to thinking about how that would feel in the airplane ... I highlighted the line. I promised them that it wasn't just girly. I showed them how Nav one info is written on my log with a purple pen ... everything N1 is purple including the radial at the checkpoints. Green is for N2. Heading changes, planned altitude changes , communication barriers ... all pilot inputs are highlighted or flagged some way. I showed them how I would fold the chart and the Nav log. How I would clip it together. I told them that this is how I would do it, but the most important thing that I want them to take away is to figure out what works for them. I told them the important part as they begin learning is to make a commitment to themselves to maximize the experience ... to enjoy flying the airplane towards specific targets ... work on time and speed ... take the winds aloft in to consideration, but realize that they post only twice a day ... I'm rambling. I told them to realize that each xcty plan should provide them with many opportunities to learn and to please not hop in the plane and punch up GPS direct and then chat all the way back and forth ... to please not cheat themselves out of the sheer pleasure that a well executed excellent plan will give them They'll learn more by putting more into it. I'm gonna miss them.

I did take the excellent advice of someone who has flown a very successful career without losing his swagger. He said don't piss the bosses off. Unfortunately, I had already done that ... several times. I couldn't bring myself to be disingenuous, but I did want to do the mop up on aisle nine. I thought about where he must have been coming from ... he's a savvy guy - the boss. It was easy for me to fashion a conciliatory statement that was genuine. I was glad I spent the time on trying to put things right ... righter ... without revisiting areas where we won't see eye to eye. He very graciously said he realizes that he doesn't have a way with words and apologized for a couple of specific things that he would have liked to have phrased better. He didn't have to do that. So - that was a great learning experience for me. Maybe next time I can avoid damage control all together by not indulging my ... myself.
So - good day.