Craig,

The root problem here is that there are too many Lancair accidents for the insurance industry to accept from an underwriting standpoint. For the last many years I have been addressing these problems at Oshkosh via the Lancair forum. You have attended those forums and know the issues. We have to address these issues via pilot training. We cannot begin to address pilot training until we address instructor training/ standardization and evaluation. IMHO there is an artificial shortage of Lancair instructors created by HPAT being a defacto sole source provider of training. I have discussed this with Joe B and he and I respectfully agree to disagree. There are many fine instructors within HPAT-- but if there is no standardization and evaluation and recurrent training we begin to get different results. If every instructor is teaching it his way instead of HPATs way you are not getting HPAT training. We are at a critical juncture today in the Lancair community viz. accidents. 

I am a former HPAT instructor and have addressed these issues with many former HPAT instructors. The consensus amongst us is that there remains a lack of a syllabus to teach from and a lack of instructor stan/ eval program within HPAT. Instructors need training, too. When I began to undertake the not too small task of writing a Lancair training program I looked around at other successful training programs including the Part 141 school that I am familiar with here, the Cirrus Standardized Instructor Program and the FITs program developed by the University of North Dakota and Embry Riddle (FAA Industry Training Standards program).

After drafting the many parts of the program (initial transition training syllabus, recurrent training syllabus, training manual, and ten ground lessons) LOBO invited all interested Lancair instructors to attend a two day seminar two weeks ago on the subject. The goal of our meeting was to review and finalize a comprehensive training program that LOBO would submit to the FAA for FITs review and acceptance.  We have tried to coordinate our efforts with HPAT. I invited HPAT (Pete Z and Josh B) to attend. Unfortunately, they did not. I have provided a copy of this program to HPAT and to Lancair. LOBO is not trying to pull the wool over anybody's eyes here. There is no hidden agenda; BUT, since HPAT is not interested in doing all the above LOBO has created an alternative flight training program that Lancair pilots can use with qualified instructors that complete LOBO's stan eval program. LOBO is talking to the insurance industry to gain acceptance and recognition from them. I am confident LOBO will gain recognition from the insurance industry and pilots who complete LOBO training will get insurance coverage. Is that a bad thing for Lancair owners? If anyone thinks having a choice with whom you get qualified flight training from is a bad thing please let me know,

After LOBO receives its FITs endorsement next month, LOBO will begin stan/ eval training for interested instructors. I expect some of those instructors will be former HPAT instuctors and will be available for training interested pilots in Q1 2009.

As I told Joe B., I am not and LOBO is not interested in starting a flight school, I do not have the time for it. However, I am not going to turn someone away that I or LOBO can help.  I would not be getting a call a week from a Lancair pilot who needs training and cannot get on HPAT's schedule for months.  Where is that pilot to go? What does that person do? Fly without training? We know what that leads to ....43% of our Lancair accident pilots have less than 100 hours in make and model. We have to reduce the accident rate. We need to make it easier to get training not harder. LOBO will fill that void with quailified instructors. LOBO's goal is to reduce the accident rate. We are doing that proactively by putting in place programs that work.

Best Holiday Regards,

Jeff Edwards
President, LOBO



-----Original Message-----
From: Craig Gainza <cgainza@msn.com>
To: lml@lancaironline.net
Sent: Tue, 23 Dec 2008 7:41 pm
Subject: [LML] Re: Insurance