Aloft360 Blog
Practical guides on compliance, software, flight instruction, and running efficient flight schools, flying clubs, and aircraft operations.
A practical guide to evaluating flight school management software — covering scheduling, billing, student training tracking, TSA compliance, and fleet maintenance in one platform.
Flight schools training non-citizen students must comply with 49 CFR Part 1552 (AFSP). Here's what the TSA requires, the approval process, and how to track it without a spreadsheet.
A clear breakdown of FAA Part 61 record-keeping obligations for flight schools and CFIs — what to document, how long to keep it, and how software can make compliance automatic.
Everything you need to know to start a flying club — legal structure, finding aircraft, insurance, membership agreements, and the operational systems that keep it running.
How aircraft maintenance tracking software handles inspection due dates, Hobbs-based alerts, squawk management, and fleet airworthiness status — for flight schools, flying clubs, and private owners.
How flying clubs can systematically track pilot currency — BFRs, 90-day rules, IPC requirements, and medical certificates — before a member ever gets in the left seat.
How flying clubs can move from Google Calendar and phone calls to a purpose-built scheduling system with conflict detection, currency checks, and self-service reservations for members.
A CFII/MEI's guide to multi-engine add-on training — the maneuvers, the Vmc demonstration, engine-out procedures, and how to prepare for the checkride from both sides of the cockpit.
What the Airman Certification Standards require DPEs to evaluate on the private pilot practical test, and the patterns most commonly associated with checkride failures.
The factors that predict effective flight instruction — teaching experience, checkride pass rates, lesson structure, and industry engagement — and the questions to ask before committing to a CFI.
How workload distribution and pre-made decision frameworks affect instrument approach accuracy — with specific techniques for gate-based configuration, verbal callouts, and non-precision approach discipline.
A realistic guide to earning your CFI certificate — the flight and knowledge requirements, what the FOI oral is actually like, how to build students, and what the first year of instructing looks like.
A practical guide to co-owning an aircraft — structuring the partnership, drafting an ownership agreement, handling costs, scheduling, and what to do when partners disagree.
A realistic guide to the first year of owning a general aviation aircraft — the costs, surprises, administrative tasks, and operational habits that experienced owners wish they'd known earlier.