SCFC's Seminar Engagement Program

San Carlos Flight Center is introducing a new feature to extend our successful FAA Safety Seminar program for pilots who attend SCFC seminars live, either in-person or remotely.

Older pilots may remember the FAA WINGS program that rewarded pilots with small lapel pins to encourage them to attend safety seminars. San Carlos Flight Center's newer, better program rewards pilots for staying engaged in ongoing education with credit toward actual instructor time!

SCFC's Seminar Engagement Program will function similar to how the seminar attendance credit worked in the past, with a code word or phrase given out by the presenter at the end of the seminar. After attending 10 seminars, pilots will have credit toward one hour of SCFC CFI time, which can be used for flight reviews, aircraft checkouts, or any additional training.

We are proud to have the most active Safety Seminar Program in the country where pilots of all abilities and skill levels can come to learn something new. We host seminars twice a week, on Wednesdays at 7 PM, and on Saturdays at 12 PM. With an active in-house speaker bureau and a growing guest-speaker base, we continue to schedule a wide variety of presentations equipping you with the knowledge to operate more safely.

All seminars are available for in-person viewing in our office. If you can’t watch a presentation in person or prefer to watch from home, all seminars are live-streamed and recorded for viewing by SCFC web members.

Watch this video to learn how this program works.

Lost and Found Items from 2023

One may be surprised by the array of items left behind in the hustle and bustle of aviation training. Here are a few of the most common items left behind:

• Sunglasses and glasses
• Pens and digital pens
• Kneeboards
• iPad and GoPro mounts
• Water bottles

We understand that life can get busy, and sometimes, belongings slip through the cracks. If you recognize any of the items listed above or suspect that something may be in our lost and found, please drop by the Front Desk.

In an effort to reduce the number of lost items, we encourage all members to double-check their belongings before leaving SCFC. Additionally, consider labeling your personal items with your name or contact information to facilitate a quicker return in case they are misplaced. 

Aviation Memories of 2023

At the SCFC Holiday Party, we invited members and guests to add their favorite aviation memory from the past year to our memory tree. It was a chance to see the variety of adventures that SCFC pilots had been on in 2023.

Personal milestones were popular, with many people remembering their first solo, a checkride success, or even the start of flight training. Many airport destinations were singled out, including Harris Ranch, Monterey, Yosemite, and a number of the organized FlyOutGroup trips this year.

A few people recalled their first experience in some of the new aircraft to join the SCFC fleet in 2023. This included the Diamond DA40NG which joined the fleet as our first FADEC aircraft, and the new fastest of the fleet. It also included Cessna N54JA which was lovingly restored to full airworthiness this year after years of neglect at another flying club.

And many pilots' memories were of flying family and friends, sharing their love of aviation with the people who matter most to them. First time flying parents, or fun adventures with friends to vacation airports.

What were your favorite aviation memories of 2023?

New Year, New Airship in the Bay Area

In 2024, you may begin to see a new category of aircraft roaming the skies above the Bay Area! Last fall, LTA Research and Exploration unveiled their prototype airship, Pathfinder 1, at Moffett Field. The large airship will begin test flights this year to evaluate its flight characteristics.

With the airship operating in the region, it may be helpful to refresh yourself on right-of-way rules pertaining to airplanes and airships. FAR 91.113 covers right-of-way regulations, which indicates that airships have the right-of-way over airplanes. The only exception to this rule is if an airplane is in distress.

Remember that an airship is slower and less maneuverable than our training airplanes. Also, as Pathfinder 1 is completing testing flights, their pilots might be tasked with flying a specific route and mission. While it may be tempting to fly near the airship to get a good view or photo, we ask our members and students to be courteous and fly a wide berth whenever the airship is in the vicinity. 

New SQL Controllers, New Terminology

Over the last few months, the quality of service provided by ATC has improved dramatically. This is in part to additional staffing so that the controllers are not over worked and exhausted. You no doubt may have heard a number of new voices on both the ground and tower frequencies. With new staff comes some new phraseology. 

Often, we are very accustomed to expecting to hear the standard phraseology when in actual fact we are told something else. This is often referred to as expectation bias. As an example, for the past several years our taxi instruction has almost always been "Runway 30 runup, taxi via Juliet". Because of that, pilots are sometimes caught off guard when told something different. Recently, it is common to hear, "Runway 30, taxi via Juliet Kilo". In this case, that means you taxi to the runup area via Juliet, complete your runup and then you can taxi to and hold short of the runway without having to call the tower from the runup area.

Another instruction that may be different than what you have heard before is if you are in the pattern at San Carlos. After landing, the controller will provide you a taxi back instruction commonly, "Runway 30, taxi via Kilo". An alternative you may hear, is something to the effect of "Taxi back each time via Kilo, advise on termination." In this case, every time you land you have permission to taxi back to the runway without an explicit taxi instruction.

While it is nice to be familiar with the local procedures and customs, don’t let that lull you into complacency. It is good that the phraseology is changing up a bit as it means that you can’t just robotically respond. Next time you are on the radio at San Carlos pay close attention to what is said, think carefully about the instruction, read back appropriately and comply. More importantly, if you don’t understand, ask for clarification.

SCFC Member Profile: Tsai Greene

SCFC: I see that you are doing both flight training to become a pilot and helping with SCFC aircraft maintenance. Which came first?

TG: Before joining the team at SCFC, I started out as a flight student at another flight school. After I transitioned my training to the Flight Center, I joined the maintenance team as a mechanic apprentice and enjoy the chance to serve my community.

SCFC: Our first core value is Safety, and mechanics play a critical role in that. As both a pilot and a mechanic, what unique perspective do you have into SCFC’s safety culture?

TG: Being both a mechanic and pilot has given me a great insight into what an airplane can really do and why it is crucial to ensure that we always perform thorough checks of our work. I know that the integrity and hard work the maintenance team puts in shows to our pilots, and lets them safely create many lasting flight memories. The mechanics I work with are some of the best in the Bay. They are training me to lead with good judgement, and make sure that the job is done well.

SCFC: How often do you do flight training? Where are you at in the Private Pilot training process?

TG: When the weather is good, I try to fly at least two times a week. I currently have about 35 hours to date and there will be many more hours and experience to gain along the way.

SCFC: Mechanics can be certified for airframe, powerplant, and/or avionics. Which one will you do first? Is one harder than the others?

TG: Once endorsed to take the exams for my license, I will first pursue airframe and powerplant (A&P) before learning how to work with avionics. I would say that airframe is much more detailed and rigorous as it has more components and in my opinion will be more challenging.

SCFC: As a pilot, you’ve reported squawks, and as a mechanic you’ve responded to squawks. What advice can you give to other pilots about how to best report an aircraft discrepancy?

TG: The best advice I could give to all other pilots when reporting squawks is to make sure that you are as detailed as best as possible, and to squawk the symptoms (what you observed), but avoid diagnosing the disease (what you think the problem is). Also, often a photo or short video can be very helpful in troubleshooting.

Young Aviators Workshop - Jan 6 (Sat)

On Saturday January 6th, SCFC is hosting a half-day aviation event for high school students who are interested in finding out more about aviation. The Young Aviators Workshop (YAW) builds on a program established years ago at San Carlos Flight Center to give young people a way to get involved in aviation before they are old enough to begin flight training.

The workshop is a great way to participate in some fun and educational activities while socializing with their peers. The activities include a briefing on navigation charts used by pilots, discussions about the steps of becoming a pilot and career options, as well as a look under the cowling of an airplane to learn about aircraft engines and systems.

This is a great first step for high school students that someday plan to apply for the Upwind Summer Scholarship Program. If you are interested, sign up online here. The program begins at 9:00 am and goes until 1:00 pm. Lunch is provided.

FOG Lunch - Sac Exec - Jan 20 (Sat)

This month join us on our FOG lunch adventure as we head up to Sacramento Executive (SAC)! We will be dining at Aviator’s Restaurant, located just inside the terminal. Aviator’s serves a wide variety of breakfast and lunch options offered at reasonable prices. They are a great aviation themed restaurant with seating that offers great views of the ramp!

At 70 NM away, SAC is a chance for student pilots or commercial pilot applicants to gain some valuable cross country time. As always, even student pilots can join us with your CFI! If you are an instrument student, SAC is great to get some practice in with plenty of nearby airports offering a variety of different approaches.



Make sure you RSVP so we can keep an accurate headcount! See you at 12 noon on January 20!

Full-Moon Flyers - Watsonville - Jan 25 (Th)

Join us for our monthly Full Moon Flyers dinner! This month, we will be doing a quick flight down to Watsonville to dine in Ellas at the Airport. The restaurant is conveniently located on the airport, simply park in the transient ramp right off taxiway D, and walk to the terminal building.

Looking to do a night cross country? Make a quick landing at Salinas (SNS), Monterey (MRY), or Hollister (CVH) on your way into Watsonville. These airports are just a few minutes away and makes it a great opportunity to log some night currency landings!

Make sure you RSVP so we get an accurate headcount! See you at 7PM on January 25!

Bay Area Scenery

Winter creates some interesting opportunities. Days of blustery wind and rain broken occasionally by stunning views of the SF Bay Area in low-angled winter sunlight. The last few weeks of December made local pilots realize how dependent we are on favorable winds and weather, but also afforded some spectacular views of the East Bay hills.

Make sure your passengers bring their quality phones and cameras on flights with you this winter. There are fantastic views to be had.