Narrative:

Approximately 6 months ago, a student pilot by the name of mr X came to ZZZ airport looking for a place to tie down his aircraft (a piper 140). I began speaking to him as mr X was not present that day. I told him the cost of the tie-downs and he asked about a mechanic, who I informed him we had 2 very competent individuals, he then asked about flight instructions. I told him that is was the only person on the field as of aug/fri/03 as FBO Y was leaving on that date. He took my card, and told me he would get in touch with me in the future. About 1 month later, he reappeared at the airport with his aircraft. He made an appointment, and canceled it a few days later. I thought nothing of this as his wife mentioned he had to work overtime. A few weeks later, I saw him in the FBO, and he said he was taking lessons from mr Y. I was somewhat relieved, as I had just picked up new students. Frankly, I was out of time as it was, and didn't need more students. He again approached me to give him a few lessons. I went flying wit him, noticed he was lacking a few skills in an ability to listen and perform. Example of this was turning to a specific heading -- usually the student will look at the directional gyro and decide which direction to go the shortest distance. Mr X would begin by turning opposite to the direction he should be going and then realize that it was the wrong direction and correct. I put him under the hood and tried the same exercise, seeing a similar pattern. I went through the emergency procedures, which he did not have in proper sequence. We did do those a few times until he eventually got it straight. Did some slow flight, with power off and on stalls. I took him back to the airport for lndgs and takeoffs. After a few hours of these, I soloed him in sequences of 3 together, on 3 different occasions. My break with the airport is to go to ZZZ1, which is 22.5 NM away from ZZZ. I use the method of ZZZ2 VOR to get the student away from the environment that they have existed in for the past few lessons. From there we go to ZZZ3 using pilotage and a nearby lake as a sight that will get us to ZZZ1. After a landing we then use the radio requirements, signage at the airport, and a normal departure back to ZZZ using only dead reckoning. The VOR at ZZZ2 is an emergency if we get lost or have a problem. When they get back I go over all the procedures and send them back with their logbook signed to do the same flight on their own. I had to do this twice with mr X and then I released him to go on his own. He left the airport at ZZZ, and returned 20 mins later saying he couldn't see very well because the sun was too bright and was in his direction of flight. About a week went by and he announced that he would like to go back to ZZZ1 solo on monday. I told him he had to call me at work and discuss the WX conditions before I would come out to the airport for him to go on the flight. He did so, and the WX was ideal for him to go and come back before dark (at least 1 hour is needed to do this and there were at least 3 hours of light left). I told him I couldn't be out to the airport that day before XA30, which would not give him enough time to go over and back. When I arrived at the airport, he was gone. I didn't notice that another student pilot was also not accounted for but his car and plane were still at the airport. Mr Z stayed after dark to see if mr X returned. I had a meeting to attend, so I left. Mr Z remained until XC30. Mr X did not return. The next day mr Z asked him when he got back, and he said about XC45, mr Z asked him which runway he landed on, and he replied runway 21, of course the one the wind was favoring. Mr Z told him that we usually use runway 3 at night to avoid the deer. I asked mr X that same day why it took him so long to get back, he should have been there and back in 1 hour. He said he decided to take a ride over to ZZZ4. He is not signed off to go any place other than ZZZ1 and ZZZ. I then asked him why he decided to go to ZZZ4 and he mentioned that this other fellow student wanted to see someone there. That is when I asked him if he took himalong with him in the plane to ZZZ1. I then mentioned to him that 'solo means by yourself!' I also went into the FARS and showed him the section that mentions that a student pilot is not allowed to take someone along for a ride even if the other person is another student pilot. Nor was he allowed to fly his plane to airports that he was not signed off to go by his flight instructor. He seemed to think it was funny. I overheard him telling someone else that he didn't see anything that he did that was so bad, I was overreacting. I told him that I would help him move his plane to a fellow who was doing the interior over, but I couldn't do it on saturday but on friday, during the day I would fly up to the airport, return with him and sign him off to take the plane up by himself and I would follow him up and pick up and bring him back to ZZZ. I never saw him or heard from him that week. On friday, he never showed up at the airport. I was away for the entire day on saturday so on sunday when I arrived at the airport I asked 'what happened to mr X's plane?' I got the answer he flew it to the airport where he was having the repairs done. On dec/fri/03, when I arrived at the airport in the afternoon, the 2 mechanics asked me if I was still flying with mr X, which I replied 'I haven't heard from him and I believe he feels I am too strict with him, and will probably be flying with someone else.' well, they began to tell me about his lndgs that day, which at least 2 were so far down the runway that they feared he would not be able to stop in time. I tried to call him on his cell phone with no luck, just an answering machine. I wanted to put a note in his logbook (if I flew with him again) to say that he was not allowed to fly to airports without permission from his instructor until he was a licensed pilot, but I will probably never get that chance. I feel he needs to be spoken to by someone other than myself. I mentioned to him when I dressed him down in november that flying is like a club, the members already in it don't want to admit someone that will be dangerous and beyond the rules (thinking they were made for everyone else but for them), and that he needed to get with the program. He seemed to understand what I was saying, at the time, but I haven't seen recognition to obeying rules and regulations.

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Original NASA ASRS Text

Title: INSTRUCTOR PLT SUBMITTED A LETTER TO THE FAA FSDO ABOUT FAR VIOLATIONS OF A STUDENT PLT.

Narrative: APPROX 6 MONTHS AGO, A STUDENT PLT BY THE NAME OF MR X CAME TO ZZZ ARPT LOOKING FOR A PLACE TO TIE DOWN HIS ACFT (A PIPER 140). I BEGAN SPEAKING TO HIM AS MR X WAS NOT PRESENT THAT DAY. I TOLD HIM THE COST OF THE TIE-DOWNS AND HE ASKED ABOUT A MECH, WHO I INFORMED HIM WE HAD 2 VERY COMPETENT INDIVIDUALS, HE THEN ASKED ABOUT FLT INSTRUCTIONS. I TOLD HIM THAT IS WAS THE ONLY PERSON ON THE FIELD AS OF AUG/FRI/03 AS FBO Y WAS LEAVING ON THAT DATE. HE TOOK MY CARD, AND TOLD ME HE WOULD GET IN TOUCH WITH ME IN THE FUTURE. ABOUT 1 MONTH LATER, HE REAPPEARED AT THE ARPT WITH HIS ACFT. HE MADE AN APPOINTMENT, AND CANCELED IT A FEW DAYS LATER. I THOUGHT NOTHING OF THIS AS HIS WIFE MENTIONED HE HAD TO WORK OVERTIME. A FEW WKS LATER, I SAW HIM IN THE FBO, AND HE SAID HE WAS TAKING LESSONS FROM MR Y. I WAS SOMEWHAT RELIEVED, AS I HAD JUST PICKED UP NEW STUDENTS. FRANKLY, I WAS OUT OF TIME AS IT WAS, AND DIDN'T NEED MORE STUDENTS. HE AGAIN APCHED ME TO GIVE HIM A FEW LESSONS. I WENT FLYING WIT HIM, NOTICED HE WAS LACKING A FEW SKILLS IN AN ABILITY TO LISTEN AND PERFORM. EXAMPLE OF THIS WAS TURNING TO A SPECIFIC HDG -- USUALLY THE STUDENT WILL LOOK AT THE DIRECTIONAL GYRO AND DECIDE WHICH DIRECTION TO GO THE SHORTEST DISTANCE. MR X WOULD BEGIN BY TURNING OPPOSITE TO THE DIRECTION HE SHOULD BE GOING AND THEN REALIZE THAT IT WAS THE WRONG DIRECTION AND CORRECT. I PUT HIM UNDER THE HOOD AND TRIED THE SAME EXERCISE, SEEING A SIMILAR PATTERN. I WENT THROUGH THE EMER PROCS, WHICH HE DID NOT HAVE IN PROPER SEQUENCE. WE DID DO THOSE A FEW TIMES UNTIL HE EVENTUALLY GOT IT STRAIGHT. DID SOME SLOW FLT, WITH PWR OFF AND ON STALLS. I TOOK HIM BACK TO THE ARPT FOR LNDGS AND TKOFS. AFTER A FEW HRS OF THESE, I SOLOED HIM IN SEQUENCES OF 3 TOGETHER, ON 3 DIFFERENT OCCASIONS. MY BREAK WITH THE ARPT IS TO GO TO ZZZ1, WHICH IS 22.5 NM AWAY FROM ZZZ. I USE THE METHOD OF ZZZ2 VOR TO GET THE STUDENT AWAY FROM THE ENVIRONMENT THAT THEY HAVE EXISTED IN FOR THE PAST FEW LESSONS. FROM THERE WE GO TO ZZZ3 USING PILOTAGE AND A NEARBY LAKE AS A SIGHT THAT WILL GET US TO ZZZ1. AFTER A LNDG WE THEN USE THE RADIO REQUIREMENTS, SIGNAGE AT THE ARPT, AND A NORMAL DEP BACK TO ZZZ USING ONLY DEAD RECKONING. THE VOR AT ZZZ2 IS AN EMER IF WE GET LOST OR HAVE A PROB. WHEN THEY GET BACK I GO OVER ALL THE PROCS AND SEND THEM BACK WITH THEIR LOGBOOK SIGNED TO DO THE SAME FLT ON THEIR OWN. I HAD TO DO THIS TWICE WITH MR X AND THEN I RELEASED HIM TO GO ON HIS OWN. HE LEFT THE ARPT AT ZZZ, AND RETURNED 20 MINS LATER SAYING HE COULDN'T SEE VERY WELL BECAUSE THE SUN WAS TOO BRIGHT AND WAS IN HIS DIRECTION OF FLT. ABOUT A WK WENT BY AND HE ANNOUNCED THAT HE WOULD LIKE TO GO BACK TO ZZZ1 SOLO ON MONDAY. I TOLD HIM HE HAD TO CALL ME AT WORK AND DISCUSS THE WX CONDITIONS BEFORE I WOULD COME OUT TO THE ARPT FOR HIM TO GO ON THE FLT. HE DID SO, AND THE WX WAS IDEAL FOR HIM TO GO AND COME BACK BEFORE DARK (AT LEAST 1 HR IS NEEDED TO DO THIS AND THERE WERE AT LEAST 3 HRS OF LIGHT LEFT). I TOLD HIM I COULDN'T BE OUT TO THE ARPT THAT DAY BEFORE XA30, WHICH WOULD NOT GIVE HIM ENOUGH TIME TO GO OVER AND BACK. WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE ARPT, HE WAS GONE. I DIDN'T NOTICE THAT ANOTHER STUDENT PLT WAS ALSO NOT ACCOUNTED FOR BUT HIS CAR AND PLANE WERE STILL AT THE ARPT. MR Z STAYED AFTER DARK TO SEE IF MR X RETURNED. I HAD A MEETING TO ATTEND, SO I LEFT. MR Z REMAINED UNTIL XC30. MR X DID NOT RETURN. THE NEXT DAY MR Z ASKED HIM WHEN HE GOT BACK, AND HE SAID ABOUT XC45, MR Z ASKED HIM WHICH RWY HE LANDED ON, AND HE REPLIED RWY 21, OF COURSE THE ONE THE WIND WAS FAVORING. MR Z TOLD HIM THAT WE USUALLY USE RWY 3 AT NIGHT TO AVOID THE DEER. I ASKED MR X THAT SAME DAY WHY IT TOOK HIM SO LONG TO GET BACK, HE SHOULD HAVE BEEN THERE AND BACK IN 1 HR. HE SAID HE DECIDED TO TAKE A RIDE OVER TO ZZZ4. HE IS NOT SIGNED OFF TO GO ANY PLACE OTHER THAN ZZZ1 AND ZZZ. I THEN ASKED HIM WHY HE DECIDED TO GO TO ZZZ4 AND HE MENTIONED THAT THIS OTHER FELLOW STUDENT WANTED TO SEE SOMEONE THERE. THAT IS WHEN I ASKED HIM IF HE TOOK HIMALONG WITH HIM IN THE PLANE TO ZZZ1. I THEN MENTIONED TO HIM THAT 'SOLO MEANS BY YOURSELF!' I ALSO WENT INTO THE FARS AND SHOWED HIM THE SECTION THAT MENTIONS THAT A STUDENT PLT IS NOT ALLOWED TO TAKE SOMEONE ALONG FOR A RIDE EVEN IF THE OTHER PERSON IS ANOTHER STUDENT PLT. NOR WAS HE ALLOWED TO FLY HIS PLANE TO ARPTS THAT HE WAS NOT SIGNED OFF TO GO BY HIS FLT INSTRUCTOR. HE SEEMED TO THINK IT WAS FUNNY. I OVERHEARD HIM TELLING SOMEONE ELSE THAT HE DIDN'T SEE ANYTHING THAT HE DID THAT WAS SO BAD, I WAS OVERREACTING. I TOLD HIM THAT I WOULD HELP HIM MOVE HIS PLANE TO A FELLOW WHO WAS DOING THE INTERIOR OVER, BUT I COULDN'T DO IT ON SATURDAY BUT ON FRIDAY, DURING THE DAY I WOULD FLY UP TO THE ARPT, RETURN WITH HIM AND SIGN HIM OFF TO TAKE THE PLANE UP BY HIMSELF AND I WOULD FOLLOW HIM UP AND PICK UP AND BRING HIM BACK TO ZZZ. I NEVER SAW HIM OR HEARD FROM HIM THAT WK. ON FRIDAY, HE NEVER SHOWED UP AT THE ARPT. I WAS AWAY FOR THE ENTIRE DAY ON SATURDAY SO ON SUNDAY WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE ARPT I ASKED 'WHAT HAPPENED TO MR X'S PLANE?' I GOT THE ANSWER HE FLEW IT TO THE ARPT WHERE HE WAS HAVING THE REPAIRS DONE. ON DEC/FRI/03, WHEN I ARRIVED AT THE ARPT IN THE AFTERNOON, THE 2 MECHS ASKED ME IF I WAS STILL FLYING WITH MR X, WHICH I REPLIED 'I HAVEN'T HEARD FROM HIM AND I BELIEVE HE FEELS I AM TOO STRICT WITH HIM, AND WILL PROBABLY BE FLYING WITH SOMEONE ELSE.' WELL, THEY BEGAN TO TELL ME ABOUT HIS LNDGS THAT DAY, WHICH AT LEAST 2 WERE SO FAR DOWN THE RWY THAT THEY FEARED HE WOULD NOT BE ABLE TO STOP IN TIME. I TRIED TO CALL HIM ON HIS CELL PHONE WITH NO LUCK, JUST AN ANSWERING MACHINE. I WANTED TO PUT A NOTE IN HIS LOGBOOK (IF I FLEW WITH HIM AGAIN) TO SAY THAT HE WAS NOT ALLOWED TO FLY TO ARPTS WITHOUT PERMISSION FROM HIS INSTRUCTOR UNTIL HE WAS A LICENSED PLT, BUT I WILL PROBABLY NEVER GET THAT CHANCE. I FEEL HE NEEDS TO BE SPOKEN TO BY SOMEONE OTHER THAN MYSELF. I MENTIONED TO HIM WHEN I DRESSED HIM DOWN IN NOVEMBER THAT FLYING IS LIKE A CLUB, THE MEMBERS ALREADY IN IT DON'T WANT TO ADMIT SOMEONE THAT WILL BE DANGEROUS AND BEYOND THE RULES (THINKING THEY WERE MADE FOR EVERYONE ELSE BUT FOR THEM), AND THAT HE NEEDED TO GET WITH THE PROGRAM. HE SEEMED TO UNDERSTAND WHAT I WAS SAYING, AT THE TIME, BUT I HAVEN'T SEEN RECOGNITION TO OBEYING RULES AND REGS.

Data retrieved from NASA's ASRS site as of July 2007 and automatically converted to unabbreviated mixed upper/lowercase text. This report is for informational purposes with no guarantee of accuracy. See NASA's ASRS site for official report.