Let me start off by telling you a bit about myself. I started flying last April and finished up my CFI and CFII in December. The school I attended wasn't hiring, but another school in my area was willing to let me train anyone I was able to recruit, so I built a website, bought some ads on Google, and now I am working for that school (and yes … I realize how lucky I am). Needless to say, I am bringing a newbie's perspective to the blog space here on JustHelicopters, and I thank the team at JustHelicopters for giving me this forum to share my experiences, get advice, and with some luck, learn a thing or two to become a better pilot.
So, I sent my first solo student into the great blue yonder a few weeks ago (well, the pattern at least), and I was no where near as stressed about it as I thought I would be. I have talked to many CFIs who talk about the stress of sending a new student on their first solo flight being as bad as if it were their own first solo, but I felt pretty good about it. Nothing crazy happened, they picked up, flew the pattern for 30 minutes, came back and made an ugly setdown and all was good.
In retrospect, I think I got lucky with an exceptional student, so we'll see how I feel on my next student.
What I am struggling with now is that student is having some confidence issues. They do great with me next to them, but if they don't pick up and set down perfectly or if they get a little yaw as they settle into ground effect on approach, they tense up (making things worse) and view it as a failure. They are well within Private standards, but they are scared to fly solo. Any advice, or any stories of your own experiences with solo students (or your own experience as a student) are welcome.