The Student Pilot Cast

At AirVenture this year I sat down in the Cirrus compound with Eamon Powers, the Director of Cirrus Approach — the man who owns every piece of training content Cirrus produces, for pilots and for mechanics.
Twelve or fourteen years ago the fatal accident rate in the Cirrus fleet was, being generous, unremarkable, and there was a real argument in this industry about whether the parachute was helping at all. That number has moved a long way since. I wanted to know what actually moved it, how they know what moved it, and how much of it the rest of us can steal — because most of you listening aren't flying a Cirrus.
What I got was a lot better than a company pitch. Eamon has a PhD in instructional design, an ATP, and an A&P, and he'll be the first to tell you the business card looks a little silly.
We get into why every syllabus in America puts the first solo before lesson 20, and why that number is a leftover from World War II. What he calls "time to independence." How you keep a safety briefing from going rote. The CSIP standardization machine. The hardest number in aviation safety — the denominator. And the training nobody ever asks their mechanic about.
Get the free Go or No-Go guide: https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions
Get the Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief
Links:
Cirrus training
Cirrus Approach — the training platform, for pilots: https://www.cirrusapproach.com/pilots/
Cirrus Approach course catalog: https://learning.cirrusapproach.com/learning-catalog
CAPS course — free, open to anyone, you don't have to own or fly a Cirrus:https://learning.cirrusapproach.com/courses/424/overview
Mission Ready 2026 Simulator Sessions: https://learning.cirrusapproach.com/courses/821/overview
Cirrus Embark — complimentary transition training when you buy a pre-owned Cirrus:https://cirrusaircraft.com/embark/
Cirrus Training Network — find a Cirrus Training Center or a CSIP near you:https://cirrusaircraft.com/training-network/
Becoming a CSIP (Cirrus Standardized Instructor Pilot): http://csip.cirrusaircraft.com
Becoming a Cirrus Training Center: https://cirrusaircraft.formstack.com/forms/ctc_application
Cirrus flight training overview: https://cirrusaircraft.com/approach/caps-training-course/

Also mentioned
COPA — Cirrus Owners and Pilots Association: https://www.cirruspilots.org/
Cirrus IQ (the data platform, built on the Garmin GDL 60): https://cirrusaircraft.com/cirrus-iq-faq/
TRAC10 — the clean-sheet trainer Cirrus introduced in July 2026:https://cirrusaircraft.com/aircraft/trac10/

Student Pilot Cast
Radio Check — leave me a voicemail: https://studentpilotcast.com/voicemail/
The Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief/
Three Simple Questions for ADM (free PDF): https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions/
All episodes: https://studentpilotcast.com/episodes/

Hope you enjoy the episode and thanks for listening! Visit the SPC website at https://studentpilotcast.com. Please keep the feedback coming. You can use the contact form on the website or send email to bill at student pilot cast dot com. The theme song for our episodes is "To Be an Angel" by the band, "Uncle Seth".
Legal Notice: Remember, any instruction that you hear in this podcast was meant for the student and only for the situation that they happened to be in at the time. Please do not try to apply anything you see or hear in this episode or any other episode to your own flying. If you have questions about any aspect of your flying, please consult a qualified CFI.
Copyright 2008-2026, studentpilotcast.com and Bill Williams

In episode 94 of the Student Pilot Cast, Bill recounts an unplanned start to AirVenture 2026 after the engine in his Jabiru quit over far southeastern Colorado on July 18, forcing an off-airport landing in a cornfield with his son Trey; both were unhurt and the airplane remains repairable with minor gear damage and an unresolved engine issue. Rather than a debrief, Bill focuses on gratitude for the “rings” of people who helped: Trey’s calm, useful cockpit support; his wife Crystal’s steady response, prayer, and communication with worried family; airline crews relaying the mayday on guard; ATC/FAA personnel tracking him down by phone; local deputies and responders; fire chief Everett and his wife Becky transporting and hosting them; friend Kent flying a Mooney rescue to continue to Oshkosh; and the broader aviation community at Oshkosh that shared support, stories, and connections.
This is not the debrief of the emergency...that comes later. This is arguably more important...the human side.
Get the free Go or No-Go guide: https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions
Get the Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief
Links:
Hope you enjoy the episode and thanks for listening! Visit the SPC website at https://studentpilotcast.com. Please keep the feedback coming. You can use the contact form on the website or send email to bill at student pilot cast dot com. The theme song for our episodes is "To Be an Angel" by the band, "Uncle Seth".
Legal Notice: Remember, any instruction that you hear in this podcast was meant for the student and only for the situation that they happened to be in at the time. Please do not try to apply anything you see or hear in this episode or any other episode to your own flying. If you have questions about any aspect of your flying, please consult a qualified CFI.
Copyright 2008-2026, studentpilotcast.com and Bill Williams

It's Thursday night at Camp Scholler, day four of days not mattering, and Kent and I sat down with one goal: be smart-asses about a few things we'd seen at AirVenture.
So we get into it. Textron had us all convinced this was the year the Pipistrel Panthera would finally get certified under MOSAIC — and instead we got another two-seat trainer. The Camp Scholler bathhouse has quietly relocated the towel hooks inside the shower. The night air show is still the best thing in aviation, but somebody counted down "two minutes to hack" and then made us wait ten more for two drones and a flag. Also, everybody please sit down and stop filming it.
Then Bob Bittner wandered into the conversation and blew up our whole gripe session, because the 2026 AirVenture Cup — the one Kent has rechristened the SmokeVenture Cup — turned out to be a much better story than anything we were complaining about.
We tried to be snide. We learned things instead. That's episode 93.
Get the free Go or No-Go guide: https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions
Get the Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief
Links:
Links Mentioned
The AirVenture Cup
AirVenture Cup Race — official site
2026 race course
2026 results — EAA Hangar Flying
Wildfire smoke postpones the race (WSAW)
The race finally launches from smoky Wausau skies (WSAW)
Learn Build Fly — Wausau youth aviation program

Bob's airplane
Cozy Mark IV
Rutan VariEze — where the canard family started
Long-EZ (EAA)

Textron, Pipistrel & MOSAIC
Pipistrel (a Textron eAviation company)
Pipistrel Panthera
Textron buys Pipistrel, 2022 (AOPA)
FAA MOSAIC rule
MOSAIC explained — FAQ (AOPA)

Other things we talked about
SubSonex personal jet kit (Sonex Aircraft)
Camp Scholler (EAA)

Hope you enjoy the episode and thanks for listening! Visit the SPC website at https://studentpilotcast.com. Please keep the feedback coming. You can use the contact form on the website or send email to bill at student pilot cast dot com. The theme song for our episodes is "To Be an Angel" by the band, "Uncle Seth".
Legal Notice: Remember, any instruction that you hear in this podcast was meant for the student and only for the situation that they happened to be in at the time. Please do not try to apply anything you see or hear in this episode or any other episode to your own flying. If you have questions about any aspect of your flying, please consult a qualified CFI.
Copyright 2008-2026, studentpilotcast.com and Bill Williams

In Episode 92, we join Bill and Trey talking briefly about their upcoming trip to OSH in a light sport aircraft, Lil' Rue. B
Get the free Go or No-Go guide: https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions
Get the Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief
Links:
Hope you enjoy the episode and thanks for listening! Visit the SPC website at https://studentpilotcast.com. Please keep the feedback coming. You can use the contact form on the website or send email to bill at student pilot cast dot com. The theme song for our episodes is "To Be an Angel" by the band, "Uncle Seth".
Legal Notice: Remember, any instruction that you hear in this podcast was meant for the student and only for the situation that they happened to be in at the time. Please do not try to apply anything you see or hear in this episode or any other episode to your own flying. If you have questions about any aspect of your flying, please consult a qualified CFI.
Copyright 2008-2026, studentpilotcast.com and Bill Williams

In Episode 91, Bill teaches a simple aeronautical decision-making framework for go/no-go and continue/divert decisions built around three simple questions: can the airplane do it? Can I do it? And is it legal? He breaks each question into three lenses—aircraft performance/envelopes/condition; pilot proficiency/physiology/capability under pressure; and legal airworthiness/mission-specific regs/paperwork—highlighting how pilots can miss risks or rationalize. He adds a “three strikes” rule where three “yellow” factors stacked together mean a no-go, and recommends post-flight learning with five quick debrief questions. He shares a headwind-induced fuel stop example, offers a free two-page PDF at studentpilotcast.com/threequestions, and invites listeners to connect, including at Oshkosh.
Get the free Go or No-Go guide: https://studentpilotcast.com/three-questions
Get the Friday Flight Brief: https://studentpilotcast.com/flightbrief
Links:
Hope you enjoy the episode and thanks for listening! Visit the SPC website at https://studentpilotcast.com. Please keep the feedback coming. You can use the contact form on the website or send email to bill at student pilot cast dot com. The theme song for our episodes is "To Be an Angel" by the band, "Uncle Seth".
Legal Notice: Remember, any instruction that you hear in this podcast was meant for the student and only for the situation that they happened to be in at the time. Please do not try to apply anything you see or hear in this episode or any other episode to your own flying. If you have questions about any aspect of your flying, please consult a qualified CFI.
Copyright 2008-2026, studentpilotcast.com and Bill Williams