Rogue Instructor?

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TheGreenAnger
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Rogue Instructor?

#1 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 4:08 pm

Well known bush and ski pilot instructor Don Lee has been implicated in a review of students ratings by the FAA!
A number of pilots could spend the holidays arranging to retake their check rides for certain instrument and instructor ratings following a notice from the FAA.

“The FAA is requiring certain pilots who received check rides from a former designated pilot examiner in Alaska to contact their local Flight Standards District Office,” the agency said in a statement separate from the notice, adding that “approximately 140 check rides are involved.”

In its notice, the agency named Donald R. Lee, the longtime instructor, DPE, and bush and mountain pilot, as the examiner under scrutiny.

“As a result of an investigation by the FAA of the certification activities of Mr. Lee, the Administrator [of the FAA] determined that there is reason to believe that the competency of the airmen examined by Mr. Lee from the period of July 2018 through May 2022 is in doubt,” the agency said.

“As a result of the evidence obtained during the investigation,” the FAA said, the airmen in question will have to be reexamined “to ensure safety in air commerce.” The FAA also said the reexaminations “will be limited to instrument ratings and flight instructor instrument exams.”

Mr. Lee has not responded to requests for comment. The FAA notice does not reveal the findings of its investigation in detail nor does it address exactly what Mr. Lee might have done, or failed to do, in order to bring on the investigation.

Affected pilots will have to contact the Anchorage FSDO within 10 business days of receiving notification from the FAA to schedule a reexamination.
https://www.flyingmag.com/faa-notifies- ... ain-rating
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PHXPhlyer
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#2 Post by PHXPhlyer » Fri Dec 23, 2022 4:54 pm

140 very pissed off pilots/instructors! :-o #-o X( :((
I know I would be. [-X

PP

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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#3 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 5:58 pm

PHXPhlyer wrote:
Fri Dec 23, 2022 4:54 pm
140 very pissed off pilots/instructors! :-o #-o X( :((
I know I would be. [-X

PP
There seems to be a level of injustice here in that by not making an official statement or accusation, the FAA bring the man's good name and professionalism into question and disrepute through innuendo and rumour.

Strangely enough a famous South African bush pilot had a similar issue with the the SA CAA and now flies and instructs in the USA.

https://bush-air.com/cc-v-caa.htm
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#4 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:19 pm

CC Pocock is a character mind you.

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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#5 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:42 pm

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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#6 Post by PHXPhlyer » Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:55 pm

Pretty harsh conditions for do-overs. :-o
I wouldn't want to be subjected to this kind of treatment. [-X
I also wonder if the applicants have any recourse regarding Mr. Lee. At the very least he should be forced to refund examiner fees and also reimbursement of aircraft rental fees or gas if owner flown planes.

PP

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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#7 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:58 pm

PHXPhlyer wrote:
Fri Dec 23, 2022 6:55 pm
Pretty harsh conditions for do-overs. :-o
I wouldn't want to be subjected to this kind of treatment. [-X
I also wonder if the applicants have any recourse regarding Mr. Lee. At the very least he should be forced to refund examiner fees and also reimbursement of aircraft rental fees or gas if owner flown planes.

PP
I would be pretty hacked off if I was one of these guys that's for sure.
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#8 Post by G~Man » Fri Dec 23, 2022 7:03 pm

I do not know the issue they have as they have not stated. However, based upon previous investigations that I am aware of, I can make an educated guess.

So for those not familiar with the FAA system, the thought process is as follows:, (Or it was the last time I did an examiner refresher class with the FAA):

They expect that 10 to 20 % of applicants will fail a check ride on their first attempt. It is wishful thinking no pilot applicant will make a mistake.

Therefore, if Mr. Lee has a 100% pass rate then his "evaluation process and judgement" will be questioned. It could have come to light in a couple of ways,
  • They could have set him up with an undercover inspector to do a ride.
  • An pilot certified by him could have broken a rule or crashed and been forced into a review of his skills etc
  • A pilot could have gone to the FAA and complained
Assuming this is the case, they will re-examine all pilot applicants he has certified during a particular time frame.
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#9 Post by TheGreenAnger » Fri Dec 23, 2022 7:15 pm

G~Man wrote:
Fri Dec 23, 2022 7:03 pm
I do not know the issue they have as they have not stated. However, based upon previous investigations that I am aware of, I can make an educated guess.

So for those not familiar with the FAA system, the thought process is as follows:, (Or it was the last time I did an examiner refresher class with the FAA):

They expect that 10 to 20 % of applicants will fail a check ride on their first attempt. It is wishful thinking no pilot applicant will make a mistake.

Therefore, if Mr. Lee has a 100% pass rate then his "evaluation process and judgement" will be questioned. It could have come to light in a couple of ways,
  • They could have set him up with an undercover inspector to do a ride.
  • An pilot certified by him could have broken a rule or crashed and been forced into a review of his skills etc
  • A pilot could have gone to the FAA and complained
Assuming this is the case, they will re-examine all pilot applicants he has certified during a particular time frame.
Yes, what you say, as ever, G~Man makes a lot of sense.

Benford's law write large in anomalous pass rates

You would not expect to see a 0% fail rate. More likely to see something in the 10 to 19% range...
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#10 Post by TheGreenAnger » Sat Dec 24, 2022 9:06 am

Similar to what G~Man was saying.

https://www.theguardian.com/education/2 ... llegations
A prestigious private school in London has faced multiple investigations into the way it awarded exam grades in 2021, when all its A-level entries received A* or A, the Guardian has learned.

Senior leaders and teachers at the North London Collegiate school (NLCS) have been placed under investigation for alleged malpractice in setting teacher-assessed grades, which replaced formal exams cancelled by the government because of the Covid pandemic.

Sources at the £22,000-a-year girls’ school said more than 20 cases involving NLCS were passed to malpractice committees convened by A-level examination boards, which held a series of confidential hearings this month.

While some of the malpractice allegations have been dismissed, others have been upheld by the committees. Findings from the hearings are not publicly available and the committee’s deliberations are confidential.

A was average A-level grade at independent schools in 2021, DfE data shows <<Which is not so unlikely if you tend only select to teach A grade students with plenty of money.>>

A spokesperson for Pearson, the exam board involved in the investigations, said: “We take allegations of malpractice very seriously and investigate all those put to us. Where malpractice is found we have systems in place to ensure, as far as possible, that appropriate sanctions are taken according to the evidence. We cannot comment on individual cases.”
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Re: Rogue Instructor?

#11 Post by TheGreenAnger » Sat Dec 24, 2022 11:31 am

The FAA has told anyone who got a checkride for an instrument or instrument instructor from a well-known Alaska bush pilot that they may need to redo it to keep their ratings. According to the Anchorage Daily News, the checkrides were conducted by Don Lee between July of 2018 and June of 2022. The FAA has not released many details about its investigation of Lee but Adam White, the legislative affairs director of the Alaska Airmen’s Association, told the Daily News the FAA concerns are about an FAA designated pilot examiner “that basically wasn’t doing a complete check ride.

Lee is something of a legend in Alaska and founded Alaska Floats and Skis in Talkeetna 40 years ago. He’s generally regarded as the authority on glacier operations and his flight school has qualified thousands of pilots over the years. It’s not clear how many pilots are affected, but it’s a certainty that at least some of them are scrambling to get new checkrides because most air carriers in Alaska require a current instrument rating.

Those affected will be notified by letter and have 10 days after receipt of the letter to contact the FAA. Then, they’ll have 15 days to do the ride. White said pilots are also criticizing the timing of the announcement and the fact that it was made public before the affected pilots had been notified. Lee is no longer listed as a DPE by the FAA.
https://www.avweb.com/aviation-news/faa ... -in-alaska
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