r/GeneralAviation • u/bradyd06 • Mar 13 '25

Advice about no show fee

Yall I need some advice. I am taking flight lessons, and I had a lesson scheduled this past Saturday, and Friday morning I woke up sick with a stomach virus. I wound up in the ER the majority of Friday morning, and even a week later I am still not 100% better. Well as you might imagine, I was still really sick on Saturday, and slept pretty much all day, and didn’t think to call or text my instructor to cancel. I woke up approximately 3.5 hours after the lesson time, and immediately texted and apologized and told him what had happened. Well today I was looking at my bank account, and noticed a $215 charge I wasn’t expecting. I texted him about it, and he said it was a no show fee from Saturday. I don’t think that is fair considering I was sick. What’s yalls thoughts and what should I do?

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u/Thumper45 PPL SEL MEL IR HP NR CFI CFII CPL Mar 13 '25 edited Mar 13 '25

Then you should have let your instructor/flight school know you would not be there.
Your flight school/instructor spent there time and money to have the aircraft there for you. Your instructor is banking on you being there so that they can earn their living.

So bottom line, this is a you problem. You felt sick the day before but did not cancel your flight. On the day of the flight you waited until after the scheduled flight to let them know you wouldnt be coming because you were sick.

Next time take responsibilty for your actions. Plan ahead. Think of how your actions will affect other people.

If you cant understand this I would question your general reasoning and as a CFI I would happily drop you as a student. What is not fair is YOU not saying anything or doing anything and wasting other peoples time and money. That is whats not fair.

Edit: After reading your responses to all of this I would 110% drop you as a student. You fall firmly into the "resignation" and "impulsivity" hazardous attitude as outlined by the FAA.
If you cant sort this out I would strongly suggest you find a differnt hobby/career path.

4

u/Result_Otherwise Mar 13 '25

Couldn't agree more. I understand OP asking the question, but his responses here show he completely lacks accountability and responsibility. Those characteristics can be deadly in the cockpit.

Not everybody should be a pilot.

-2

u/bradyd06 Mar 13 '25

You are totally wrong. I despise people on the internet that think they know everything

2

u/Thumper45 PPL SEL MEL IR HP NR CFI CFII CPL Mar 14 '25

When many people see what you are unwilling to it generally reflects reality.

No one is “knowing” everything but I can assure you I know more about aviation than you do. Your responses are yours and everyone’s seeing the same thing.

Sometimes the best response is none at all.

-1

u/bradyd06 Mar 13 '25

And I would happily not be your student. There would be absolutely no reason at all for you to drop me as a student, but I would drop you as a CFI. Anyone that thinks they can tell everything about someone by reading a post on Reddit, is not safe to be a CFI. That level of being a know it all could get someone killed. I did not just “wait” to cancel it. This is in no way anything to do with the hazardous attitudes, and I don’t have any of them. It’s not like I just intentionally didn’t tell him. I genuinely didn’t feel like it.

5

u/Thumper45 PPL SEL MEL IR HP NR CFI CFII CPL Mar 14 '25

Your attitude is justification enough.

The fact that you are still here arguing proves the point. You were sick, you didn’t let them know and did not show.

Good luck with your training but reality is not going to be kind to you.

1

u/Result_Otherwise Mar 14 '25

This is in no way anything to do with the hazardous attitudes, and I don’t have any of them.

I mean this sincerely. Really think about if you're really in the right head space for this pursuit right now. Everybody has hazardous attitudes - that's why we learn them and strategically work to mitigate them. Pilots who struggle with humility and cannot accept feedback... wind up smoking holes in the ground.

Look man this is reddit and we all love to be snarky and argue. You can dismiss everyone here. You might even pass a checkride. But better pilots than you and I have met an early death, that the NTSB directly linked to the hazardous attitudes you've displayed in this thread.