CFI on the Fly: In Harmony with CFII Josh Carroll from STL Flight Training

By Carmelo Turdo

The Aero Experience celebrates Midwest Aviation with our "CFI on the Fly" series to honor the unsung heroes of the aviation industry - the Certified Flight Instructors training the next generation of pilots at flight schools large and small across the region. CFIs are in high demand, and new instructors are gaining flight hours at a rate that guarantees their rapid progression to the corporate, charter or airline crew positions to which many aspire. Rather than generalize about the CFI/CFII/MEI roles, we will start from the individual and find out what makes a great CFI through their particular contribution. 

In this edition, we feature Josh Carroll, CFII from STL Flight Training based at St. Louis Downtown Airport. He is friendly and likeable, immediately showing his enthusiasm for each new flight opportunity. He also has a get-to-the-point teaching side that projects two or three steps ahead of the student in the training process. Carroll always strives to give his students the most value for their time and money on each flight and ground school session.        

CFII Josh Carroll is embarking on a second career after serving as a paramedic in his hometown of Springfield, MO. He and his wife, also in the medical field, moved to St. Louis to pursue employment opportunities when the aviation bug bit him. Even though he grew up around the local airport, Carroll never considered aviation as a career choice until relatively recently when he began to feel the burnout from the pandemic-era medical environment.    

"I grew up near an airport," Carroll told The Aero Experience. "I was in the approach path of Springfield National, KSGF. You would spend all day, every day, of your childhood playing outside and watching planes go over...Never really considered this as a career, it was one of those things I didn't have anybody in it." He began seriously considering flight training after attending the wedding of a college roommate who was starting his flight training as a personal diversion. 

Carroll took his flight training, Private Pilot to CFII, from ATP at Spirit of St. Louis Airport. He would work nights and train during the day until he completed the course and began instructing at STL Flight Training. The Aero Experience recently flew with him in the company's new Evektor Harmony LSA loaded with all the bells and whistles of a well-equipped trainer.  

During our local flight from St. Louis Downtown Airport, CFII Josh Carroll demonstrated the straightforward operation of the aircraft, from the preflight inspection to the simplified engine runup procedure and the operation of the Garmin G3X panel display. The synthetic vision clearly shows the runway ahead as well as ground obstacles and air traffic. Also, the airport layout, sectional chart and radio frequency references are essential to both VFR and IFR flying. The main display can be set up as a traditional "six-pack" or artificial horizon with full vertical tape layout. Pilot-friendly airframe and flight control design features include electric elevator and aileron trim, split flaps, center control stick with trim control and bubble canopy. The fuel efficiency and reliability of the Rotax 912 family of engines reduces flying cost and adds value for operators and students alike. These features of the Evektor Harmony, and other topics of interest, were discussed in the in-flight video featured below.

So, what makes a great CFI? "It's hard," Carroll reflected, "because you're never not a CFI. You're never not teaching, you're never not helping." He added that CFIs have to evaluate a variety of personalities and skill levels, meeting each student where they are and coaching them through each phase of training. A common practice is for the student to fly with another instructor at specific intervals or when the student has difficulty learning a particular concept, especially at the instrument level. Ensuring that the new or advancing pilot is competent and safe is a burden of conscience that all CFIs share as they nurture their students, and each other, along the way.

The Aero Experience thanks CFII Josh Carroll for giving his time for our story. We also thank STL Flight Training for providing our flight in their Evektor Harmony fleet training aircraft and STL Flight Maintenance for keeping this and the other fleet aircraft operating safely.