Real World Coast to Coast Course (PilotWorkshops)

Fly along on this epic, coast-to-coast adventure. 35 videos cover it all.

• A series of challenging IFR and VFR flights
• Long-range, cross-country flight planning
• ATC Communications – IFR and VFR
• A variety of reroutes and diversions
• High-altitude mountain crossings
• Radio communication problems in IMC
• IFR legs through complex NY and LA airspace
• VFR over the Grand Canyon at dusk
• A high-density-altitude landing and departure
• Fun at LAX: STAR in, SID out (and a flat tire)
• Heavy use of ForeFlight, Stratus and ADS-B
• Turbulence from winds, mountains, and heavy rain
• Various “special flight rules area” transitions
• Fatigue, hunger, stress, and potential hypoxia
• Breathtaking scenery across the USA
• And much more!

The Real World Coast to Coast program was developed by the PilotWorkshops team and led by Keith Smith. Keith is a highly accomplished instrument pilot and founder and developer of PilotEdge, the award-winning network that provides real (human) ATC interactions for pilots flying and training on flight simulators.

Keith also starred in our previous Real World programs (Real World IFR and Real World VFR), so we brought him back and gave him a new set of flying challenges—this time on a flight from his home in New Jersey to Southern California.

In addition to creating the PilotEdge network, Keith has personally logged more than 9,000 hours on his network providing virtual ATC services to pilots across thousands of simulated instrument flights. It’s fair to say that Keith’s passion for all things ATC borders on an obsession.

With such a passion for ATC interaction and years of working the other side of the picture on the virtual scopes, Keith provides a focus on radio interactions and airspace awareness not usually seen in the piston General Aviation world.

Keith with his Lancair 360

Keith flys his Lancair 360 in the Real World Coast to Coast flight videos. He has logged over 800 hours in this airplane and routinely flies it for long-range travel in a wide range of weather conditions at airports ranging from 1,800 ft non-towered strips to JFK, LAX, Atlanta Hartsfield, DFW and everything in between.

Keith is not an instructor, instead, he gives you the perspective of a highly accomplished pilot flying in the system. His focus is on managing these challenging flights from a PIC perspective (single-pilot) in the left seat rather than providing flight instruction from the right seat. This further enhances the “Real-World” feel of these videos.

View from Keith’s cockpit

Keith walks you through every detail of his flight planning in ForeFlight.

If you’ve wanted to use your airplane for long-range business or personal travel but lack the experience, this program gives you the confidence needed to take your flying to the next level.

Briefings: Keith conducts a detailed briefing before every flight—and we caught them all on camera, including a complete screen-capture of his iPad running ForeFlight! This is one of the most instructional aspects of the entire program.

Watch him brief all critical aspects of the flights—the weather, route, winds, NOTAMS, airports, airspace and more. By watching him brief this many consecutive flights, you’ll learn to look at an overall flight and quickly drill into the areas that require a more detailed investigation. This kind of briefing efficiency will help you feel comfortable tackling longer trips.

See and hear everything Keith does.

Flights: The flights were recorded in real-time using two HD video cameras mounted on Keith’s head and chest to show his view outside and on the instruments. We also captured his iPad throughout the entire flight so you can see what Keith is seeing in ForeFlight, in the air.

This gives you the ultimate “first-person” feel as you are riding along with him, hearing all of his ATC communications as well as his commentary on what’s happening throughout the flight. Having only two cameras allowed Keith to make the trip alone, without a camera crew…adding to the real-world feel.

Debriefs: Keith debriefs every flight on camera, providing a self-assessment of his performance and an occasional confessional when things don’t go as planned. These debriefs are shot immediately after the flights—at the airport, FBO, hotel room or on the ramp. This is a great way for Keith to recap the critical teaching points and lessons learned on each flight.