I'll be going for my PPL this summer and am thinking a LOR from my flight instructor would be valuable and will add some diversity to my package that is otherwise largely academic. I am hoping to finish in no more than 45 hours (21 hours currently), so I'd probably have 20-25 hours with this guy.

My question is: Is it appropriate to let him know on day one my intentions and, more specifically, that I may request a recommendation from him if all goes well? My line of reasoning is that such a preamble would allow for specific anecdotal information to be more readily committed to memory for use in a possible recommendation.

Then again, maybe this is completely inappropriate. Thoughts?

Edited May 10, 201312 yr by Milchstrasse

Absolutely. All things being equal, be upfront with the instructor and let him help you. The unequal might be if he has a personal grudge (you know of) against the military or something similar.

The guy I'm looking at for instruction is a retired (as of this week) pilot for a police department, both fixed and rotor. I figured he'd be a good choice for the discipline and the attitude, and is less likely to have a grudge against the military. However, I will speak to him prior to make sure this is the case.

Also, thanks for fighting through my (now fixed) typos.