The Strange Case of Dr. Student and Mr. Flight Instructor

A member of CoBaD has a commercial multiengine (airplane) license. This sketch was inspired by three encounters he had as a student during the course of his training:

Phase check examiner, Private Pilot rating: Yelled "NO! NO! NO!" and excitedly pointed out the window,

Instrument rating instructor: Would habitually fold his arms and go silent just before he went ballistic in the cockpit, and

Commercial multiengine checkride examiner: Yelled at the student during his checkride for saying his before landing checklist out loud to himself. The instructor then screamed "I don't need you to teach me how to fly."

In each of the aforementioned instances, the instructors/examiners were nice guy Dr. Jekylls on the ground and evil tyrant Mr. Hydes in the air. Instant attitude, just add altitude. Thanks in part to these aero-nuts, this troupe member doesn't fly anymore. Flight instructors/examiners, it's time to rethink how you engage with your students. Correction: Flight instructors/examiners, it's time to think period.

Scrolling caption and voiceover: “The aviation world is currently experiencing a pilot shortage of unprecedented measures. It is predicted that by the year 2040 the airlines will need over 600,000 pilots just to keep up with anticipated air traffic demand.” – From a 2021 report by The Boeing Company (see reference below).

Tower: “Cessna 86 Romeo Lima Sierra cleared for takeoff runway 15…” - “86”refers to the year “Jekyll and Hyde” was published (1886). Romeo Lima Sierra is how you say the letters RLS in the aviation world. RLS is of course the abbreviation for Robert Louis Stevenson.

Mr.Hyde: "STICK AND THROTTLE!!! STICK AND THROTTLE, SIR DANVERS, OR I’LL STICK THAT THROTTLE UP YOUR ASS AND THROTTLE YOU WITH MY STICK!!!" - Refers to Mr. Hyde’s murder of Sir Danvers Carew, (“The Carew Murder Case”). Sir Danvers was beaten to death with a walking stick owned by Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde.

Mr. Hyde: “THAT’S RIGHT, DR. JEKYLL, AND DON’T YOU DARE FORGET IT!!! I’M MR. EDWARD HYDE, NASA’S GREATEST JUGGERNAUT AND CERTIFIED FLIGHT INSTRUCTOR OF BLACKMAIL HOUSE, THE MOST EVIL FLIGHT SCHOOL IN THE WORLD!!! BWAA, HA, HA, HA!!!!” - Alludes to the chapter “Story of the Door,” where Richard Enfield tells Gabriel John Utterson about the place, nicknamed “Blackmail House,” where Mr. Enfield first met Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde. In the book, Mr. Hyde is twice referred to as a “juggernaut,” once in “Story of the Door” and again in “Search for Mr. Hyde.”

Mr. Hyde: “OH, HO, HO ‘ENRY JEKYLL!!! DOWN YOU'LL GO, ‘ENRY JEKYLL!!! JUST…YOU…WAIT!!! BUM, BA BUM!!!!” – Refers to Eliza Doolittle’s song “Just You Wait” from the musical “My Fair Lady.”

Dr. Jekyll: “Another Jekyll. Neat. Make it a double …No actually make it a treble. It’s been one of those days. Hyde’s really starting to get under my skin.” – Referring to the chapter “Henry Jekyll’s Full Statement of the Case.”

“The power of the drug had not been always equally displayed. Once, very early in my career, it had totally failed me; since then I had been obliged on more than one occasion to double, and once, with infinite risk of death, to treble the amount; and these rare uncertainties had cast hitherto the sole shadow on my contentment. Now, however, and in the light of that morning’s accident [when Dr. Jekyll changed to Mr. Hyde without the benefit of a potion], I was led to remark that whereas, in the beginning, the difficulty had been to throw off the body of Jekyll, it had of late gradually but decidedly transferred itself to the other side. All things therefore seemed to point to this; that I was slowly losing hold of my original and better self, and becoming slowly incorporated with my second and worse.”

Watch this sketch now, and, as a special deal for our viewers, receive 20 percent off a limited edition, acoustic pressure infused, fully throated live performance appended at the end of this skit. Hopefully next time this sketch is performed, the record button will be pressed prior to the beginning of its performance and not one minute into it so we can charge you the full rate.

References:
Stevenson, R. L. (1979). The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde and other Stories. Ed. by Jenni Calder. Penguin Classics.

The Boeing Company. Pilot and Technician Outlook, 2021-2040.