Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Flight Instructor; Flight Crew Instrument
Flight Crew Last 90 Days 150; Flight Crew Total 800; Flight Crew Type 300
Training / Qualification; Situational Awareness
Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Inflight Event / Encounter CFTT / CFIT
Flight Crew Became Reoriented
Human Factors
A foreign pilot from the United Kingdom requested an aircraft checkout in a light training aircraft at my FBO. I was the instructor conducting this aircraft checkout. The pilot in this report told me he converted his certificate to a U.S. PPL by visiting a FSDO office; there were no additional training or testing requirements. He has only held his U.S. PPL for 15 months.  During the checkout; the pilot informed me he had never been trained on power off stalls; power on stalls; or steep turns. He demonstrated his understanding of slow flight principles to a marginal degree; but he could not set up or recover from a stall. When it came to steep turns; he refused to bank more than 25 degrees. None of these tasks were performed anywhere close to U.S. private pilot standards.Returning to the airport from the South; the tower controller instructed us to enter a midfield left downwind to Runway 23. We were still 2 miles South of the airport and had not yet entered the pattern when the pilot descended us to an unsafe altitude of 300 feet AGL. Prior to reaching this altitude; I had been asking him to climb and return to pattern altitude. He was not responding to my requests. I finally took the controls and climbed us back to pattern altitude.  Before this low altitude issue; we had discussed that the U.S. standard traffic pattern was 1;000 AGL; which is apparently what is also used in the U.K.; according to the pilot. When he told me the standard procedure in the U.K. was to set the altimeter to read 0 feet while on the ground; I reiterated the importance of remembering to use MSL altitudes here. I reiterated the MSL pattern altitude at our airport.  300 ft AGL is 900 feet MSL at this particular airport. I am concerned that the pilot may have reverted to his U.K. procedure of descending to 1;000 feet indicated; forgetting that our altimeters are calibrated to read airport elevation when on the ground. This possibly led us to being at approximately 900 feet MSL / 300 feet AGL before I took the controls. I am concerned that this could be a more widespread issue. This scenario could have easily ended in a CFIT or other serious incident or accident. I recommend the FAA reevaluate its process for converting foreign private pilot certificates. The idea that a foreign-based private pilot can so easily obtain a U.S. PPL; despite never having been trained in major private pilot maneuvers including stalls; concerns me.
C152 instructor pilot reported his UK-trained student descended to 300 feet AGL in the pattern because of differences in altimeter setting procedures.