Flight schools generally teach one or more types of aerobatic programs. Spin and unusual attitude training prepares pilots to recognize and recover from spins and unusual attitudes. This includes banked turns, stalls, falling leaf and different types of spins, as well as inverted flight. Many schools offer emergency maneuver courses designed to increase a pilot's ability to correct the aircraft in different situations, and increase confidence in the pilot's ability to handle emergencies. Many schools also offer aerobatic training for competitions, which focuses on teaching the many different types of turns, climbs, rolls, stalls, lazy eights, wingovers and other maneuvers used in flight competition.
Some pilots may feel there is no need to learn aerobatics training, but instructors such as Randy Whitson argue that learning aerobatics allows you to gain confidence in emergency situations and unusual attitudes--which may save your life and the lives of your passengers. Whitson, in an article on the International Aerobatic Club website, also argues that planning on how to face an unusual attitude is not the same as actually experiencing one and acquiring hands-on experience of how to recover from various emergency scenarios.
You can use the directory published by the International Aerobatic Club (see Resources) to help you find an aerobatic flight school in your area. When choosing an aerobatic flight school, you should look for schools that use a training syllabus and follow a set course of instruction. Aviation instructor Rich Stowell suggests on his website that you choose schools offering a thorough briefing on the ground before each flight. Aerobatic schools should also aim to improve your timing and judgment, rather than focusing only on maneuvers. Stowell suggests the best programs spend no more than around 45 minutes in the air at each lesson, as fatigue tends to set in after this.
When looking for an aerobatic flight instructor, keep in mind that there are no special requirements necessary for FAA-certified flight instructors to teach aerobatics training. Therefore, it is important that you choose an instructor with sufficient experience and confidence to teach aerobatics. Choose an instructor who specializes in aerobatics and who gives you a feeling of confidence in her abilities. Look for instructors who are members of an aviation aerobatics organization, such as the International Aerobatic Club, and who has airshow or competition experience.