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You want your passengers to be comfortable during the flight, so the second major item to
include in your briefing is environmental controls. Show your passengers where the air vents
are located, and tell them how to open and close overhead and/or floor-level vents in their
seating area. Many GA airplanes have other environmental controls (e.g., cabin heat) located
somewhere on the instrument panel. If your passenger is airplane-savvy, you might show him or
her how to adjust some or all of these controls. Remember, though, that for most nonpilots,
the instrument panel for even the smallest GA aircraft is a bewildering array of dials and
knobs and switches that all look alike. Unless your passenger has at least some experience
in GA aircraft, it may be best to tell them to let you know if they are too hot or too cold,
so that you can make the adjustment.
The subject of air brings up a more delicate issue -- airsickness. Opinions differ widely
on whether, and how, to discuss this topic with passengers. Some pilots advocate a direct
approach, including a full briefing on location and use of airsickness bags. Others believe
that a specific briefing triggers the power of suggestion in potentially queasy passengers,
and prefer to avoid the subject entirely. You be the judge of your passengers' tendencies
toward motion sickness, but if you are in the "dont tell" group, you will still
want passengers to know that they should tell you right away if they feel uncomfortable for
any reason.
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