Alex Whittingham, Malcolm Dean,
I have been reading posts from both of you gentlemen, and I was hoping to make some comments. I would first like to say your reputations for integrity have made it all the way to the colonies.
I agree with both of you 100% about paying large sums of money up front. It should be avoided if at all possible. When I bought Naples Air Center, Inc. in 1994, several schools in my vicinity folded one after the other. They all took full course tuition up to the day they closed. Back then a full course was about $20k U.S. For that reason I set up a no money up front to train policy, with a 10% discount off aircraft rental when a student's account is opened with $500 and from then on always kept in credit, 1 penny was enough.
We have evolved to a fly 10 or 20 hours (depended on aircraft type) and get an hour free program.
What it all means is, take extra care of your good customers. Without them you are nothing.
I do have a problem, in the U.S.A. its called INS (Immigration and Naturalization Service). To legally enter the U.S. for flight training you are required to have a M1 or J1 visa. Part of the requirement is to so show the financial means of the student to complete their visit to the U.S. To meet the requirements to issue Visas I can personally tell you that INS looks over a school's financial solvency alot closer than the C.A.A. does.
The best I can do for students is when they arrive, since their tuition money needs to arrive before they do, is set them up with a back account and give them their living money back immediately.
I would think that we should add to the list, the people should ask for prior student references. Along with all the obvious questions to the prior student, they need to ask when their course was completed, were they refunded any money they had on account?
Capt. Richard J. Gentil, Pres.
Naples Air Center, Inc.