How Do I Get Here

[Boeing737]

Hi all.Im going to book a slot at RAF cranwell for the commercial pilot aptitude test in lincolshire (afaik :} ) for february. Only problem is that im not sure which airport is nearer.Ill be flying with the Ryans ( :} ) from dublin.I have a slight tendency to believe that east midlands (EMA) is closest.After searching google for sometime, im none the wiser. Be aware that if i was to do a 1 day trip over and back to complete the tests, i would be departing Dublin @ 6:40 am and arriving at EMA 7:40.Then i would have to travel to Cranwell.Would this be possible taking into account that the tests begin at 11.30 am.Also i cannot rent a car because im 20, even though i have a full license and am driving 2years no claims :* Im beginning to think i would have to fly over the night before and seek accomodation in sleaford or cranwell.My questions are, do you think i would make the trip in 1 day?And either way, how would i get to cranwell from EMA?
thank you so much for your help,
best wishes for the new year
:8

[VFE]

Check out the railtrack website and see what trains you would need to get between EMA and Cranfield. Being out in the middle of nowhere in particular, Cranfield won't be a particularly easy gig to get to. Your best bet would be to fly over with someone who can rent a car and do it that way. You might find that you get rather shafted by needing to rely on taxi's to get you where you need to go on your own.

G'luck,

VFE.

[Boeing737]

thats a valid point alright.renting a car seems to be the best bet alright.i didnt know that the base is out in no mans land.ill keep looking into it.but i better do it soon.at the moment it will only cost me €40 return to EMA :}
regards

:8

[BEagle]

Firstly, Cranwell is nowhere near Cranfield!!

If you can catch the 0857 train from Nottingham to Sleaford, you should arrive at Sleaford at 1003. It's only about 6 miles by road from the station to Cranwell, so a taxi may be your best bet.

But you could well be quite travel weary after the longish journey - so it might be better to get there the previous night?(the Carre Arms is very the railway station in Sleaford. No idea what it's like these days, but have a look at http://www.carrearmshotel.co.uk/).

And stay off the pop if you go the previous night! Good luck to you.

[Boeing737]

thanks for that beagle!is nottingham railway station near east midlands airport?i was under the impression that the train journey was about 2hrs to sleaford?then taxi to cranwell sounds good.that wouldnt take long at all.the only thing is that there is a bit of a gamble assuming that there will be no delays on either end with the aircraft or the train.are the trains frequent from nottingham to sleaford?thanks again :8

[BEagle]

To succeed in aviation, you need a certain level of applied intelligence. If you cannot find out for yourself how far it is from East Midlands airport to Nottingham station - given the availability of Internet search engines - then that doesn't bode terribly well for your assessment session at Cranwell. Equally, you should be able to work out for yourself how to look up train times in the UK National Rail timetable without having to ask someone else to do it for you...

Sorry if that sounds harsh, but it's pretty basic stuff.

As a bit of a clue for you, try: http://www.nationalrail.co.uk/planmyjourney/time_table/journey_requirements.asp

[Boeing737]

charming. I dont recall asking you for the train times and i also certainly do not recall asking for your opinion towards me. You don't know me and i dont know you, so dont get personal with me please. Finally i do not need pointers on how to use the web applications, i can write the damn things myself. I would rather you didnt reply at all then reply with something inappropriate. If you apologize for something you are about to say, then it should not be said. Thats applied intelligence my friend. get a grip.
regards
:8

[Oggin Aviator]

I shall await Beagle's response to your last post with eager anticipation.

Re your original query. Its not rocket science is it? A final year student (as your profile suggests) should have the intelligence and common sense to work it all out (unless, of course, you are doing an Arts degree) :} :E

The advice to go the day before seems to me to be the best, as you would arrive at OASC fresh and more able to succeed in the tests, rather than stressed out from travelling the same day. Plus it would allow you to spend all the previous day travelling to the middle of nowhere that is Cranwell if needs be.

I wonder how many people I've annoyed with that last bit. Cranwell is lovely, if a bit remote. A bit like Cornwall actually !

[Boeing737]

No, im not doing an arts degree hehe :} If is said what i was studying, the irony would be too overwhelming for some people to handle :} Any how, the reason i posted in the first place was to gain information from people who have possibly made the trip before me as its something a lot of people on these forums have done before.
regards
:8

[Oggin Aviator]

Go the day before, a bit more costly but worth it. No travel delay worries and a chance to fully take in the splendour of the Lincolnshire countryside.

There, I've made amends for my dig at Cranwell's location. Ironic really, given my current location. But that would be telling!

[Boeing737]

ive made my mind up, and that is what i shall do.
regards
:8

p.s it's actually cheaper to fly out the day before but the overhead of the accomodation will balance out the cost anyway, so it works out swell either way.

[BEagle]

Oggin Aviator - rural Lincolnshire really isn't that bad! Not too good if hills are your thing though... Apart from my RAFC time, a tour at Scampton on the tin triangle, the F4 OCU at Coningsby and later the CFS course at Scampton were pretty good times.

Any reply to the intemperate response noted above would be superfluous. Nevertheless, I am sure my colleagues will thoroughly enjoy meeting our friend.

[Boeing737]

im sorry if you found my post intemperate.I didnt mean for it to manifest itself as such.I wont be visiting these forums again, any time soon.take care

[VFE]

Always getting the name Cranwell mixed with Cranfield. Woops! :bored:

Did the aptitude tests a few years back and honestly never found them to be particularly useful. The 'old boy' who did my 'interview' at the end was about as useful as a fishnet condom really. He was pushing 70 and offered nonesense such as "remember, north is at the top of the map". Cheers. Did he honestly think I wasn't aware how he was obviously taking the piss or was he that senile? I thought about it for all of 10 seconds. They mean well but money is important when you're starting out.

Some advice for B737: Spend your money on a couple of hours in the air and have the future sense to use every opportunity in aviation to display your applied intelligence like everyone else did/does.

It is called 'playing the game'.

VFE.

[scameron77]

I'm pretty sure there is a bus provided by ISS (the MoD approved logistics and maintenance contractor) from Sleaford to Cranwell a few times a day. Its a oldish white bus with no livelry if memory serves me correct.

I would suggest phoning up OASC at Cranwell and asking to speak to the admin department as they send out a timetable with applications and could advise you of times. Either that or do a google search.

I noticed that the orignal post said it was for commerical aptitude tests so a) the RAF might not be too happy about you ligging a free lift and b) you are Irish and therefore don't contribute UK taxes to pay for your free ride :)

I felt when I was on the bus it was a lot longer than six miles, so a taxi may be prohibitive. We were on it for ages or maybe thats because my head was numb from 5 hours of computer tests.

However I'm sure its a service provided for anyone and everyone to get to the College.

[flydaddy]

Hi all,bit touchy aren't we (must be the new year booze).
Anyway I live at Sleaford well someone has to.
Cranwell is around 5 miles from Sleaford and would cost around £8 in a taxi.
If the cost of B&B is too dear at the hotel mentioned above you could stay at the TravelLodge at the edge of town, this is around £45 for the night.
Good luck.
Happy Landings.
Flydaddy

[Farrell]

I think Boeing737 needs a CRM course or three! :E