Change of Flying School?

[modelman]

I am a few hours (9) into my PPL and after speaking to a few friends with PPL's I am wondering if I am getting full value for money at my current school.
Although I get on great with my FI, I am a little concerned with the structure of my training:
1.I get no real preflight briefing-just a brief look at what the wind is doing and then out to the the a/c and off we go
2.A short flight to another airfield with a T&G and maybe a full landing.
3.A return flight to the home airfield for tea and biscuits
4.No debrief or report of my performance
5.I arrange my next lesson but there is no talk of the the exercises that may be planned for that flight.
6.Almost no use of the r/t

Am I expecting too much at this stage?Can I transfer the exam passes that I already have if I join another school.( I have no documentation in my possession showing my passes).If I join another school that has a more regimented approach to the syllabus will they ignore what I have done to date?
I could really use some advice as like a lot of people,I am an ordinary guy who has saved hard to realise a life's ambition.
Modelman

[mcgoo]

i would be having doubts myself, i did an intensive course in the US and was starting to solo around that time, we were given the next lessons exercises and were expected to have committed the procedures to memory for the next lesson, also RT was introduced bit by bit from hour 2.

[Heliport]

No, you're not getting full value for money at your current school.
No, you're not expecting too much.

"out to the the a/c and off we go"
If that means you walk out together, it's more than some instructors do. Perhaps the (sadly) very common 'Do the pre-flight and I'll come out and join you' comes next? Followed by the equally (sadly) common 'Start it up and I'll come and join you.'

I don't know the answer to your exam passes question, but I can't see why they shouldn't be valid anywhere. Ask for written confirmation that you've passed.

I doubt if a more 'regimented' school would ignore what you've done to date, but they'd assess you on what you've learnt/been taught rather than by what you should have learnt/been taught by this stage.

"I am an ordinary guy who has saved hard to realise a life's ambition."
A very good reason to train at a school where you get value for your savings.

[G-DANM]

when the school I was at was between CFI's I had to do some of my exams at a different school so yes it should be perfectly fine. Just make sure you get your application sheet for the PPL signed and stamped there and then by the school before you leave.

[Pilotdom]

Im currently doing my PPL at a school in Yorkshire and I have 9 hours. Before each flight my instructor sits down with me (with a cup of tea) and we talk about each lesson and what the main points to think about are. We then walk out to the aircraft together and take time to do the pre-flight properly. The lesson then follows the order in the flying training book. At the edn I am given a full assesment of the lesson,asked if I have any questions and then told about what the next lesson will contain and told to read up about it. We then go back to the club house I pay the bill and my instructors as a break and we have a chat over a bacon sandwich.

IMHO I would say that you are not getting value for money. You must move schools or try a different instructor?Could you speak to the cfi at your club? Be warned though,If you are going to ask questions etc etc,I would recommend that If you ahve paid any monies up front for your training to get that back a.s.a.p. As the cklub wont last long if this is how they are training students. You ahve worked hard to achieve your dream and deserve a better quality of instruction.

Come to Sherburn I have never felt more at ease in a club atmosphere.

Dom

[wsmempson]

The format of my recent training was as follows; the first 4 or 5 hours started with a pre-flight briefing of the days exercises and then focussed on general familliarisation with the a/c during the preflight inspections that I did with my instructor, followed by a sortie to the local area for general handling training. At the end of each sortie I was nearly always asked to have a crack at landing the a/c - if I made a mess of it, the instructor took over.

Thereafter nearly all the traing was in the circuit, where gardually I took over more and more of the flying and rt until, after 16 hours, the instructor got out and let me do it for myself.

If none of the above is happening, you should firstly have a word with the CFI and, if no change in attitude is forthcoming, you should change schools PDQ.

As for the exams, if you're refering to the writen seven exams for the PPL, they should give you a slip each time you take an exam with your results on it (whether you fail or not). You have a right to this information as you have paid for it, and it is valid elsewhere. The market is tough in GA at the moment, especially with ab initio pilot training. Don't get fobbed off with what you are currently being given! Best of British!

[Lister Noble]

Modelman,
I agree with all the above,we have briefings before and after each flight,I started dual take off landing from first lesson,ie, the instructor did it but I followed through on the controls.
I was encouraged to use the R/T more or less from the start in the circuits.
Took me 18 hrs to go solo so don't give yourself a hard time if you take longer than some,the experts say it doesn't make you a better pilot to have done it quickly.
The school have a seperate folder for each student and all our paperwork is in there including exam passes,medical stuff,instructors notes and course progress reports etc.
I believe this belongs to the student and he could take this to another school if he wished.
Sorry this is not much use to you now, but I checked out four local schools before choosing the one I'm with,and I'm very glad I did.
I don't know your area ,but it maybe useful to ask around the local flying clubs to see which school scores best.
Good luck.
Lister:)

[Happy Wanderer]

Modelman, check your PMs

[benhurr]

It has been a while since I instructed but in 9 hours flying none of my students would be visiting another airfield. Exercises 4i,4ii,6 & 7, 8 & 9, 10a, 10b, 3 hours 12 &13 would be a normal use of 9 hours if the weather was good and the circuit was available. All flights would have a proper briefing and there would also be a couple of longer briefs in there. 3 hours in the circuit would mean that most RT would be covered by the student.
This is only a rough guide of course and depends on a great number of factors - I would never rush a student into the circuit unless they had shown competency in the basic handling skills.
I would also brief my students on what chapters they should read prior to the next lesson etc.
Sounds to me like there is no structure to your training which will probably mean that things MIGHT be inadequately covered.
I don't know about value for money. I guess that depends on what you are paying! A tenner an hour would be good value for the service you are receiving.
I would suggest you try and visit other schools in your area - you certainly don't want to jump out of the frying pan and land in the fire.

[IO540]

The original post sounds very much like my own JAA PPL training. No debriefing, no preflight briefing, a waste of money really because (in general) one learns stuff on the ground; flying is just to drive it home.

Unfortunately, ground school doesn't make money...

[cjhants]

for the first 15 hours or so pre/post flight briefings are vital. where i was a student they had private briefing rooms where we went through what we were going to do, sorted out the planned r/t etc beforehand. about 15 mins pre and the same post, with a reminder of what was coming next time, and advice on what to read up on.
after i went solo, the briefings were not so thorough, and the FI would often ring me the day before to tell me what to plan for, and i would get everything ready for him to jump in at the last minute, and it was only when we moved onto a new topic that we would do a formal brief.
i changed schools at 10 hours, not because i was unhappy, but the original airfield was not licenced in the evenings, and i wanted to take advantage of weekday evening flying. before i changed i went for a lesson at the new school to make sure i was happy there. there was no problem changing from the old school.
you are paying a lot for a service, make sure you get what you pay for.
good luck.

[J.A.F.O.]

Changing schools is not a problem, your exams are valid, you'll be assessed at your next school as to flying ability.

If you're not happy and can't change things where you are then move.

I changed schools with not much left to do and, as all the paperwork was signed as I went along, it wasn't a problem.

[egbt]

but in 9 hours flying none of my students would be visiting another airfield

If the school is at an unlicensed field then this will be to legalise the flight.

[benhurr]

If the school is at an unlicensed field then this will be to legalise the flight.

Not hijacking the thread, but how much of the flight would this actually make legal if it is only a touch and go at a licensed airfield?

Just a little query.

[Say again s l o w l y]

The only "legal" bit would be between landing and taking off at a licenced field.

To be honest it doesn't sound like you're getting particularily good training here, but have a word with your FI first before jumping ship. Though I wouldn't expect much joy from that.

Pre and Post flight briefings are critical for students, this is obviously best backed up by your own reading of the books, but it certainly helps if you know what you are going to do next, or what you did wrong and what you need to read more on before your next lesson.