PPL in SA or Florida

[Pete Dog]

Hello all

This is my first posting. I have been given money to get my PPL in Sept or Oct. My boss has generously given me the time of work (3-4 weeks) and so I want to get my JAA PPL done in a short time. I was looking at either:

Anglo American Aviation in California (flyaaa.com)
Naples Air Center in Florida (naples-air-center.com)

My other thought was to do it in South Africa as I have heard bad reports about the conveyor belt/factory style of american schools. I just read a nightmare blog of someone who went to do their PPL in AAA last month and it really put me of AAA. I would appreciate any advice regarding good schools.

Thanks alot and I look forward to being a contributor on these blogs and even being able to offer advice to others.

Thanks
Peter Mc

[BackPacker]

Pete, to the best of my knowledge you can't do a JAA PPL in SA straight away. You're going to get an SA PPL which needs to be converted to a JAA PPL. I don't know how complex or costly that's going to be but it is something that you need to factor into your decision.

Nobody on this forum has been to all of the US based schools so nobody is in any position of authority to compare them. And every school gets bad reviews every now and then: people are more likely to complain than praise, particularly on a public forum.

You did read the "sticky" that I wrote about obtaining a JAA PPL in the US, did you?

[Pete Dog]

Yea Backpacker your info on getting JAA PPL in the US was very helpful. I read it all. Thank you for taking the time to put it up. Either its Naples or I got quotes from Airline Pilot Training Centre at Port Elizabeth in SA. They were giving a similar quote to US schools. It looks as though it is a JAA PPL but I need to confirm that with them.

[desk_jockey]

Hi pete,

i underwent some training at aaa for a couple of weeks last year whilst on holiday and thoroughly enjoyed it. having flown with a couple of clubs in the uk i thought the aircraft were a bit 'tired' but i never had any problems with the pre-flight etc. the flying was great and it was easy to build up some good solo hours (flew every day). i think the place is run by a couple of brits but most of the instructors are yanks, which is no bad thing and i would say the quality of the training was just fine. location is great also with fantastic weather & scenery and the possibility of flying at reasonable altitude without worrying about height restrictions, but for those reasons i found it tricky re-adjusting to flying in the uk even after only a couple of weeks.

i think you are realistic giving yourself a month to undertake the course - just make sure all your paperwork is sorted well in advance (visa etc).

have fun whatever you decide to do

[LostAndFound]

Thunderstorm activity almost daily now in FL.3 weeks ppl not possible.

[xj8driver]

Watch out for hidden costs - I did my PPL at OBA at the beginning of the year and didn't pay any surcharges; I met a few guys who were learning at one of the schools you mentioned and they were paying $7 an hour fuel surcharge (met them when I went for my CAA medical in Florida.. very cheap it was, too).

I agree about a 3-week PPL being almost impossible at this time of year in Florida, though October is usually very good. Get your exams done before you go, otherwise it'll be a very hard slog!

Good luck