Cambrian Flying School, Swansea [Archive]

View Full Version : Cambrian Flying School, Swansea

scott_cardiff

8th Mar 2009, 18:36

Hi All

I'm looking to re-commence PPL training pretty soon and considered approaching Cambrian Flying School at Swansea. I was originally going to join Cardiff Academy of Aviation but unfortunately they have ceased trading!

Any advice or opinions on the clubs PPL training would be much appreciated :ok:

scott_cardiff

pipertommy

8th Mar 2009, 21:08

Check your PM`s:)

AlphaMale

9th Mar 2009, 00:34

I looked into this school too but couldn't find much info.

I'm 1hr 10mins from Cambrian and 1hr 20mins / 1hr from Staverton / Filton (Aeros) so it's just as easy for me to go with either one.

Being over 6'2" and 16.5st I've been told the Tomahawks and 152's will be too small for me, so it has to be 172's and PA28's for me :(

Still debating on either spending £5k in SA for a PPL or pumping the cash into a UK school where I'd like to work as an instructor. Aeros would be perfect for me to go from PPL>CPL>FI.

From what I can read Cambrian only offer PPL, Night and IMC. However I'm still interested in the school and would love to fly there/from there when I have my PPL ;)

pipertommy

9th Mar 2009, 10:09

Why not give Cambrian a call and go along for a visit, very friendly setup. Have you checked out the website?
Swansea is a good airport to fly from, open airspace all around and stunning scenery. Give me a pm if you want more info:)

Ps have you actually sat in a Tomahawk and sized it up you maybe surprised

chrisbl

9th Mar 2009, 22:04

The Cambrian website is pretty naff.

Parson

10th Mar 2009, 08:29

Alpha Male - you'd be surprised at the size of a tomahawk, very roomy, so don't discount anywhere on that basis til you try

pipertommy

10th Mar 2009, 13:17

Second that;)

AlphaMale

10th Mar 2009, 13:33

Maybe I should pop down this weekend and take a look. I'll ask about prices then too.

Highland Flying School looked pretty attractive at £4,900 but I was pretty disappointed when I read "Maximum Pilot Weight is 15.5 Stone (98 kg) Maximum Pilot Height is 6' 4" (1.92 m)".
But if Cambrian can squeeze my broad shoulders in to a tomahawk then I'm happy to reap the rewards of cheaper flying per hour and being closer to home ;)

I agree about the website not being up to much, but then it does have the necessary information and I'd rather them spend their cash keeping the A/C in airworthy condition and pay the experienced instructors a tidy sum to keep them from going elsewhere.

pipertommy

11th Mar 2009, 18:42

Hi AlphaMale check your pm`s;)

scott_cardiff

11th Mar 2009, 21:19

Just been down Cambrian today and I've got to say I was impressed! :D

I called Derek, the owner, and he invited me down to Swansea for a chat and to have a look around. On arrival at the club, he gave me a very informative chat, and then spent the good part of an hour giving me a tour of the apron and hangar.

After 7 years of not getting in a light aircraft (since I was 12 when I needed a cushion to see out of the windows!!!), I was wondering whether I would still fit in a Tomahawk due to my height of now 6'4". Derek however allowed me to try the plane out for size and thankfully I can still get in them!! :)

Will now be booking my first flight as soon as possible and getting underway with the PPL! Just hope the weather improves vastly!! :hmm:

Advice to any students from the previous Cardiff Academy, get down to Swansea if you already haven't!! From what I can gather it has a lot of positives compared to Cardiff!

AlphaMale

11th Mar 2009, 21:44

Glad to hear this Scott.

I might catch you down there soon. I'll be planning a visit soon (probably on the weekend due to work commitments), I'm a little over 6'2" and after a long run before going to work this morning I'm still a touch under 16.5st. :sad:

One good thing about training close to the Gower is that if it's too windy to fly then I'll pop down the the beach (so long as the wind is in the right direction) and go kitesurfing at my local spot ... that way it's not a wasted journey.

Beethoven

12th Mar 2009, 08:53

Having just spent a few days holiday down at Worms Head on the Gower I can certainly say that it is a pretty spectacular place to be doing you PPL. Good luck.

pipertommy

12th Mar 2009, 17:13

Cant beat it!! Sat at 2000ft looking out over the Gower, stunning;)

Eurotraveller

13th Mar 2009, 14:07

Alphamale,

Apologies for the slight thread-drift.

As others have already said don't discount the Tomahawk based on your height and build, I am also 6ft 2 and did all my PPL training and hour building in the PA38 with no problems. The only possible issue is in terms of weight and balance - depending on your instructor's height/weight there's a distinct chance you'll end up over MTOW if you wanted to take full tanks, but then I suppose training sorties are rarely 4 hours in duration!

Where I did my training the PA38 was a fair bit cheaper than the PA28 and I made a significant saving by block-booking on the Tomahawk. The cockpit is plenty roomy enough and the 'bubble' style canopy makes it feel bigger than it is anyway.

I also did some hour building in a 172 and I don't recall it being that much roomier than the Tomahawk inside (but again it was more expensive).

Best of luck with your training.

Eurotraveller

AlphaMale

14th Mar 2009, 13:17

Thanks for that Eurotraveller,

I was looking to join a local gliding club on the run up to the summer to get a few hours under my belt before embarking on my PPL training, again I am restricted due the maximum weight being 16st :ugh:

The annoying thing is that I am not fat and have a healthy diet with quite a bit of exercise during the week, I have now started running in the morning before going to my office job in a hope I'll shed some weight.

chrisbl

14th Mar 2009, 21:02

Did my PPL with the original Cambrian FC in Swansea 21 years ago. There was nothing better than flying around Gower.

Looking in my log book, I managed to fly nearly every week in the year it took to get the licence. The weather was some of the best. The rule beining if you could not see Cefn Bryn, we stayed on the ground.

AlphaMale

14th Mar 2009, 22:14

Might make my way down tomorrow if I get time :ok:

AlphaMale

15th Mar 2009, 19:23

Well what a great day to see the airport in all its glory.

Sky divers & an Islander, Air taxis, Privately owned aircraft, ATC with their motor gliders, microlights and not forgetting the clubs aircraft all out enjoying the sunshine over the Gower.

Very friendly atmosphere and spent the best part of an hour speaking to pipertommy after being shown around by Derek to the control tower and sat in both the Tomahawk and 172 ... and I'm glad to say that I do fit in the Tomahawk making me eligible for the cheaper tariff :p

I'll be swatting up on Air Law and Human Performances and hope to get the class 2 medical out of the way within the first week of flying.

Scott - pipertommy tells me that we both live on the same estate :cool:

scott_cardiff

15th Mar 2009, 21:06

AlphaMale

Check your PM's :ok:

Scott

pipertommy

17th Mar 2009, 21:11

Just thinking, if any ex-Cardiff members would like to continue or even start PPL training, but are a bit stuck, feel free to pm:)

I know what its like to be at the end of a club going under and unsure of what to do:ugh:

Good luck to all.

pipertommy

19th Mar 2009, 06:37

Next to nothing left in Cardiff, no clubs:( Some private aircraft left)

AlphaMale

19th Mar 2009, 11:24

I checked out gliding clubs closest, but it would be good to know if there's some small flight schools or clubs around Cardiff.

Usk Gliding Club and Black Mountains Gliding Club are the closest IIRC. Although the Air Corps do fly from St Athan. I'll be looking to join Usk when I'm below 16st :eek:

MartinCh

21st Mar 2009, 01:45

AM, PT already got back in PM. I knew of GCs 'in area'. Cheers anyway.

jonburf

22nd Apr 2009, 19:55

hi there.
I did 10 hours of training at aeros Filton before switching to Cambrian. I had the greatest experience there with fantastic level of instruction from really well qualified people.
For your PPL Swansea has the perfect amount of traffic for learning i.e. busy enough to learn to deal with traffic but not too busy that can't take off for half and hour. It also has great views and generally good weather.
I did my PPL there and went on to do my IMC and cannot beleive my luck to find a club that was so good.
Just for kick's I worked out yestarday that since all of the fuel price increases Cambrian is still cheaper than Filton was 4 years ago.

And just a Final note on the Tomahawk, it's a great aircraft to learn in. cheap, spacious, good visibility and designed to be slightlly harder to fly than most trainers. I was talking to one instructor who told me that it feel's and handles like a much bigger aircraft. I loved the Tomahawk so much I bought one to build hours on, and despite having to pay hangerage, maintanance and insurance I still love it.

Good luck with your Aviation. Hope to see you at Swansea sometime.

jon

1scottwilliams

28th Aug 2016, 20:44