Long Beach, CA - training (FAA)

[Aerocadet]

Good day!

I would like to ask for anyone's experience in training at Long Beach Flying Club and Flight Academy as an international student.

I am planning to do PPL and IR first. By the way, how is it flying at Long Beach Airport?

Can anyone still recommend a good flight school in South California area accepting foreign students?

Thanks. :ok:

[BHenderson]

I was at Long Beach this time last year. Great training airport. I hear it is very quiet at the moment. Long Beach Flying Club is a great establishment - good maintenance, good instructors, good relationship with the FSDO.

[profot]

Long Beach is a great airfield and you have many places to fly to from there that will interest as well as challenge you. Make sure you fly into Big bear and Catalina they are good fun..

I wouldn't venture to some of the San Diego outfits if I were you, from what I've seen they can be somewhat overwhelmed with international students.

Long Beach is a good place and I visited your school once and they seemed pretty much together to me

Have fun

[vivalv]

Aerocadet,

I did my PPL and IR at LBFC in 2006 / 07 and I would highly recommend it. The best person to speak with is Sue Baker. She's really friendly and looks after all the students, arranges Visa's for the foreigners and will put you in contact with an instructor; most of who have many years experience. I believe that since I left they've made arrangements for student digs in Signal Hill, not sure if they're any good, but it's a good area to be in and close to the airport.

The weather in LA is good all year round pretty much, frequently hazy in the mornings but almost always clear by lunchtime, occasionally gets affected by smoke from fires in the hills in the summer.

Best of all about Long Beach is the variety of flying that you can do: Catalina is an island about 20 miles offshore which is great to visit for a Buffalo Burger, it's where the DC3 flies to and from every day! The VFR corridor through LAX Class C takes you right overhead one of the busiest airports in the world, and as well as flying up and down the coast you can head in land, buzz the Hollywood Sign, and fly around the mountains, which are pretty spectacular.

My advice is to ring Sue; she'll answer any questions you have. If you need further assurance feel free to PM me.

[CraigyD]

I can recommend Pinnacle Aviation Academy in Carlsbad in San Diego County. The aircraft are very well maintained and the 172's are all fairly new and nice. Much higher standard from what i've seen from most flight schools anyway. The level of instruction was also excelent, alot of very good instructors. Their prices are reasonable to. Just got back home from doing my FAA PPL there. Feel free to PM me if you want any info on them!

Craig

PS, Don't bother going to SoCal in May or June, you will be battling the marine layer and with no IR it can be frustrating when you can see about 5 miles inland its clear blue skies but over the field the cloud is at 500ft!

[Capitan Harlock]

Does anybody had some recent experience at Long Beach Flying Club and Flight Academy?

[AdamFrisch]

I haven't trained there, but I've landed there quite a bit and Long Beach can be a little bit challenging at times. They have many rwys, some of the crossing the others, and subsequently apply frequent Land And Hold ShOrt procedures. This is also why they're sticklers in the tower about correct readbacks and all the rest of it. You get held to a high standard there, which is good. But not always the most relaxing flying.