Where to train in derbyshire????

[christopherleesmith]

Heyup folks.

I've been looking into doing my JAR PPL and was looking for some first hand advice from anyone in my area.

I live near Burton on Trent, (Ashby de la Zouch) and Donnington East Midlands airport is only a couple of miles away from where i live so this would ideally be perfect.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

[fwjc]

Donair at East Midlands are a good bunch of people. You get the advantage of learning from the get-go about mixing it with the big stuff, so it's not intimidating. Downsides are that it might cost a little more, and you can spend a fair amount of time either at the hold or orbiting to land, which is wasting your flying time. Plus in the circuits phase of your training, you can only get maybe 4 landings an hour, while at a smaller GA airfield you might get 7 or 8 circuits an hour. That said, I have flown with them and found the whole experience to be a great one.

You might also consider Tatenhill, which is not too far from you. I don't know all the options there, but I do know Central Flight Training and they seem to be a genuinely decent outfit as well in my experience.

My advice is to visit a couple of schools in a couple of locations, see how people are with you, see what the atmosphere and attitude is like. Don't be put off by scruffy decor or tea stained mugs, unless it translates to the aircraft too. I'd rather a school had decent kit than being all shine and no substance.

Take a trial lesson, there's no commitment, and see how you get on with the instructor. If you feel like there's a rapport, but still professional approach (briefing, explanations, feedback etc), great. If not, bear that in mind - either look for other instructors at the school since not everyone suits the same style of instruction, and not everyone instructs in the same way, or alternatively walk away and try somewhere else.

Finally, don't pay everything up front. Sometimes you can get a discount for block hours booking, which can be worth doing, but only pay for one block at a time.

Good luck, and enjoy!

[Mark 1]

Derby Aero Club at Egginton are a good bunch.
They'll also teach you on a tailwheel if you prefer:)

[kui2324]

Another vote for the Derby Aero Club - just on your doorstep!

[SamHudd1]

I am currently doing the PPL course at Donair, and can't rate it highly enough. Admittedly, I don't have any experience of the other local schools other than having had a trial flight at Derby.

My usual instructor at Donair is really top-notch. Explains things well and gives a thorough brief. He is also patient despite my habit of dropping the aircraft on the tarmac from 5 ft in the air!

The instructor I've had a couple of times seems when my usual was off seems to be pretty good too.

I'm currently in the circuit phase of training, and tend to average 6 circuits per hour. There was one when I managed 7, and one when I only got 4 in. The longest wait at the hold has been about 5 minutes, so nothing unbearable.

In terms of cost, it's (despite a recent slight increase) quite a bit cheaper than Derby, and home landing fees are included unlike at some schools located at a regional airport.

My only slight criticism would be that you need to book a few weeks in advance to get the slot you want as it seems pretty busy. Maybe internet booking could help.

Having read that back, it looks like an advert! I have no vested interest in the flying club, other than as a very satisfied student.

[2high2fastagain]

The comment about getting on with your instructor is on the money. Find someone who you really enjoy flying with. If you don't get on with your instructor change to another one *immediately*. During my training I had the misfortune to be landed with an hour-builder who just didn't care and was constantly critical. I gave up as a result. 6 months later I was persuaded to have another go. Happily, I then found a super instructor and I never looked back. We spent so much time laughing in the cockpit I think I can fondly remember every single mistake I made when I was training.

You'll get two very different types of flying at East Mids versus Derby. With Landing LDAs of 2715m (R27) and 306m (R23) respectively, I suspect you'll probably go solo a bit quicker at EMA - but if you can land in no wind at Derby, then you'll be able to land anywhere. Great little airfield and you can get your aircraft maintained there if you end up buying something.

[Dan Winterland]

I don't like Derby. How the airfield got licenced for training beats me. I do some flying at Tatenhill and recommend it highly. Good staff, a very good fleet, a good airfield and competitive prices.

[Rod1]

If cost is a consideration then go Tatenhill. Derby is very short and it will take you longer to get your PPL for that reason. EMA will cost you more as you will spend time in the hold getting out of the way. All three are capable training you to a high standard. If you want a chat and a ride round the local area in something a little different drop me a PM.

Rod1

[Halfbaked_Boy]

Derby is very short and it will take you longer to get your PPL for that reason.

I once posed that as a question to somebody closely involved with Derby, and surprisingly enough, the figures, on average, are no different from anywhere else!

If you train at Derby, you'll be confident landing just about anywhere, apart perhaps from a 3 mile asphalt runway...

In fact, the only problem I ever encountered there was more to do with the A/G operator than the airfield itself.

[christopherleesmith]

All great advice, cheers.
Derby, tatenhill and donair were the 3 I was looking at and from what I can see are all reputable.
I'm going to have a drive round to them all tomorrow and have a chat with each of them.
Being only 23 I think the main thing is going to be getting on well with the instructor and building a decent relationship.

Thanks again for the advice on this!

[Pilot.Lyons]

Tatenhill all day in my opinion.

Great staff, well maintained planes excellent availability, own examiners ... Oh and a mean bacon sarnie!

I trained with Dave Wood CFI great guy as are all of them