View Full Version : PPL theory 2004
CaptainCriticalAngle
8th Dec 2014, 22:10
Hi
Thinking of buying a set of 2004 OAA PPL CD-Roms (interactive).
To save some money!!
Don't mind if they're a bit out of date, just want to use for 'pre study' before formal studying at FTO.
Do you think they will be OK?
Piper.Classique
8th Dec 2014, 22:57
If they aren't too scratched!
Seriously, though, the air law will be well out of date. The others should be fine, theory of flight and nav and met don't really change.
Don't pay too much for them.
CaptainCriticalAngle
8th Dec 2014, 23:15
Piper.Classique
Thank you.
I'll try not to pay too much, but I'll buy them and ignore the Air Law cd.
piperarcher
9th Dec 2014, 07:01
Learning to fly is an expensive business and if I was looking to save money I'd try and spend more time at the airfield chatting to pilots or instructors or trying to piggy back on someone else's lesson to make the time spent in the air as close to the 45 hour minimum as possible.
I would be worried that the 2004 material (which was about the time I learnt to fly and was reading material) will be out of date. Sure, things like the principles of flight don't really change but the terms and the content of the examinations do. Is there really much saving to be had by buying old material as opposed to the risk of learning something that might have since changed? There's a lot to learn so best to only do it once in my opinion.
If you fail the exam because your source material is outdated, then the cost of an extra exam is higher than getting good material in the first place.
Flying is not cheap, live with it :)
Indeed, if you really can't afford to buy a decent current study pack that you know will be up to date for the latest exams, then how on earth are you going to afford an extra few hours if you need them at the end of the course.
For that matter, once you've got the licence how are you going to be able to afford to stay current and safe.
If you're that strapped for cash then wait until you can comfortably afford to start, don't waste money on outdated study material. A lot has changed in the last 10 years, not just the law, but the exams have changed entirely with a different style of question being asked.
Flying isn't cheap, but at the same time you get what you pay for, and trying to cut corners doesn't usually end well.
Piper.Classique
9th Dec 2014, 15:48
The OP wants to get started at home before formal training. Seems reasonable to me. Some prior knowledge on subjects that don't really change will be useful background, rather than simply learning the answers.
Just a thought, computers have changed, so it would be wise to check that the cds will run on the computer in use.
Just buy the latest books and learn from those from the start. He'll have to buy them anyway, so there's no saving at all by buying the outdated stuff.
According to the opening post he wants to save money.
He can only save money if he is not buying the proper course material... and that might cost him more in the end due to failed exams, so it's probably not saving him money but costing him more money anyways.
If it's just about some pre-study about the flight characteristics and meteorology: sure, any material will do. But then he should not bring it as a cost reduction, but as an extra investment on top of the proper course material of which most will be redundant, except for some details (and the AirLaw).
In any case, it's not necessary to do any pre-study anyway, and most relevant basic information will be given by the instructor in the first few lessons. It's even on wikipedia. What makes a plane fly, what are the controls, how is lift generated, what are clouds, etc. No need to buy anything.
Baikonour
9th Dec 2014, 16:20
He'll have to buy them anyway,
Huh?
Is there a requirement to buy any books at all? As fas I am aware, you can show up and just do the exams.
Yes, schools my suggest that you buy the books they are familiar with (in fact, good schools will be familiar with more than one set of books, have a few lying around you can borrow before you decide to buy or just borrow full stop), but an obligation to buy book (which ones?) sounds a bit bizarre.
Strange that people here seem to get all uptight and "if you cannot afford the books, don't bother flying at all" - which is ridiculous.
The savings may not be that great, and, quite rightly, parts of the the Air law is best not looked at, part of the Comms syllabus have also changed (but ideally you should be learning the up to date CAP 413 anyway - which is free!)... but for the OP purposes, it sounds utterly sensible to me.
B.
BEagle
10th Dec 2014, 19:49
I think you'll find that there are copyright / licensing restrictions on selling OAA digital media......
MrAverage
11th Dec 2014, 09:42
Baikonour
These days the school or club is required to assess whether the student is ready for a written exam before approving each attempt. While we still have sitting rules this is also in the interest of the student. No one should be allowed to "show up and just do the exams" under current rules. Also, if he doesn't buy the 2014 versions of the separate Air Law and Operational Procedures books, he may get a bit of a shock in those exams.
Strange that people here seem to get all uptight and "if you cannot afford the books, don't bother flying at all" - which is ridiculous.
I think the sentiment is that if your current earnings v outgoings are such that you can't even afford to buy new books, then its unlikely that you will be able to afford to fly - even if you've saved up enough to pay for the license.
I can understand that, and thats one of the reasons that many (like me) don't take up flying until 'mid life' since that's when they have the disposable cash to make it feasable.
Mach Jump
11th Dec 2014, 19:44
Piper.Classique Has it just right. ;)
They are 10 years old so, if you get them very cheap, throw away anything to do with air Law, Flight rules and Procedures, and Radio Telephony, you should be hardly any worse off with the rest, as the latest stuff still doesn't really represent the set of exams we have at the moment.
I hate to say this, but until the present CAA PPL Exam shambles is sorted out, which may be never, Google 'EASA PPL Exams by Robert McPhee' , and pay the £9. :ugh: :*
MJ:ok:
Ps. The Exams were updated in Sept. this year, but all they did was take out some of the existing questions. (Hopefully, the most stupid ones)
I bought the Oxford CDs for radiotelephony and found them a frustrating, miserable waste of time. It may be that the others are better.
CaptainCriticalAngle
11th Dec 2014, 22:56
Appreciate all the advice. I've got a lot to learn. Trying my best ...
RedsBluesGreens
12th Dec 2014, 16:20
I did my PPL back in 2006-2007 and things seem to have changed. There's now Operational Procedures to do and Comms will have changed as well. The format and style of questioning has changed as well. There are also new concepts such as convergency in Nav and when I was flicking through a comms PPL book the other day they had stuff about TCAS and stormscopes! I saw a chapter on building a bivouac and how to collect fresh rainwater in another APM PPL book. They'll be teaching polar stereographic and transsonic flight next...
I wouldn't say buying the CDs was a bad idea just as long as you're not planning to rely on them solely to pass the exams or else you might come a cropper. Still, any resource on aviation is useful, you never know when it might save your life!