PPL(H) for Royal Navy / RAF application

[EMayhew]

Hello,

I'm about to finish my training for PPL(A) and would now like to move onto my PPL(H) but I plan on joining the Royal Navy as a Helicopter pilot afterwards. I wanted to know peoples view on whether having a PPL(H) would enhance my application or not. I don't want it to become a negative as the Navy may feel I would want to use my civilian training techniques during the military training.
What does everyone think?

[Non-PC Plod]

If you are successful in your application, you will get top class training for free, so I would save your money. It will also save you from possibly learning bad or non-military ways of doing things, which may be difficult to un-learn.

[Evalu8ter]

Ed,
It doesn't matter what you 'want' to do, to pass military flying training you will be required to demonstrate the ability to do what the military NEED you to do. Save your money; your PPL level of experience and airmanship will be rapidly overwhelmed by the demands of military flying. Join up, get the best flying training for free - but be prepared to work bl**dy hard!

Good luck!

[RVDT]

It will also save you from possibly learning bad or non-military ways of doing things, which may be difficult to un-learn

And then of course if you leave the military and go commercial you will have to un-learn the military ways. :rolleyes:

[[email protected]]

True, but PPL level training isn't really about commercial flying anyway.

Emayhew - your commitment to learning to fly is a positive factor so don't worry about what the military will think.

Have you passed the aptitude tests at Cranwell yet? Just because you have a PPL, doesn't mean you are suitable for military flying so get that done before spending money on PPLH. You also need to pass the Admiralty Interview Board before you can taken in and that has little to do with aviation and a lot to do with leadership and personality. Those are your first hurdles to clear.

[Arm out the window]

For what it's worth, what I saw as a student and later an instructor at military basic flying training units (FW and RW) in Aus indicated that students with previous flying experience would generally go pretty well through the early stages, as you would expect, but would quickly come back to the pack when the intensive things they hadn't done before (e.g. formation, time on target low nav) came up.

Sometimes the 'military way' (e.g. for fixed wing, elevator for aim point and power for airspeed on final rather than the apparently well-used civvy way of attitude for airspeed, power to adjust the aim point) would mean people had to forget previously learnt habits and start using new ones, a difficult task in some cases.

As a general rule, I'd say if your civil flying has a sound attitude flying basis (i.e. set power and attitude, balance, trim (if applicable) and get into and maintain an effective scan) then well and good, but if not, you may have a bit of work to do developing same.

To cut a long story short, if you want to continue flying, do it (as Crab says), but more hours won't necessarily be of much benefit on a military pilot course. Probably not a bad thing to do a few rotary hours to get the taste of why that fixed wing mob are always jealous of their more advanced rotary brethren, but don't feel like you have to get a licence to boost your chances in the forces.

Good luck!

[Arkroyal]

When I was instructing at RNEFTS about 25 years ago, my most frustrating student was a PPL with a lot of UAS experience.

I simply could not convince him that he had to do it 'Our way'.

Sadly he didn't pass the course. Chopped..

My advice is to scrub round the PPL(H) and apply yourself to getting in to the military.

[sbdorset]

+1 - the more mature students are usually the most difficult to change.
:D

[EMayhew]

I wasn't expecting much in reply to this thread but you have all been so useful.
Im feeling for the majority that I should apply and see how far I can get through the stages as I am.
I guess a lot of what they are looking for is not that you already know a bit about flying cause they already know that they can train a person from zero to pilot.

Thanks for all of your replies,
EMayhew :)

[[email protected]]

The very best of luck but don't forget there are 3 Services flying helicopters:ok:

[MightyGem]

But for how long?
Are the Army going to get the SH at long last? :E

[Sam Rutherford]

Who wants SH?


Apache, now THAT'S a helicopter!

[MBJ]

The RN is obviously the righteous way ;) but a Civi PPL(H) is a waste of money. Let the Queen pay, she's nice like that.

Also, all the interviews are pretty demanding because they make much of "officerlike" qualities and not so much of your flying abilities. A PPL (A) shows determination, but not much more, so don't make too much of it.

[FSXPilot]

If you fly army you don't need to be an officer just a bloody good pilot.

[rantanplane]

If you fly army you don't need to be an officer just a bloody good pilot.


That's why pilots of the other 2 forces are much better in multi tasking ? ...

[Sam Rutherford]

I agree with FSXPilot.

[Two's in]

The obvious difference between military and civilian instruction is the pace of learning. In the civil world this is usually dictated by how fat your wallet is (or was), in the military the pace is deliberately fast to identify the weaker candidates as early as possible. As my very first QHI said after a particularly poor exercise, "I could teach your granny to fly this helicopter if I had a year, but you've only got the next hour to buck up or find a new career".

[Spartacan]

Concur with all of this.

I started BFTS Jet Provost training (circa mid 1980's) with about 300 hours civvy - mix of PPL and gliding. I was the first to solo on my course after 12 hours - 2 hours ahead of the course standard. I was ahead of the pack for about the first 30 hours. At about that time my QFI took me aside and said:

"You have probably realised that you are ahead of the pack; most of your course haven't yet worked out that extra drag requires extra power yet you are off solo. Watch yourself because the course will come up behind you and kick you in the butt."

Too true. By BHT I was struggling with the rest and and passed at the third attempt. Had I failed then the next trip would have been with the CI and followed by a ticket to Biggin Hill.

Suffice to say I passed BFTS but had to work bloody hard. All tribute to my QFI's who put a lot of though into my training.

However . . . They were only behind me because of my attitude which was that I didn't question what they said and applied myself to the training.

As I recall we were assessed on 'progress, attitude, technique' - in that order.

My point it that PPL flying is only evidence of motivation. You are best off working towards being a commissioned officer and working out why they might really want to spend Aunty Betty's money on you.