Eventually!

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

Well, its been a few months now since i was due to start my PPL. I had my trial flight which got me addicted to flying, even though ive already flew lots of times in light aircraft in the fast, the trouble is i didnt have the money to fee my addiction. Then a stroke of luck, i was offered a job at a hospital cleaning and handing out meals (crap job but not bad for a 16 year old student). But then i enrolled at college and was told that i would not have time to get to work by the time i finished college so i had to quit my job, and ofcourse my aspirations of starting my PPL. But now ive been asked tonight if i would like a weekend job at the hospital and that means i can now START MY PPL. YYAAAAHHHHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!

Newcastle here we go. It should be the end of october when i start now but i cant wait.

I honestly thought i might have to wait 2 years to begin but now its PPL then Career Development Loan at 18 or 19 as well as full time job at Airprt, hopefully, and all i can say is 'British Airways here i come'.

Sorry to blabber on but a couple of hours ago my flying dream was on hold for a few years but now only...well not even a few month.

regards

p.s. I was at Newcastle Airport today (EGNT) and i heard that Prince Charles was flying in, does anyone know if he did or not. One minute i was sitting on a chair and the next, this old geezer came up to me and said 'have you seen anything of Prince Charles?'.......weird

[28thJuly2001]

Ensure you can truly afford the lessons before you start, I can think of nothing worse than having to stop half way through. Remember that once you start on the navigation exercises the bill can be £200+ per lesson. Add to that all the essential equipment like GPS and Transceiver :D and the costs soon mount up. Thank goodness for Mr + Mrs Visa and the the baby Visas.
Walt,,

[grundog]

On a more positive note than 28July2001!
Nice one - just get in the air when you can afford it! I can't think of any reason why any lesson should cost you £200 (go to another club/airfield if Newcastle does charge that!).
You also don't need to shell out for fancy Nav kit like a GPS! DI, map and stopwatch have worked just fine for nearly the last 100 years. If you can't Nav without a GPS around the UK you really need to take a long hard look at yourself and what you are doing.

Crack on! Enjoy the flying.

[Grim Reaper 14]

Don't forget to file your inside leg measurement with Special Branch before you go.....:p :p :p

[Kermit 180]

Your enthusiasm is great, go for it dude! ;) Youll never regret it.

Kermie

[BRL]

But now ive been asked tonight if i would like a weekend job at the hospital and that means i can now START MY PPL. YYAAAAHHHHOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!


Pheeeeew, some 'weekend job' that must be for you to be able to do a ppl with your earnings.!!!! How much are you on an hour.????????? :p

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

6.36 pounds per hour on a saturday and 8.00 pounds on a Sunday. Not bad for a 16 year old. I will be having a lesson once every 2 weeks io think. Maybe 1 per month to start with. .

[BRL]

I was only kidding mate, best of luck with your training.. :)

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

I thought u were. lol im just so excited. ive been waiting ages for this to happen

[rustle]

GR14
Don't forget to file your inside leg measurement with Special Branch before you go
Not required anymore - back to IOM/Channel/Ireland only :)

PWP,

Good luck :)

[28thJuly2001]

Grunndog, lighten up,
Just pointing out to someone working part-time weekends that flying is VERY EXPENSIVE. He WILL be paying £200 per lesson for his navigation exercises when he starts doing landaways and includes the landing fee. As for the essential equipment of a GPS and Transceiver, :D .<<What does that mean?:p
Of course he should go for it, even if he onlys flies every two weeks or every month, but remember that it will cost £5,000+ and take a lot longer.
Walt,,

[Whirlybird]

Go for it, and enjoy it! I deliberately did my PPL over a long period; it gave me something to look forward to every week, and it gives you time to do ground exams and generally consolidate what you've learned. Intensive training may mean you qualify in less hours, but I'm not sure it's the best way even if you can afford it. Now you've got something exciting to look forward to every fortnight, for absolutely ages. And please share it with us!

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

Thanks guys

[Holloway]

Cor Blimey! doing it on a weekend job!! GOOD FOR YOU!!! Im worried about affording my PPL and I earn 20k a year!! Im doing one or more a week at the mo.

All the best to you my friend, maybe a credit card when ur 18 lol

:p :p

[CelticShadow]

Nice one PWP

I start my PPL training on Friday so totally understand how your feeling at the moment. :D :D :D :D

If it takes months or years to complete remember it's all fun

Best of luck

[Evo7]

Best of luck PWP and CelticShadow - you'll go through many highs and lows while you're doing it, but it's one of the most challenging and enjoyable passtimes you could ask for. And tell us about it! There are some great people here who'll give you consolation and advice when things aren't going your way and will share your enjoyment when it all finally comes together :)


If it takes months or years to complete remember it's all fun


well, apart from Air Law... :p :D

Oh, and once upon a time there was a thread (http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=43182) which started something like this


Hi Chaps. Hopefully the right forum (I'm new here...)

I'm finally in the position to go after my PPL


Now, 963 posts later..... :)

We've had a "How many hours for the PPL" thread. Maybe we should have a "How many PPRuNe posts".... :)

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

B****** hospital have thrown a spanner in the works telling me that they dont want anyone to work now. Yesterday they told me that they wanted me to work every weekend and now they dont. They've messed me about and now, for the moment im back to step one not doing my PPL.

AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[Holloway]

Mate!!! Thats a bit of a bummer!!! Cant u get some work somewhere else?? :mad:

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

I really need to start looking. Im so desperate to get my PPL started this year because im going to have one lesson every two weeks meaning that it should take about 2.5 years to get my licence. That means that when i leave college i will have my licence, and can apply to get a Professional Studies Loan for my hour building, CPL and instructors rating.

Does anoyne know of anywhere in Newcastle who wants part time staff for weekends.

Help.

[Holloway]

If u were closer I could help u out with books etc, u couldnt be any further away from me :)

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

There is an alternative to my problem. I am quitting my Monday - Friday job because i dont finish college until 4 and then i have to be at work from 5-7. I could keep this job, it just means that i wont start my college work until about 8pm. But saying that i have got all day Saturday and Sunday for college work, well at least Sunday, leaving enough time for social activities.

That wouold mean that i can start my PPL on the 24th of this month.

What do you think? worth it or better leaving monday to friday for college work

[Holloway]

Do a bit of work but make sure it doesnt affect your college work too much. Remember ur young and qualifiations u need to get a good job to get loadsa money to fund FLYING :)

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

By the time i get in from college it will be about 4:20, i have to be at work for 5:00. I wont get back from work until about 7:30, start college work at 8:00, enought time for 2 hours college work per night and all weekend if necessary. Actually i dont think 2 hours work Monday - Friday will affect my college work. And i get enough dosh for one lesson every 2 weeks.

[28thJuly2001]

Why dont you concentrate on your college work and save every penny you can for the next 2 years, then go to America and do the PPL in a month. You would still get the PPL in the time frame of 2 years and be without the frustration of waiting 2 weeks before you can afford another lesson, it will also be cheaper in the long run. In the meantime read every book you can get your hands on about flying and before you know it you will have enough money to get it done. I would take you flying with me just to whet your appetite but we are about 250 miles apart. Anyone in Newcastle feel like giving a wannabe a free flight?
Of course if the urge is so strong ignore everything I have just said and go for it.
Walt,,

[Piper Warrior Pilot]

I would love to go to the US or even South Africa after college, and i plan to go there to hour build. The thing is its going to be extremely hard for me saving every penny of my wages for 2 years. Its gonna be like im working for nothing.

Thankyou for your invitation. Had i of lived closer to Wales i would've loved to come flying with you.

[Field In Sight]

Initially I took about 2 years to get 10 hrs flying done, due to weather/work/lethargy etc etc and then eventually did the whole thing in 4 weeks in California.

Even if you don't do it outside the UK I would still recommend doing it over a short period, full time. It saves money and is an enjoyable and rewarding experience.

In your case if it takes you 2.5 years part time or 2.5 year + 4 weeks including a 2.5 year gap full time I know which one I would prefer to do.

Do as "28th July" says and keep asking on PPrune for PPL's to take you up as a passenger. I have done plenty of flights alone for the sake of staying current and hour building and would have preferred to have had an interested passenger along side.

[EI_Sparks]

Piper,
First the disclaimer - I went to college in Dublin and I teach labs in Dublin - the UK may be different.

I got my degree in Engineering. Second-highest workload in the college (only Medical students were working harder and they're unbalanced :) ) but 2 hours a night would have been major overkill for the first two or three years, with the exception of that last month before the exams, and the scholarship exams I studied for in second year. Frankly, so long as you're not falling asleep in lectures, 30-60 minutes during the day rereading your lecture notes was enough to ensure firsts unless you came across something that really nobbles your head (for some reason ODE's never went into my head right, even after weeks of banging my head off them in the library), and those 30-60 minutes can be split - reread your morning notes over lunch and your evening notes on the bus/train home. Me, I tended to read the notes all in one go, but I had a 90 minute trip home each day - sort of enforced study time :)

That said - don't plan on having any time or social life at ALL in final year. Some people in my year managed to keep a social life up to christmas of final year, but only because they were dedicated to it :) The rest of us slobs just said good-bye to the world and lived in the college (by which I don't mean having rooms there, I mean I would spend about 7-8 hours out of 24 at home every weekday, and usually spent the majority of weekends in college, along with the few 24-hour sessions needed on some labs :( Still remember being woken up by the cleaning crew because I was drooling into the keyboard in my sleep :( ) Plus, you have to find time in there to fit in a physically active sport - healthy body being bloody necessary to survive college and avoid the bloating that often arises from living off vending machines because the coffee shop stopped serving ham sandwiches two hours ago and you didn't remember your packed lunch that day because you figured the extra half-hour of sleep was more important the night before :)


Again, remember, this is engineering in Trinity College Dublin - your milage may vary. Try talking to recently graduated students from your uni if you can locate any - the lecturers, sadly, will not be of use on this point!