VFR Transit

I am now planning my Experience Building (some may call it hour building) of 50 hours in a IFR equipped PA28 / C172, and was looking for some advice from CPL intructors / Examiners on what areas to build upon ready for CPL??

I want to be able to use my time in the sky to my advantage, and really don't want to just fly and burn holes in the sky.

If anyone can offer some advice then please post here or drop me a PM.

Thanks for taking the time to look.

VFR

DFC

Don't think of the CPL at all.

Expand your experience as a PPL and let the CPL instructor provide the correct training at CPL level when the time comes.

If you have 50 hours to fly then use those 50 hours to go places. By doing so, you will;

a) Gain experience that will be a good foundation for the CPL course

b) Show prospective employers that you have actually flown from A to B

c) Come across a few mistakes that you will learn from.

With 50 hours, you should be able to cover a large part of Europe in a round robin or two. Alternatively there would be a lot of different "there and back" flights.

Make sure that you have the required cross country experience for the CPL before the 50 hours ends.

Better still, find another person in the same situation and you get to travel further.

Finally, don't just follow the GPS from A to B. Use the navigation techniques you used for the PPL. You will be amazed how much better your navigation becomes with some regular practice over unfamiliar territory.

Enjoy!!

Regards,

DFC

bingofuel

To expand on DFC's views, use the hours to gain 'useful' experience and also try to develop good habits. Plan all your flights thoroughly, study the a/c manual, get a feel for aircraft performance. If you fly somewhere try to be as accurate as you can. If you plan for 90kts IAS then do not accept 85-95kts.
If you are cruising at 2500ft then do not accept 2450ft. Plan more complex navexs, get clearances through controlled airspace if you can. Fly the approach accurately and at the exact speed. Endeavour to always land on exactly the right point and on the centreline, generally always try to be as accurate as possible and it will pay dividends later on.
Develop skills, practice diverting using max drift and clock code. Set yoursellf tasks such as calculating a rate of descent from the cruise to reach a turning point as you level off. I am sure by now you are getting the idea. There are lots of thing like this which will make each flight a challenge, but it will also rapidly raise your skill level which flying up and down a coastline for the sake of getting another hour will not!
Oh and enjoy it!!!

A and C

All above is good advice but at your stage do you think you need an IFR equiped aircraft, it is the basic skills you must hone first.

Mickey Kaye

i agree with A and C VFR is all you need.

I would also have a check of the FAA requirements and make sure you bag those as the same time as the CAA - your circumstances may change and you never know you may need an FAA CPL.

redbar1

VFR Transit,

I totally support the advice you got from DFC and Bingofuel!!

(Lucky me they beat me to it, so I don't have to write it all in.. )

But seriously, if your goal is to be a pro, then you have to gain experience. And experience can never be learned, it can only be gained. So go fly as professional as you can, with as pro standards possible. Just as DFC and Bingo points out!

Best of luck, and cheers,
Redbar1

Whopity

Whilst others call it hour wasting. Why fly around burning holes in the sky and your pocket when you really don't know what it is you are trying to achieve. To do an IR you only need a night qualification and 50 hours cross country flying, much of which you probably already have. Surely it is better to spend your money on useful structured training than simply gaining hours. Remember a PPL with an IR is more use than a CPL without one. And the IR gives you 10 hours credit towards a CPL!