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Hi All,
I was hoping someone would be able to shed some light. I have an upcoming interview at Ardmore Flying School in NZ to gain acceptance into there school. I was wondering if anyone has been successful in this interview and what it entails, pacticularly regarding the mathematics numeracy/reasoning exam.
Spend time searching these forums for reasons why you SHOULDNT be a pilot, then re asses your situation.
Im 22, have had the dream of being a pilot, but put that dream aside to gather all views on the industry before i stepped in, and it aint pritty, hard work, antisocial, reptitive etc etc etc -- any pilot will tell you that.
Ardmore Flying School is a pilot factory. They take your money and train you to a basic CPL, nothing more. As you are new to the industry, becareful. Just about every flying school will feed your head full of rubbish about how most of their graduates are flying for an airline.
The simple fact is that there are no flying schools in Nz that train you to enter into a airline. Most small airlines like Eagle and Air Nelson require at least 1500 hours of total flight time with a minimum of 200 to 300 hours of that being in a multi-engine aircraft. You need a plan to bridge the gap between 150 hours (when you get your CPL) and 1500 hours that the small airlines require.
As for the whole interview process, don't stress about it at all. Ardmore Flying School is a business and if you show up to the interview with a wallet full of money, you are not going to be refused training. The whole interview is a scam, there to make you feel lucky WHEN you are accepted.
Hunt around, there are many training schools at Ardmore and in Nz.
Finally, think pilot factory; you will be treated like a number at these large schools. Hopefully some former and current students from Ardmore and different schools can shed some more light on this subject for you.
Thanks for the help so far, although I have already made the decision to become a pilot and yes I am aware of the 150-1500 hour gap I am going to be facing - hoping for the best haha . I will be applying for the student loan but im just a little worried about the exam.
Hi,
I got my PPL at AFS and found it to be fine, it is skewed toward a factory-like output but when I was there they did have good instructors. I don't know when this interview/exam business got brought in though, they are a flying school and if anything you should be interviewing them to see if they meet your expectations.
If your goal of being a Pilot is to infact be an Airline Pilot rather than Ag etc etc etc then you should consider CTC in Hamilton. It is a flying school that really focuses on Professionalism and has rather quite high standards, I have not trained anywhere else except for at CTC but there are people I have talked too that just can't believe the step up from Aero Clubs, IAANZ, and other flying schools, although I'm not too sure about Ardmore I know that CTC is a briliant flying school. The other large plus about CTC is that they have an agreement with Eagle Air, a few of the boys went through to them with 250hours as you will probally know. Don't get me wrong there are a few bad points about CTC ie not getting prioritised like the British Cadets, bad patches of no flying at all but if you can get passed that and want the best trraining my advice is to look into CTC.
Haha I just realised that I have forgotten to answer what you actually asked. I imagine the testing/interview process is much like the one here and that was basically a quick no calculator math test, a quick english test and the interview just basically involves you talking to a HOT or similar person and they get to know your background and you make yourself out to be the best candidate there is and there won't be a problem. Good luck with everything mate.
I'm at AFS at present, it could be managed much better. I have found it to be very very inpersonal. The main issue at present is way too many students, going somewhere like Bay flight or Christchurch Academy where they limit the numbers of students is much more ideal. Bay flight you'd be flying twice A DAY, the AFS you'll be flying everyday if you are lucky, most likely every 2nd - 3rd day. There are students at the school that are flying once a week cause they can't get bookings. With 14-16 C-172's you'd think that there is enough for everyone... but no! Just shop around before you get into investing so much. Real comparisons here, two students both started flying on the same day, student 1 at AFS is only now doing a PPL flight test, student 2 at Bayflight is doing a CPL flight test next month with an instructor rating in the pipeline VERY soon.
As for CTC, those couple of boys that got in to Eagle with low hours, lets just say that they have had some trouble with them because they have NO REAL experience. Staying at a training center then jumping into a situation where decisions need to be made and based from experience is not the best for someone with a fresh new CPL.
The flying school's interview system is to basically see if you are someone who is switched on. The math test is basic, nothing to worry about. Its a filtering system to get rid of those that shouldn't be flying full stop.
hahahahaha, you have to be interviewed to pay them money to teach YOU how to fly shit planes... That is one place that I would not put my money. I have flown with a few ex afs pepole, head soooo far up their own ass, very arogant, not that proficient. CTC seems to be better, others may well not agree. But seriously, having an interview to be accepted to train there, they are not that good, despite what they may tell you.
I trained at Ardmore and it was ok, got me where I needed to go. Best thing is you can get a full student loan, and its in Auckland. The most important thing is to pick the right instructor. If someone is flying only 3 or 4 times a week, their instructor is not trying hard enough. And don't just judge an instructor by experience, some of the best have brand new c-cats, while some of the worst have been there for years, it's all about their attitude. Other places may be cheaper, but another thing to consider is job prospects after you complete your training. If you can do a c-cat and get hired by the school that can be useful. Negative points would be the amount you will pay at ardmore is a bit much, shop around and see if other places have cheaper hire rates. As for it being impersonal, maybe if you make the effort to talk to instructors and other students or have a beer at the aero club after you will find it different. Or you could harden up. As for the interview, don't worry about it at all. They have some of the most stupid people in the world learning to fly there, and Ardmore are quite happy to take their money. Good luck with wherever you decide to go, and if you want more replies I would recommend posting in the Dunnunda and Godzone forum, you will get a lot more replies. And use the search function too, loads of info already out there.
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