SA schools
"Would you go to another country and train with a school that can't or won't give you the simplest information about medical, licence validity, future renewals, licence and rating extension and any hindrances to a future professional licence?"
This was the question posed by Rob in his posting above.
I work for a school in SA, other than CFS and have to agree that the answer would be no to the above. I would have to equally disagree that all schools do not answer such questions or give advice on the questions posed. All SA schools cannot be lumped together as doing the same.
Our website has a specific page dedicated to UK and Irish students, giving information on just such questions. All these students are also given contact names of past students who they are free to contact directly for information on their experiences training with us or on joining a club in the UK and further flying there. They are also, very importantly, put in touch with Irv Lee based at Popham in the UK, and directed to his website. Irv is in no way an agent for us nor does he receive any commission from us whatsoever. He is however an enormous font of knowledge for prospective students on the do's and don'ts of flying in SA and the UK.
Our courses can be structured so that a PPL (and CPL) can return to the UK with more than one type on his licence. Irv can do further type ratings for them, on their SA PPL, in G registered aircraft. He can also do their PPL renewals for them and there are doctors in the UK approved to do their SA medicals. They can thus continue to fly in the UK on their SA PPL for as long as they keep it valid. Negotiations are under way to get approval for SA PPLs to fly to France and if this is successful, it will hopefully be extended to other European countries.
All your questions asked above are answered either by us or Irv if the student contacts us or him. Prices are not included in the website purely because we do not have one specific option for a course eg a PPL can fly different types, have different accommodation etc. Detailed prices are supplied immediately on request by whatever means. We ask that 5 weeks be made available for PPL course completion, as 3 weeks is certainly not the norm. It is not possible to answer questions for all students from a number of countries on the website so students from countries other than the UK or Ireland are also given contact details or information when we have been able to obtain it, for the CAA equivalent in their own country to get advice on what they have to do on their return to their own country with an SA PPL.
By the way, we do not advertise in magazines and we are a non-profit Club with a proud history of training for almost 50 years.