Hookerbot,
£85K at Oat? Either they had a lot of retakes, went on a grand shopping spree in Phoenix and included it in their numbers or they had one heck of a beer budget. If it was the latter that put them over £85K then they are probably a good bunch of mates to have, as who wants to fly with anti-social types!
Concerning loans though, please tell me which bank grants £80K worth. I don't argue with what your friends say they spent at Oat; but the loan limit through Oat's bank is £50K. FTE's bank loans more than that so their graduates are likely to have more debt. Obviously this point has little to do with where one should train, but I didn't want to let the misperception concerning debt go unanswered.
Perhaps your Oat mates borrowed more for a type rating, but then some FTE graduates have to pay for their own as well don't they? Again, Oat's bank will give a type rating loan, but £50K plus £20K is £70K not £80K.
Nobody should take the price differences lightly. Both are great schools and both get good results for their graduates. I don't think a person goes wrong with either, so it comes down to horses for courses if you can fund either or FTE if you can't.