The JAR PPL requirements include (if memory serves) minimum 25 hours dual and 10 hours solo, with the balance to 45 hours (or the required standard if longer) being either solo or dual. Is a similar split specified for the NPPL? What are the currency & renewal / C of E requirements?
Having done the JAR PPL myself in about 50 hours over the course of a year with a couple of longish breaks, I could see that it might be possible for someone with the right attitude (ie a pilot's licence of any sort is a licence to learn) and a good level of skill to get to the required standard in 35 hours, providing the course is completed over a shorter period. If the examiners apply high enough standards, there is no reason why the skies should suddenly fill with dangerours NPPL holders.
One thing that worries me is the lack of IMC and radio nav. The JAR course isn't exactly overflowing with either subject (less than the CAA one was I believe), just enough to give you a healthy respect for IMC (as BEagle said). The lack of radio nav will doubtless further encourage people to fly around blindly relying solely on a handheld GPS, and they'll be stuffed when the batteries run flat. Ask a controller how many pilots bust controlled airspace and claim "but I was just following the GPS"
It seems to me that the primary driver for going for an NPPL for many people is the reduced medical, which I applaud wholeheartedly. A better idea might have been to complete the JAR course, but issue a UK licence on the basis of a reduced medical.
Last edited by Chocks Wahay; 26th April 2002 at 11:38.