Currently in SA with FTC, albeit 'only' doing a ppl course. My thoughts are as follows:
- The general view here is that the school is excellent, training -wise, but DOES need to seriously look at its organisational side. It's not unusual to find that your booked aircraft has suddenly gone for a service and is unavailable, or that you have no sessions booked and are fast falling behind with your hours;
- Regarding cost, the noticeboard in the school reception area quotes all prices in sterling (even for locals), but even so I would suggest not paying in full for anything until you arrive. I agree that if you don't like the place when you arrive, it's a bit more expensive to turn round and go home from here, rather than from Wolverhampton 'International', but at the prices here, I think it's worth the 'risk'.
- The local area is not a muggers and murderers paradise, any more than any other place, but the local town is pretty lacking in things to do. If you're gonna be here for a while, I'd suggest 'Rent-a-Wreck', tatty but reliable cars, R2000 per month. Otherwise you're dependant on another student to go anywhere, a taxi (which is cheap, but usually late), or a 30 minute walk into or from town (which is NOT recommended on your own after dark). I'm not scaremongering here, but the locals are extremely poor, and for the want of two quid for a taxi, could save yourself a lot of unnecessary trouble. Honestly, there are a thousand places in the UK where that also applies.
- PPL wise, if you're looking to complete in 4-5 weeks, do some of your exams first and look to get suitable credit on the quoted price. If you fall behind a bit, it's tough and extremely tiring to try and get 3 hours flying and 2 hours groundschool in every day, believe me.
Overall, a very good school. I've spoken to no one here (from all parts of the world), who have said that it's either not up to it, or not worth it, so why not go ahead and try, it's only your wallet that will suffer if you don't!
Grim
