Originally Posted by
Gertrude the Wombat
Most of us don't think it is wise ever.
Some will say that provided you pay by credit card, so there's a chance the credit card company will pay you back when the school goes bust and takes your money with it, then it's OK. However it might depend on whether the credit card company reckon you've been paying for flying in advance (covered) or providing a banking service to the school (not covered) - ask your lawyer first.
What Gertrude said!
£1000 of free credit to the school in return for a small discount doesn't strike me as good value, and there's a significant risk of losing that £1000 given the known volatility of the industry. At least where you invest a few thousand in a syndicate, that is owned by you as a share in the airframe, and you should pay very substantially less than £150/hr so long as you're flying a few hours each month.
G