Two points of view - yours?
I hate it when I can see the other person's point of view when I want desperately to disagree with them.
In this instance, here's the situation. I have an RPL (all endorsements except NAV) and am not far from the PPL test of only the weather would behave for a few days! I have done my training all with the one school at YSBK.
I was very happy with the changes Part 61 and the RPL brought over the GFPT. With that change, the time when I could legally take Mrs LoP up to see what I had been grinning about for months had been improved from "if my instructor is around to sign us out, we can look at the chicken sheds of Western Sydney" to "if an aircraft is available and weather ok, we can fly along the coast of the most beautiful city in the world". Victor 1 being easily within the 25nm radius of BK was an amazing realisation. After a dual flight with the instructor and the paperwork from Canberra, I did just that. More than once. Fantastic! No more complaints from home about the time and cost of training!
All good things must come to an end.
The school has now decided that RPL holders can only fly privately (in their aircraft of course) in the training area. The safety of familiarity (GFPT is what we are used to) seemed to have ended my fun until PPL.
I toyed with the idea of hiring from elsewhere, but figured may well have trouble convincing anyone to lend me an aircraft if even the school that had trained me from TIF to now (and tested and passed me for the RPL I might add) wouldn't do so.
I can see the school's point of view. There is a difference between "legal to fly" and "sensible to fly"... but if they don't think I am competent to exercise the privilidges of the license, then why sign me off for one?
In a few weeks I'll be back at 500ft off Manly with a fresh PPL and this won't matter to me directly, but I know those who will follow may also have the disappointment I felt at this policy, so I was interested to hear the views of those more wise and experienced than myself.