HELP ! I am 41 y.o. and looking for a flight school in SA :-)
 

I start a new thread, since the questions that appeared in the thread about "SAFTA" are of more general concern.

Actually the problem is quite complicate.

1) In which region to train ? Where is the weather more favourable for training (I understand that one shouldn't hurry with the training itself... but I wouldn't like to waste my time just sitting around waiting for acceptable meteo, since I'll leave my family -my wife and my son- in Europe while training. And I'm already 41 :O - so time is an issue) ?

2) Which airport ? I heard that most of the Gauteng airports (except Grand Central) suffer from traffic congestion, particularly WB. So, is the Coast better ? And wouldn't it be wiser to train at an uncontrolled aerodromes such as Kitty Hawk, Progress/Victoria West, etc...) ?

3) Which schools do have EXPERIENCED instructors and not newly licensed CPLs ? Maybe the clubs ?

4) What about the costs (I mean : value for money) ? For example, SAFTA seems to be quite expensive...

I would really appreciate if you can answer one or several of these questions. Thanks for help !!!

PS : I understand that finding the right instructor is the key, as well as finding the school with the best suited vibe to me. But, since I am still in Europe, I can collect only objective information.

PPS : My present not-so-short-list (randomly) : Progress Flight Academy, FTC George, Algoa-PE (but their twin is expensive:sad:), Superior Pilot Services and Flight Training Services (both at FAGC), SAFTA and maybe Superb Flight Training (Kitty Hawk)

Algoa
 

Go for algoa. while I personally attended a neighbouring school the atmosphere there was excellent. Good enough school and small for every student to receive personalised attention.
I am certain you can get to fly with the chief pilot any time you need to without making a weeks request.
you can do a single engine comm then do your twin rating somewhere else once you done with the comm

I do not recommand Cape Flying Service in George. I am 52 years of age at this time. Wish someone gave me this advice 12 years ago..!!

Good luck..!!

Gary Pols:ok:

Gerpols, I also heard negative comments about CFS. That's why in my list I have the George's Flight Training College, and not CFS.

Hi zapoi67,

Have you tried Foster Aero Training at Lanseria???

690

1) The Karoo, F all weather there

2) Port Elizabeth, its Quiet but has all you need for training

3) APTRAC at PE airport. (though a lot of the instructors do come out of com to instruct, you cant get away from that, a lot of the guys have over 1000 hrs instruction time)

4) Cost is much less in PE. accomodation and cost of living is WAY cheaper and it is a nice relaxed place to stay.

good luck

Dog

training
 

Hi zapoi67,
as a pilot and an ex-air traffic controller my comment would be-do yourself a favour and train at a fairly busy,controlled airfield. The small places(you mentioned kitty hawk and Victoria west) will not prepare you in the slightest for the big bad world out there. Whilst I am not suggesting at all that the actual flight training at places like these is inferior to any bigger airfield, your knowledge of operating in a controlled enviroment will certainly be lacking on completion of your ppl/cpl. I have seen brand new pilots coming from these small,uncontrolled fields and cause absolute chaos in and around Jhb even to the extent of ending up directly overhead JHB International in a C172,wondering why there are rather large aircraft on the ramp of the airfield he thought he was over.
Some places,in my opinion,are not great for training even though they are controlled fields-Cape Town springs to mind,but places like Rand Airport(a nice balance of traffic in a controlled enviroment)and, to a slightly lesser extent, Lanseria offer great real-world training. Before the experimental and home-built chaps have a go at me with regard to controlled airspaces and ATC-yes,i`m sure you have your frustrations but the reality is is that Air Traffic Control will be with us for a while yet and learning to fly and become a professional pilot must encompass this aspect. There are too many pilots out there with shocking R/T procedures and abysmal knowledge of airspace and procedures. My two cents worth...

Thank you all for your answers !

Anyway I'd like to say that messages just like "have you tried XYZ-school ?" don't help at all. I have already read tons of such posts. :E I expect argumentation, pros/cons of the schools you want to promote.

@ Contract Dog
I understand that weather in Karoo is the best one. Just : what does "F all weather" mean ? (my English is not ICAO level 6 compliant :O)
Unfortunately we can't move PE to the Karoo :E. Any good school there ?

@ Just a job
Thanks for your input. What about Grand Central ?
What do you think about the combination of such FTOs like Progress Flight Academy, which does the PPL training at Victoria West, then move to their private airfield near PE (still no congestion on the aerodrome, but PE international airport few NM away for ATC contacts and ILS training), having in mind that they focus on students who aim to the CPL and won't just stop after PLL ?

flght school
 

you will study for fun or career? 41 yr old:ok:

The aim is CPL/ME-IR + conversion to JAA fATPL => career. :)

Am I crazy ? :O

You are NEVER too old...... Thats why they invented death!:ok:

:hmm:

You mentioned FTS at FAGC.
Recently did some training there for an ATPL/IR renewal. They have a very nice Twin Commanche which is a dream to fly and the standard of training is excellent. The school is owned by two SAA pilots. May I suggest that you get hold of KB, he's the larger, grinning, devil may care chap on their website photograph, and e mail him directly; I am sure that you will find that he will make a first class plan for you. The school will give you his name and e mail address if you ask them. I am reluctant to post further details in case I alert him to my identity. He travels a bit though, when he is not on standby that is.
Good luck in any event and I second the advice of the man who suggested that you try to train at a field where there is some traffic around to hone your skills for the challenges ahead. Years ago, I trained at Rand and blatting into large airports has never bothered me one bit since then. There's no sense in training for jungle warfare by shooting unarmed escaping prisoners from the safety and comfort of your own verandah with a sundowner, a cigar and a woman to hand!:D

As a post scriptum, I am somewhere to the SSW of Munich until Wednesday when I fly to JHB. If you want to have a chat about FTS in particular, a company with which I have no business connection whatsoever, PM me and I will send you a Fussen 'phone number.
Toodle Pip!
That's Fussen with an umlaut of course, as is the umlaut!

I've sent you a PM, Cavortingcheetah :)

my personal advice on my experiance.
i am from up north in africa.
a great flight school at wonderboom called pretoria flying school.
the weather is good especially in the dry season for flying and even during the rains it is not bad, and one can use the rainy days for study anyways.
the instructors were great, very proffesional and always helpful, even if you wernt their student.
infact from the owner down, everyone was always ready to give you their time and answer anything you asked. they sure helped me in preparing for the big world of comm flying.
i am not sure off accomodation but am lead to believe it is not bad in that area.
airport is great, may be a bit busier now than when i was there but controllers always handled the aircraft very well.
the GFA is very close too.
i hope this helps in your decision.
enjoy it and good luck :ok:
happy landings

Career change at 41? Go for it I say, and the best of luck! Also, go have a look at the FAA website (www.faa.gov) under the training section. They have stunning books on aero-d, physiology, night flying, etc. that you can download for free. If you have hassles, PM me and we can make a plan.:ok:

Try Virginia Flight School at Virginia Airport, North Durban. Great climate next to Indian ocean, Nice field close to Durbs Int, Great instructers, In house DE and no rips-offGood luck mate :ok:l

HELI at Cape Town. They have 22's, 44's, JetBangers and a 109 Grand. Not too sure if the 109 is availible for conversions though. I learnt to fly from Cape Town International. For fixed plank (aeroplane):cool:. You do spend alot of time driving around on the taxiways and burning expensive fuel:sad:. The choppers don't. The instructors are quite experienced aswell. The weather is fairly good. The only problem is wind:suspect:. You will experience some of the strongest wind around the mountains. I know a few good pilots who have flown JetBangers and LongPidgeons in 50-60knots wind.:ouch::} Hope this helps. CT

I sent them an e-mail on May 27. No anser yet. :sad:

Is the weather good all year round ?

PS : Durban : on average 130 rainy days/year, according to SAWS' statistics.... :sad:

Wind around mountains... sounds great for the glider ! :}

I'll second Algoa.

It's a not-for-profit organisation, so all the money is put back into the club and a/c. Word on the street says that one of the C172's is due for a re-furb with some Garmin Glass in the near future.

They have also been around for over 50 years, so certainly are not some fly-by-night training organisation that will take your money and be gone in a few months.

You could always as mkenya said, do everything with them up to CPL/SE/IR, and just do the twin rating elsewhere, or at least ask if they can price match.

They do have some fairly new instructors, but also a wealth of experienced instructors too.

I cannot fault them in any way, and it is great to be part of a club with a wealth of history behind it rather than just being some pilot training factory.

:)