Massey University School Of Aviation

[The_Swordfish]

Hi,

Im seriously thinking in a Commercial Aviation Career, I live in Christchurch, New Zealand and im having a look around and Massey School of Aviation looks pretty good. Is it a good school to learn to fly commercial?

thanks

[Oktas8]

Try a search under "Massey" on this forum, or GA Reporting Points. There have been a few in the last eight months, with widely varying points of view.
O8

[Horse Nuts]

Stick with the Christchurch Schools. Canterbury AeroClub or the school they run The Aviation Academy. (Something like that)

You do not need Massey unless you want to come out as a prize prick.

As in the movie MIB2. Massey trains you to be the "Best of the best of the best, Sir.....with honours" With no real understanding of how aviation works in this country.

Stick with Canterbury and they should see you right. I've heard good things from them.

[Cypher]

Go find a commercial operator willing to train you like Wakaitipu Aeroclub, spend your money with them, have a chance of getting work afterwards...

Do any degrees on the side, part time, and preferably non aviation subjects..

[Lee Erskine]

If you want somewhere to train that is diverse and is in an are where there is regular movement in jobs. Try Southern Wings in Invercargill. They will teach you about the industry in new zealand. They are a realy good bunch of people as well, with good connections around the industry.

www.southernwings.co.nz

[nzer]

Find an Aero Club with a good CFI, and meet a few motivated aviators, from the local top dressing pilot to the local "lad made good" who is now in Eagle etc but who calls in and has a beer on Sunday. Wash a few planes, and sweep the hangar floor.
Go for it.

[Luke SkyToddler]

Mate, if you want to find out what Massey's really like ... it's as easy as popping into your nearest Burger King and asking some of their former graduates what they think of the place now:ok: :ok: :ok:

[stuckwithmassey]

Do not learn to fly with massey.

By all means if u want a degree do it extramurally. The papers on offer are fairly good and a good knowledge base exists.

The lectures are very knowledgeable mainly from RNZAF and previous flying backrounds.

Unfortunately as far as the flying goes, they are terrible.

Talk to any aerodrome operator with which there aircraft frequent.

I strongle advise against them and agree they are out of touch with the reality of the aviation scene.

I dont claim to know it all but i want to pass on my experiences from massey.

U aint gonna finish thier course and walk into the airlines like they subliminaly claim.

Go somewhere with a GA orientated aerodrome ie Wakatipu, Queenstown styles

[LocoDriver]

I must concur with Horsenuts and Cypher.

Stay in the Sth Island, and learn at an Aeroclub, such as Canterbury or Wakatipu.

My experience with pilots from the 'college of knowledge' is they have excellent theory qualifications, perform lotsa checks, but are seriously lacking in handling skills, in particular short field and crosswind situations, wander all around the circuit at night and dont look out the window much!

[splatgothebugs]

Or for more opions just check out the MASSEY TRAINING thread in D&G questions.

splat :ok:

My two cents. Do your degree after your training...............

[Sqwark2000]

Sword,

Heard rumours late last year/early this year that Massey were doing a serious review about it's flight training degree, with a view to cancelling the program if it was going downhill to fast.

Check it out before you go to far with Massey, but on the whole I agree with everyone else that MAssey is a dodge outfit and you can do better elsewhere.

I don't have first hand experience with CHCH's IAA but have met some good blokes who did their training there and have moved quickly onto better things.

I'm a big supporter of training at a a dual training/commercial ops location to give you better opportunities post training

Good luck

S2K

[chicken6]

I concur

And I learnt at Massey (PM).

IMHO, going to University was great fun and I would and hopefully will do it again, but if all you want to do is learn to fly, then get your PPL part time locally while asking around. Then when you do pay for the CPL, you will pay less in a big hit quickly at wherever you think is best, rather than the first best-looking option.

And Massey has an entire department devoted to making it look very, very good, which doesn't help it's reputation or the quality of it's students. Remember it's so big the people in control see aviation as the very smallest of schools, even smaller then the Vet school. They have to deal with numbers, not people because there's 10,000 there. Compared with where I last worked, I'd go GA if I had my choice of flying again, although I really liked the whole University scene. Heaps of cool people and student discounts and ultra-cheap gym ($20 per year!), really nice campus in PM when the rain's not blowing your face in, easy to get around and fly to Surfers Paradise cheaper than home to Christchurch.

[ZK-NSN]

No Massey fans here, i strongly have to agree. Find an outfit like wakatipu that actually have something to offer after you've forked out the cash. Massey looks good on paper but some of the champions of humanity that i've seen come out of massey have to be seen to be beleived.
Wakatipu are very good and generally will offer you partime flying at the end of it all and its the best way to get in with outfits like air fiordland etc. Stay away from the big schools, go somewhere with a commercial arm. (personal opinion)

Beware those who blowith smoke up thyn ass.

[splatgothebugs]

I can also speak from some experience, I happened to be training at Flightline like many others when the buy out occured.

Promises where made and broken so nearly everybody moved on.

I would have to say that the move to another training org was the best I ever made for my career.

The Massey students are so stuck in their own little world that they don't realise that the training standards are a little low and slightly incestuous. Now don't get me wrong a know a few Massey ex pats :) and they are bloody good people whos flying skills are good, but they realised what Massey really is and got out and finished training elsewhere.

My comment is like everybody else, BE CAUTIOUS and have a very good look at all the training organisations. This is your career and alot of money you are going to part with, do your home work and be very sure.

good luck

splat

:ok: :ok:

[Aluminium_rain]

Hello Swordfish

Unfortunately, Massey tends to consider the GA industry as beneath consideration, and therefore does not train it's pilots to operate within the GA umbrella.

The problem with this concept is; in New Zealand and Australia, pilots have to hour build in GA before being considered for airline positions.

The important skills needed to enter the GA industry, (Short feild, x wind, mountain, strip and rough weather VFR to name a few), are not being taught to an acceptable standard by Massey. (Again see comments by operators around the county).

If you want to get it right first time, go to a full time school that trains for the GA industry, not the airlines, and one that operates in a multitude of differing environments. Any school in the lower half of the south island would be best, extreme weather, mountains, coastal, strips etc.

Try either Mainland or Southern Wings, as in my experience, the are on the right track.

Regards

Aluminium Rain

[self]

I went to Massey 10 years ago, did the BAv and all of my flying training up to CPL/ IR.
I now fly for an Australian regional airline.

I found it overall to be a good course with a well integrated program. As always, the hard work begins when you leave school, and I spent many years working my way through GA to get this far, and will continue to progress thanks to my determination. I think the reason that there aren't many Massey graduates working in the industry is that they didn't put in the hard yards after they left.
Contrary to some of the beliefs in this forum, I was well aware before I graduated that I would be starting at the bottom of the industry, being told this by my lecturers and instructors during the course.

I did find during my years at Massey that the Kiwi aviation industry was very resistant to the idea of a degree program. I moved to New Zealand from Australia when I was 17 to do the Massey course, choosing it over a number of degree courses in Australia, due to the relevance of the degree subjects and their emphasis on CRM training. The CRM subjects in particular were ahead of their time, and pilots I work with now are learning the concepts that I studied 10 years ago for the first time.

I also found that while the Kiwis would bad mouth Massey at every opportunity, " rich kids school, doesn't teach you anything blah blah " the Australian industry, and the employers most importantly were positive about it. So maybe all you Massey graduates should come over here!

I must qualify that I went to Massey 10 years ago, and things could be different now, I haven't followed the progress of the school. But I do think that potential students should bear in mind that there is a whole world of flying jobs out there, where your degree would be appreciated, if you choose to study there.

[masseygrad]

Swordfish,

Invest some time and money in getting around and communicating with various schools, instructors, students... and aviation employers if possible, and form your own opinion in terms of what's right for you.

Massey has pros and cons. There are plenty of wannabees who have wasted their money there, but also others who have been advantaged by having Massey aviation quals and even some who have fast-tracked their career as a result.

Good luck.