PPL in Scotland

[Kempus]

Hi guys!

This question may have been asked before but i need some help on where to do a PPL. Basically i'm moving back home for 6 months, Central Scotland. With the job i'm in i work normally 3 days a week. Will this give me enough time to gain a PPL in 6 months? I like to think myself of myself as being intellegent with a diploma in aircraft engineering so hopefully shouldn't find ground school too hard.

I am hoping to make a career out of flying so looking for a good quality school which can balance cost with quality and provide a good record of training if you know what i mean? Like eh, detailed records of my performance as i learn!

Anyway, i am aware that it is late and if my girlfriend catches me up at this time of night i wont be able to sit in an aircraft for a bit after she kicks my a**e!

I look forward to your replies!

Cheers,

kempus :zzz:

[flying snapper]

Prestwick Flight Centre.

They can do your PPL, ground and rdio exams etc, and now have an organisation doing CPL and ATPL things.

Drop in anytime - Suzanne will give you all the details and can be contacted on 01292 476523.

See you there!:O

[Kempus]

hi!

Thanks for the reply! Was thinking about Prestwick but i stay about 2 and a half hours drive away. Only stay 30 mins from EDI to give you a clue of the area i live!

Do you think its poss in the time given of 6 months?

kempus

[grow45]

More info here http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=113255

g45

[Sally Cinnamon]

Euan is a decent instructor at Tayside Aviation Fife, if it's not too far for you to travel.

It's quite a nice area to learn to fly in, and the Tipsy Nipper restaurant is pretty good too.

[Funkie]

Sally,

Euan is just a wee tad better than "decent" - Wouldn't you agree??

Kempus,

Tayside Aviation at Fife Airport, Glenrothes is within easy reach of Central Scotland. They do introductory discounts, £499.00 for five hours, plus log book, check list - I think. Give them a call on 01592 753 792 and explain to them your intensions.

There is also Cumbernauld Flying school, in Cumbernauld!! The only instructor I knew there has moved onto pastures new and I have no first hand experience of them. But nothing ventured, nothing gained.

Other schools are Perth Flying School, they are at Scone in Perth and also part of Tayside Aviation. There is also Edinburgh Flying Club at Edinburgh Airport . With regard to Edinburgh, I understand that they only train Monday to Friday, 9-5 which may suit you. It will cost a bit more though, but you would be flying out of an international airport!

The only advice I would give would be to obtain a Class 1 medical before making a huge financial commitment. It will cost about £400.00 and can only be done at Aviation House in Gatwick, ah the good old CAA.....

Go for a trail flight, it will be better explained to you.

Funkie:ok:

[grow45]

Funkie wrote:-

--------------------------------
Other schools are Perth Flying School, they are at Scone in Perth and also part of Tayside Aviation. There is also Edinburgh Flying Club at Edinburgh Airport . With regard to Edinburgh, I understand that they only train Monday to Friday, 9-5 which may suit you. It will cost a bit more though, but you would be flying out of an international airport!

-----------------------------------------

EFC at Edinburgh is actually a seven day a week 9-5-30 plus Wednesday evenings club. It is also a membe owned not for profit club rather than a commercial shool but with professional standards and instructors.

g45

[Kempus]

Hey there!

Was thinking about Cumbernauld, only ten mins drive away! The new instructor is a guy from stapleford aparently. Just dont know what its like for training tho!

Tayside is prob a bit closer than Prestwick, agian one i've thought of due to it's reputation but when you say Tayside, do you mean Fife, Perth or Dundee? Dundee is the same distance as Prestwick!

Kempus

[Funkie]

grow45,

I stand corrected. I was passing on information that I was told some time ago. I would however imagine that the cost would be higher given that EFC operate aircraft out of EDI, circuits must be done further afield at Fife, Perth or Cumbernauld thus adding to flight time and taxi/departure times may well be adversely affected by “the big boys”. Is this the case and out of curiosity, what is the hourly instruction rate for a C152 or similar? I’m not having a dig, but someone new to this may not think about these aspects.

Not quite sure what is meant by: It is also a membe owned not for profit club rather than a commercial shool but with professional standards and instructors.

Kempus,

Tayside Aviation own the Flying Clubs/Schools at Dundee, Perth and Fife. Although changes are afoot at Fife. Fife or Perth would be your best bet from a travelling aspect. Tayflite are also at Perth but have no link to Tayside.

If Cumbernauld is so close, you really should consider it. You may well spend a fair whack in travelling otherwise.

My only advice would be to go and have a chat with the instructors at the schools and get feel for the places, also speak with current students.

I would think that 6 months would be tight, but if you work seriously hard at it, anything is possible - coming from the guy who has taken 3 years to get 42hrs in the log book!!::eek:

Hope it helps.

Just wait until you start to look at commercial training……….. aaarrrrggghhhh

:ok:

[grow45]

Funkie

Current cost at Edinburgh for a PA38 (dual) is £95 per hour. Landings at Edinburgh are £13 and, as you say circuit training is done at Fife or Cumbernauld. The cost of transits does need to be born in mind but the time can be used beneficially to cover other aspects of the syllabus.

Delays can be a problem at Edinburgh occasionally but ATC are usually very good at slotting aircraft in between the commercial traffic.

All I meant by my comment about EFC being a members club was to let Kempus know that it is run by the members for the members rather than as a profit (!) making business for any shareholders as this may be a factor in his choice of where to learn.

g45

[Kempus]

hey folks!

Some good info comming in! Thanks very much! The more i think about it Cumbernauld seems to be be more appealing. Can Cycle down the canal pathway to get to it! No one seems to have any experience on their training tho!

kempus

[tired-flyboy]

What about Glasgow Flying Club?

nice little private members club with lots of experience both private and insrtuctor (one of the instructors is a BA captain)

Can do everything for you +you get to mix it with the big boys in the circuit.

There is a lot of private flying from here and they are very tolerant to less experienced as they have a RAF UAS Sqn here also!! (:mad: RAF cadets!)

Anyways heres the link to check out Glasgow Flying Club (http://www.glasgowflyingclub.com)

Enjoy what ever you do!

[nosewheelfirst]

tired-flyboy,
remeber there are RAF cadets browsing these forums who may or may not also be members of GFC, nuff said :)

nosey

[tired-flyboy]

Nosey,

Being constantly annoyed by RAF Cadets was a past time of mine when i controlled the silly b:mad: rs!!

As you said - Nuff said!

:ok:

[Sassenach]

If you want to learn to fly WELL and enjoy the friendly environment of a proper members' club, avoid Glasgow Flying Club, Prestwick Flight Centre and Cumbernauld.

I suggest you contact Prestwick Flying Club (www.prestwickflyingclub.co.uk). They are a not-for-profit club and offer some of the lowest flying rates in the UK. They have interesting aircraft and perhaps the most experienced instructors in Scotland. I know it's quite a drive from where you stay, but the benefits will far outweigh the distance (some of the members come from much further afield).

[Blackshift]

Euan was at the very least "a wee tad more" than a "decent" instructor at Fife.

However it is unfortunate that the esteem in he held amongst his students and colleagues does not seem to have counted for much in the grand scheme of things. :hmm:

Still, he's got other fish to fry...

[Fancy Navigator]

Hi,
I know Euan quite well and I would like to get in touch with him... Is Euan registered on PPRUNE? What's his username? Please PM or email me...
Blackshift, you seem to know Euan, who are you? please PM or email me...
Thank you very much in advance.
Regards,
FN:ok:
PS: ...and yes, Euan was more than a descent instructor

[murphy1901]

PS: ...and yes, Euan was more than a descent instructor

Yup, much more to flying than descent! :D :p

(Sorry, couldn't resist!)

[clear prop!!!]

Tayflite in Perth (nothing to do with Tayside), aregeared up for IR and CPL. However I believe they will now do PPLs.. if asked. Up-side is that this will be in a commercial training environment. Understand it may be a bit cheaper than their competitors too!

[Blackshift]

Fancy Navigator

Not telling :p

[Fancy Navigator]

Come on, Blackshift, you can tell me...;) Just send me a PM or an email...
FNav:)

[wbryce]

Im currently training at Glasgow Flying Club....

Its a great eviroment for flying training, on numerous occasions ive held for many great aircraft, a330, 757, 767's, countless 737s etc....and on some occasions, they've held for me! :D

The instructers are very experianced, I believe the BA captain/instructer no longer does instruction, but i heard something regarding him maybe coming back (?)

The instructers ive met are ones at the weekend, one has been flying the PA38 since the 80's and has a scary amount of hours on the type, hes definately an instructer whos out to teach! same with the other female instructer/examiner....i have a weekday instructer too who normally lets me know his working roster as he flys for loganair, and i try and get some lessons in during the week.

All members ive spoke to so far have been great and helpful.

I think its all down to your needs, i first started off going to Fife, but i swung towards Glasgow due to the enviroment id be learning in.

[Port Strobe]

If you want to learn to fly WELL and enjoy the friendly environment of a proper members' club, avoid Glasgow Flying Club, Prestwick Flight Centre and Cumbernauld.

Sassenach, I'm not sure that's a particularly wise statement. Yes, Prestwick Flying Club do have a lot of experienced instructors, some very experienced individuals come to mind but that doesn't mean you don't get good instruction at the other clubs mentioned. I have a lot of respect for the ability of the instructors at the flying club and I know a few of the members and one of the instructors who will testify to the point you make about the experience of the instructors there. I learned at the Flight Centre and enjoyed every minute of it, and I feel I was taught very well. I'm not saying for a minute that I'm a great pilot, I still have relatively few hours but I'm on the learning curve just as everybody else who's learned to fly is and I have a long, long way to go yet but I don't feel you're doing the guys/girls at the other clubs justice by rubbishing their ability to teach, it simply isn't true. I hope nobody was put off by that comment, I'd like to think that each club has its own plus and minus points and what suits one individual might not suit another, hence thats why we have a choice.

[Blackshift]

Sally C,

Euan, and a number of his ex-Tayside colleagues, are now available at Leading Edge Flight Training, which has recently started operating at Cumbernauld.

Congratulations to wbryce, first student to solo there.:ok:

[email protected]

[wbryce]

Just noticed this one!

Thanks Blackshift!

I can only say im very impressed with Leading Edge! The instructors are top notch! When your not flying, your having a good laugh, and it creates a top enviroment for training!

Ive now done 3 and a half hours solo with around 5 hours into my navigation, when i was doing my training at Glasgow i was only averaging 2 lessons a month when they had there shortage of instructors. Now im averaging around 2-3 lessons a week! This was the continuity i was hoping for when i first started my training!

Highly recommened to anyone willing to start there training.

[Say again s l o w l y]

Blackie and the boys of LE-FT, nice one, a school with a decent attitude at long last.

Having worked with all of them in the past, I can't recommmend them enough to any prospective students in central Scotland. Flying is supposed to be fun and you'll certainly have good laugh along the way with this bunch!

(p.s I'm not affiliated with them in any way apart from knowing them personally.)

[smartcol]

How much is it per hour at Leading Edge ???

I notice that Flight Academy Scotland are charging £115 per hour
(flightacademyscotland.com) inclusive of all landings for their PPL course and they also have a resident ground examiner.

This is a huge saving on any other school at the airport as far as I am aware.

[wbryce]

To be honest, im unsure, ive got an account with them, so I just pay up on that, If i was to keep tabs on my flying bills, i believe id have a more stressful life! :D

I hope Flight Academy does pick up, as it can only be better for the GA in Scotland, and lets hope they take the correct attitude towards us students, I also hope they dont do wide circuits, these Katanas have a tendancy to hug the hills while in the circuit :D

The unlimited landing scheme, is there such a thing as free landings at Cumbernauld? If its only for PPL students, then someone has to pay for there landings too dont they? I can see alot of low go around approaches in the circuit training stage! :D

[smartcol]

as far as I know the student pays a flat rate and the school covers everything else including all landings, lets hope this is the case, we can find out when it opens, but it says unlimited landings on the website.

I think the schools can work together anyway, there is no point in mud slinging, does know-one any favours

[wbryce]

Im not mud slinging for anyone....

Leading Edge will be my 3rd FTO that ive tried, Im one whos all for good quality training at a good price, but one thing ive learned, nothings free, or unlimited without a cost.....just giving my £0.02.

happy flying