Florida flight schools!

[Sainty43]

Hey all,

Ok this is my first post and i've spent a while searching this forum for a decent flight school in Florida.

All i've got is the odd link here and there and a lot of bad press about Ormand beach!

Basicly i've done 30 hours of my PPL course in the UK and thats taken over a year with the weather being as it is. I want to finish off my liscense as quickly as possible and am interested in completing it in Florida.

Now can anyone recommend any flight schools out there that are good, either from past experience or reccomended from someone??

I appreciate this post has probably been posted before but all I need is a few decent links!!

Many thanks

[the lord]

Hey friend,

One question about your question, I suppose that you would like to complete your course of JAA? or do you want to take it in the FAA license?

I ask you, because not all the schools in Flroida give you the courses of JAA, there are few schools. If you can explecify it.

Thank you very much :ok:

[Sainty43]

I want to complete my course of JAA so I will get my British PPL!

Many thanks

[dfletcher]

Yo Guys

Flying in Florida is an experience not to be missed, and please I don't want to start another massive thread about the pro's and con's of Ormond Beach, having said that I went to OBA after struggling to get good flying weather in the UK and I must say not only did I get my PPL but I damn well enjoyed myself. If you are serious about obtaining the PPL and want to work for it then don't rule out OBA and don't believe all the hype on here at the end of the day if you want it bad enough OBA is as good a FTO as any other I have been to in the US, and I made some good friends along the way. Make up your own mind and enjoy it.... I did.

Bottom line if I had to do it all over again would I choose OBA...Absolutely

If you want an unbiased student account of OBA then PM me, happy to help

[carbonfibre]

Its already been said before If you pick a school in FL go to finish your course and not for the holiday that way you will pass, regardless of the school, however I have to say you could finish the course relatively quickly now If you have 30+ hours.

I would finish here(uk) at those hours and then build some experience in FL / South Africa/ Canada or somwhere else, the cost of a flight etc and time from work would cancel each other out

I have been to 4 flight schools in FL and only 1 bad experience, like most things the majority of schools and instructors are good, just the 1 bad egg you get as inmany walks of life. Before anybody says, no it was not Ormand Beach who I had bad experience with although I did fly in there to get some costs once, looked ok.

I think the main schools for JAA there are Naples, OBA, EFT, Cabair at Kisimmee. There are probably more. (comair too i think)

:ok:

[gcolyer]

Don't listen to the hype about OBA, well not unless you are not prepared to work hard and abide by the rules.

I spent last christmas there doing my PPL. I had a great time and can highly recommend OBA. I like the place so much i am going back for my IMC and 50 hours in August.

You wont find anywhere to beat the price and you definatley wont find anywhere that will make the VISA application any easier. You might find somewhere very close to price, but by the time you factor accomodation exam fee's and other bits you will be at least £500 out of pocket compared to OBA.

I can't pass comment on any other FTO in Florida as i have not been to any.

If you are considering OBA i would trawl through the forum for it and post any questions or concerns there.

[sicky]

I agree with carbonfibre, where you have a fair few hours now, finshing the PPL here would probably be easier, and as flying seems to be cheaper in the USA, hour building over there would make sense.

[B2N2]

If you have your written exams done, you do not need to only go to a JAA school. All your hours count.
You can finish up a FAA license then do a conversion skill test with a JAA examiner and walk away with two licenses.
As far as I know there are two independent JAA examiners in Florida.
This opens up your choices of schools to go to.

[Keygrip]

Hang on - few duff facts here.

The only schools currently offering UK (CAA) JAA PPL's are European Flight Training, Orlando Flight Training and Ormond Beach (in alphabetical order).

Naples and Comair (carbonfiber's message) are not currently doing it.

Highly recommend you have ALL the written exams and the R/T practical test done (and still within date!!!!) - then pick your school and off you go.

NOTE that you will probably need an hour or so to "transfer" to the Florida way of doing things (they are slightly different) - so you are unlikley to finish in the minimum 45 hours - and you may have to repeat some items already done (just to be able to proceed).

B2N2 was close with his/her suggestion BUT the JAA skill test has to be done through an approved school - not just with a freelance examiner.

[Paris Dakar]

Sainty43,

As 'Keygrip' correctly points out there are only 3 organisations in Florida offering you a route to a JAA PPL. I have attended two of them and will give you my views, as I have no experience of the 3rd I cannot/will not make comment.

Ormond Beach Aviation - been there three times in total and have enjoyed every visit tremendously. Great location, good airport, nice accommodation, excellent training, and above all - well organised. Every e-mail or question I have taken up with OBA has been answered within 24hrs without fail.

OFT - visited there a couple of months ago. Very nice C172 for hire at a good price, I got a great instructor for the checkride, and the airport has that 'large feel' about it. There seemed to be a lot of students milling about the place and business seemed brisk. There was however a slight mix-up over my slot booking, and I was made to look like a 'fool' in front of students/instructors alike. Had it not been that it was my very last chance to fly before returning home (OBA was too far away for a one hour rental) I would have turned around and walked straight out of the door.

How much are you currently paying now for your instruction in the UK? The reason I ask, is that it has a direct bearing on my answer. At my home field (Newcastle) 1 hour with an instructor including a few T&Gs will cost you £200. Assuming I could get my licence within the 45 hrs (mmmm?????) that would mean I would have to fork out at least £3K to complete the course. In that scenario, I would be better off going to OBA and finishing my course there. If your hourly charge (inc landing fees) is half of that, then perhaps the US route is not your best option.

Can I also make one final comment regarding OBA and in particular Adrian Thompson. I have only ever met him on a couple occasions (despite all the time I have spent there) and he wouldn't know me if I passed him in the street. I found him to be fair, accommodating and helpful. My advice to you would be to go with an open mind, work hard and enjoy yourself - and forget the minority who appear to have a problem getting on with folk.

PD

[quifflegend]

Florida is a great place to complete your pilots licence. Did mine a few years back at OBA. Not going to start a debate about Ormond, but anyone with some common sense would consider the press it has received in the past and make a judgement on the comments made by ALL the people collectively. By that i mean, it has nice accomodation but thats about it. Im currently doing some flying in Georgia at a place called walker aviation as im staying with a friend who married over here. America really is a great place to fly so you are best going down to your local flight school or one in your area, on the weekend, and speaking to some of the people flying there, as chances are they completed their licence in the states to save money aswell. That way you can gain some proper insight into how the schools operate over here before you go parting with your hard earned cash, as its important to realise the postings on here are anonymous and some schools post comments to influence the decisions of ppl wannabe's with little or no experience of the aviation world.

[Sainty43]

Wow thanks for all your reply's!

Got some thinking to do now but Ormand Beach sounds good!

Sainty:)

[Paris Dakar]

quifflegend,

In order that 'Sainty43' can get a more balanced view of OBA, why don't you expand on...
By that i mean, it has nice accomodation but thats about it.

PD

[dfletcher]

In reference to previous post ;-

Florida is a great place to complete your pilots licence. Did mine a few years back at OBA. Not going to start a debate about Ormond, but anyone with some common sense would consider the press it has received in the past and make a judgement on the comments made by ALL the people collectively. By that i mean, it has nice accomodation but thats about it.

Without making this another debate about the in's and out's off OBA I find this quite an uninformative and lacklustre statement at best Sainty go to the OBA thread sit there for 3 hours reading getting thru all the bitching from a minority of disgruntled students and you will find the majority, including myself found OBA to be a great school, the instructors were first rate, trust me if you wasn't at an able level to attain the PPL they would NOT issue you one.

I could rant and rave all day about why you should go here or there but at the end of the day make up you own mind and don't be swayed by few people that reckon OBA was not to their standards.

Its a big investment you will be making to achieve a qualification, if you want this PPL and are willing to work for it then it shouldn't matter where you go. I read the OBA thread expecting bad things but when I got there nothing could be further from the truth, so make up your own mind.

[Sainty43]

Ok cool,

When to my local airfield today in the UK to ask peoples opinions about florida flight schools.

Few points they raised though,

1.) Florida has great weather so will I not get used to that then come back to the UK and find it difficult? Apparantly they wont let you fly with more than a 7mph cross wind!!

2.) Florida airfields have huge tarmacced runways some 2000 metres long! Coming back to the UK I would be flying out of an 800 metre grass strip! Would that be a problem??

3.) Also someone mentioned radio out there is completely different to the UK. How long will I find it will take to get used to the uk.

Basicly people have said they teach you parrot fashion to get it all done in a short time. They say I will forget everything once I come back!!

Please help answer some of these questions.

Many, many thanks

sainty

[dfletcher]

Sainty,

If you already have 30 hours here then I take it you will have done a few landings (I Hope) witihin your 30 hours on a grass strip.

The student stipulation for crosswind I believe is 12knots Solo (correct me if I am wrong)

And yes the RT is a little different out there but with your previous 30 hours plus study of your RT book, getting the grasp of english RT should not be a problem. I went from US RT to UK I made a couple of small errors, but nothing that made me a danger to myself or others.

Get over there get your PPL and enjoy.

Anything you need to know more PM me

[mcgoo]

well they would say that wouldn't they, they can't compete so try to rubbish the whole US system.

Florida does have good weather but can also have more severe weather than the UK, it has a hurricane season and rains more in the summer than in the winter, i went in November and experienced fog in the mornings, high winds and very hot, sunny days, the school limit for solo flight was 16 kts if I remember correctly but I was regulary landing in 20-25 kt crosswinds with the instructor present.

Your statement about the runways is correct but just because a runway is 2000m does not mean you use all of it, we used about a third to exit onto the first taxiway, however short field and soft field landings are part of the syllabus of the PPL so short runways in the UK should pose no problem.

I don't really understand the meaning of the last question where they say you only learn parrot fashion, the lessons are structured and the syllabus is the same as the UK, the only difference being you will be flying 2-3 times a day instead of maybe once a week in the UK so you spend less time if any having to go over again previous lessons.

I did an hour or two when I returned and was checked out straight away.

And lastly the RT is slightly different but I didn't find any particulary major problems.

[Sainty43]

thanks for the reply's,

Another thing they said is that doing your cross country Navigation is completely different to the Uk as the terrain is nothing like the UK??

I understand that to a certain extent they are making it sound like rubbish to keep me in the UK so they can have my money but I just want to make sure that if I finish my PPL over in the US I wont come back and find it completely different!! One chap who went out there 4 years ago gained his ppl there, came back and wont go up without an instructor because he says the it is completely different!!

I just dont want to be stuck in that boat!!

One more thing (PROMISE!!) If I do my ppl in florida what is the pass rate like?? I dont want to spend all that money and then fail!!

Many, many thanks

Sainty

[king rooney]

To anyone reading this post, please be aware that flight training organisations are known to pose as current/ former students of their schools and post enticing comments.
Ive no idea whether or not that is going on here, however a couple of the posts recommending OBA are written in very similar styles.
Reading this thread should be enuff to put anyone off going to OBA!
http://www.pprune.org/forums/showthread.php?t=135854

[mcgoo]

well I can assure you it's not going on from my side, if in doubt get scroggs to check my IP address, I am in leicester and went to OBA in November 05, so because I have been there I am perfectly entitled to give my opinion and experience of OBA which to me and many others was very positive and like has been said time and time again, the ones who had a bad experience had the wrong attitude.

As for the writing in similar styles, well thats going to be likely seeing as the posts are all talking about the same subject at the same place.

[mcgoo]

Another thing they said is that doing your cross country Navigation is completely different to the Uk as the terrain is nothing like the UK?? At 4000ft the terrain anywhere is usually browns, greens and blues!
One chap who went out there 4 years ago gained his ppl there, came back and wont go up without an instructor because he says the it is completely different!! Theres nothing wrong with doing a few hours with an instructor when you get back, it still works out a lot cheaper!

One more thing (PROMISE!!) If I do my ppl in florida what is the pass rate like?? I dont want to spend all that money and then fail!!
Theres no promises, it's down to you whether you pass or not but surely that will be the same in the US or the UK!


Sainty

I would imagine that with 30 hours in the UK already done you should be ok with flying here after the US, just remember the UK mantra "we fly circuits and knit patterns"

[Paris Dakar]

To anyone reading this post, please be aware that flight training organisations are known to pose as current/ former students of their schools and post enticing comments.

Ive no idea whether or not that is going on here, however a couple of the posts recommending OBA are written in very similar styles.

Reading this thread should be enuff to put anyone off going to OBA!

king rooney,

Aint me either matey! scroggs can check my ISP provider too if he so cares. Tell you what, I'll save him the bother.........'Blueyonder' provided by Telewest (cable)! I live in Newcastle and did my PPL at OBA in 95'.

If you still have doubts why not PM me and I'll tell you what I'm watching on TV now and you can indeed confirm I'm in blighty.

Sainty43 asks for some advice, and as soon as OBA is mentioned, and a few postitive responses appear you can bet your bottom dollar the malcontents come out to play - I wouldn't mind if there was constructive crticism :zzz: :zzz: :zzz: :zzz: .

[carbonfibre]

Hello Again Sainty

I would recommend FL to anyone, maybe I can add some more to the information you have already. A lot of the runways are long, however there are a lot of short ones too.

It has been suggested finishing off with an FAA PPL, that actually sounds like a good idea, you should not have to do more than 5 hours conversion back home if your fresh out of test anyway and they throw the 5 hours night in on there PPL.

The radio work is more practical as opposed to procedural, a lot like there flying technique, there is good and bad in both systems. The point you made about navigation I understand as I know an Aussie who took his CPL skills test same time as me and could not get used to our towns / cities being so close together, in FL you can see typically for 10 - 20 Km with towns well seperated so after a while unless you become strict with yourself and stopwatch you pick a landmark and point the plane. It is still possible for it to go horribly wrong though!!!

I have flown with a few instructors in the US and have to say they are as professional as you will find anywhere with there practical skill level generally higher as they tend to fly more often.

The point I made before is that i would think it would be beneficial to finish where you started, FL would be a great place to finish though just be aware of total costs and the time you need to take from work. Great airports and places to visist too.

The weather can be as severe and far worse than here, the key would be to fly in the morning if possible, not the midday onwards until later, the temp can be unbearable + you get the severe thunderstorms in the afternoon. Im sure like most who have been you reguarly taxi around with the door open using the prop as aircon.

Have fun flying whatever you do

:ok:

[Sainty43]

Im trying to build up a total cost price for me to complete my ppl in Florida!!

I've been quoted £2,256 for completing the course, which includes

* 15 hours dual (C150)
* 13 hours solo (C150)
* Accomodation
* Exams, etc

What else do I need to take in to consideration of cost apart from the flights??

Also does another 28 hrs on top of the 30 i've already got sound right?? That makes 58 hrs in total??

Many thanks

Sainty

[king rooney]

I'll tell you what I'm watching on TV now and you can indeed confirm I'm in blighty.
.


Doesn't mean anything mate, all ud have to do is to look on the internet at the british tv schedules, from your sun kisssed apartment in Florida.

:ok:

[Paris Dakar]

king rooney,

I never thought of that one?
(Edited by PD to remove unwanted and uncalled-for sarcasm)

Sainty43,

Check the OBA thread - there was a discussion about 'costs' relating to taxis, food etc you should get some answers there. The '28 hours' may be an average - you may need less?? You may need more - it's a hard one to call until they can see what you can do.

[mcgoo]

Kingrooney, have you read the OBA thread, you state that reading that thread will put off anyone going to OBA, I don't see how when most of the posts on there are actually positive about OBA.

[EastMids]

Another thing they said is that doing your cross country Navigation is completely different to the Uk as the terrain is nothing like the UK??

It may come as a surprise, but even Florida has roads, rivers, lakes, towns, coastlines, VORs, etc. Not too many hills though, I'll admit. Everything tends to be a bit more spread out in Florida though, which I'd argue might actually make you better at nav than you would be learning in the congested UK where ground features come up more regularly. Controlled airspace is definitely less in Florida though, but navigating through or around it is more about planning than anything.

I understand that to a certain extent they are making it sound like rubbish to keep me in the UK so they can have my money but I just want to make sure that if I finish my PPL over in the US I wont come back and find it completely different!! One chap who went out there 4 years ago gained his ppl there, came back and wont go up without an instructor because he says the it is completely different!!

Indeed, it sounds like they are trying to keep you and your money. Beware the school/club that not only rubbishes USA training, but also turns their noses up when you come back with your PPL and insists on all sorts of over-the-top and/or unnecessarily excessive checkouts before letting you fly alone in the UK. For everyone who comes back and "wont go up without an instuctor" (your words) there are plenty more who come back and little more than one or two hours with an instructor to familiarise themselves with the UK before being let lose on their own (myself included). For you, you should certainly fall into the latter category, having already done 30 hours in the UK.

Go to Florida and enjoy it, but be prepared to work hard in the time you are there - it is not a holiday.

Andy

PS: Hi Paris-Dakar, from another in the "class-of-95" at OBA who is still happily flying in the UK 11 years later!

[Paris Dakar]

EastMids,

Good advice.

I will make that fly-in we promised ourselves a decade ago!

Keep safe, and a hi to BB

[Bug-smasher B]

1.) Florida has great weather so will I not get used to that then come back to the UK and find it difficult? Apparantly they wont let you fly with more than a 7mph cross wind!!

This is a valid point. I was in OBA in March and the solo limits for PPL students are 6kt crosswind component and 12kt or below for T/O or landing (that's not to say that you stay up there - you just land asap when you hear the winds are gusting over 12). For hour builders with licence in hand the limits are up to you and the limits of the aircraft. If you are running short of time you can do a lot of hours night flying. The air is very smooth at nights and the wind drops to near zero. It's a lot cooler as well and the RT is much more relaxed when the towers close in the evenings.

The wind limits can be a bit frustrating when trying to build the 4 hours solo circuit time before going cross country, or when trying to get your qualifier done. The winds at your landing airports may be calm but its gusting 13kts down the runway at OMN so you can't go. On the other hand, I've landed a few times with gusts, where the wind picked up while I was away from the airfield, and it was not a pleasant experience. It gets bumpy enough during the day below 2,000 ft as it is without adding blowing crosswinds. It shouldn't really be that much of a problem at the minute, though you may loose a day or two. Those are the days for studying and getting exams out of the way, or if you have the exams done already then you can use that time for checking out the Kennedy space centre or the Gun range.

2.) Florida airfields have huge tarmacced runways some 2000 metres long! Coming back to the UK I would be flying out of an 800 metre grass strip! Would that be a problem??

Not really. As mention, soft field and short field techniques are taught and practiced at two nearby grass strips Pierson (2j8) and Bob Lee (1j6). The only requirement is that grass strip landings have to be Dual. Anyway you can practice shortfield at OMN, I used to do this regularly when 35 was in use and try put it down on the numbers and exit at the Foxtrot taxiway, a distance of about 700ft of runway.

3.) Also someone mentioned radio out there is completely different to the UK. How long will I find it will take to get used to the uk.

This is also a valid point, but you can also pick up correct RT when you get home. If you do your RT practical with AT then he will take little time in informing you that american RT is rubbish and definatly berates people for improper RT (even correcting ormond ATC on occaision). However RT is like learning a new langauge and you tend to pick the 'dialect' of wherever you learn it.This is quickly corrected when you are back in the UK and flying regularly.

As for the navigation, of course the Florida countryside is going to be different. People may point out that the highest elevation in Florida is about 100 ft but they rarely mention that there are 2000ft radio masts everywhere which are a lot more difficult to spot than a whopping great bit of landscape sticking up in front of you. And although its pretty flat and easy to fly around after a short while, if you get lost you may find that most of Florida looks alot like the rest of Florida. It's absolutly covered in trees, swamp and small lakes, and normal nav features like roads and rivers become harder to spot from a distance or cannot be conclusively identified if you do find them. Even small towns marked on the sectional can be hard to spot in the daytime because all the residental areas are covered in trees. Sometimes you will spot a regular block style street layout before you realise that there is actually houses there as well.

With a bit of haze and a lack of awareness while out of sight of the coast it's fairly easy to loose yourself inland. The plan then is to climb and head east untill you hit the coast and follow that. On your flight planning the school will emphasise the importance of good waypoints and leg times. You tend to pick large lakes and any of the multitude of large airfields scattered around as waypoints.

The biggest shock to most fresh PPLs on arriving back is the difference in weather and the change in landscape. Well you are already familiar with both already so this is not really an issue. If it worries you, just do a bit of dual and maybe invest in a handheld GPS unit as a backup to pilotage navigation.

[quifflegend]

Sainty, all i can say mate is, be wary of posts written on here, it is very hard to gain an insight into what a school is like thousands of miles across the pond. Going to your local school was a good idea as it allows you to talk to people in person who can tell you their honest experiences rather than read through all the posts on here (some of which may be bias) and try to form an opinion. Basically, if you intend to fly in the U.K you really are better training over there, as you will be building your experience up in an area that you may later wish to train for cpl in, which will make it easier when talking on the radio, plotting routes, etc. However, training in the states is great fun, the weather is great, its cheaper and if you put the study in, then there shouldnt really be a problem doing your flying in the U.K. As mentioned before, Short take offs are in the syllabus, so you will be prepared for your local aerodrome etc. The RT is definately different, it is very relaxed in America, but just buy one of the RT tapes or the oxford communication CD ROM from transair or something if you are really concerned and that should help you out. As mentioned by other posters on here, Ormond Beach had some plus points, i just felt that the level of instruction wasnt very good. The only thing i can stress is, make your decision based on the experiences of people who youve actually spoken to in person. I don't think that is bad advice. Think of the number of flight schools throughout the world, Ormond is the only one to have been listed as a sticky at the top of the thread, due the amount of complaints and controversial postings by ppruners, so you have to ask yourself, why was this the case? Before Paris jumps on my back, i'm sure he did have a positive experience there, others may have aswell, but there are MANY who didnt and they didnt have a bad attitude, they were just naive and poorly taught. Anyway sainty, good luck, hope it all goes well

[Gnirren]

Go to jetcareers.com you'll most probably find students there who have or are attending the schools you're interested in. I worked as a CFI/CFII/MEI over in florida for a year and it's great flying, great fun and the weather is beautiful.

Don't worry about the "getting used to the weather" stuff, deal with that once you get back to europe instead. You'll be comfortable in no time with it. Flying in florida can be very hectic and intense, you'll get plenty of approach practices if you go IFR and most of the time controllers are more than happy to give you unusual requests (especially at night) like radar approaches, circle to land, sidesteps, full procedure NDBs and so on. This is stuff that's pretty hard to get in the UK, flight training and GA is just not a priority the way it is in the states.

I say go check out jetcareers, then pick 3 schools and fly over there and visit each one. Ask the instructors and the students what they think, look at the planes and facilities, backseat a couple of flights and make up your mind. I did and I wouldn't have missed it for the world. Good luck to you :ok:

[Paris Dakar]

quifflegend,

Before Paris jumps on my back

Not at all, far from it - you have given Sainty43 advice and that was what he(she?) was asking for.

What I do have a problem with (and this certainly does not apply to your post) is when someone comes onto PPRuNe and then relays a story about an organisation they have heard about from thier dad's friend's auntie, who had been speaking to a bloke she knows in the local supermarket.

I went to OBA and it worked for me - intensive courses in a foreign country may be some people's idea of a nightmare?

Whatever way Sainty43 elects to go - best wishes, and above all else, enjoy yourself.

[Sainty43]

Ok first of all can I say thanks to everyone's very helpful replys on here!!

After a lotof consideration I have decided to remain here in the UK to finish off my ppl course, as I already have 30 hours experience here and to finish off in Florida will probably cost the same considering flights and all other fee's!!

I will definetly be going out to Florida once I have my ppl to do some hour building!

Once again thank you for everyone who has taken time out to reply to my posts, you have made me feel very welcome on here and I shall no doubt have plenty more questions arising in the near future for all you clever people!!

Many thanks

Sainty :)

[mcgoo]

good luck sainty, let us know how you get on!

[Paris Dakar]

Sainty43,

The important thing to remember is - do what you want to do!

The US is a great place in which to fly and explore, and I can assure you that should you get there in the future, you won't be disappointed.

If you ever fancy a flight up to Newcastle, drop me a pm, and we'll grab a cuppa!

Enjoy!

PD

[quifflegend]

Good luck sainty. You probably are best doing that to be honest. But yeah definately check out florida for Hour building, you'll have a fantastic time and get to see some great places, meeting lots of likeminded people along the way.

[What's a Girdler]

And if anyone is going to Florida, Keystone heights had such cheap fuel the school i hired from had to pay me the difference of their fuel rate and Keystone's, it was $2.34 a gallon, bargain!! BTW I hired from Sunstate Aviation, wow what a great organisation, no BS!!! Thoroughly recommend them, but they are FAA only, great for hours building only if you have a JAR licence!! And no I don't work for them, nor do I carry any favours, I live in Hampshire thanks!

[DRS PILOT]

Whilst on the subject of flying in florida, does anyone know where I could find details of the FAA PPL based on a JAA PPL minima? (visibility, distance from clouds) or is it the same as the VFR minima?

Thanks

[Happy Wanderer]

Keygrip, Paris Dakar,

Just to point out that you CAN do a JAA PPL at Naples Air Centre in Florida. I'm assuming we're talking about the right 'Naples'? NAC are advertising JAA flight training in the back of this month's (May) edition of Pilot.

Cheers,

HW

PS I'm not connected with NAC - just researching a suitable school in Florida.

[Paris Dakar]

Happy Wanderer,

They advertise on here too.

At present the school is not able to offer JAR training - there is a thread running on 'Professional Pilot Training' that should help to explain the situation.

[Keygrip]

HW - just to point out - you CANNOT.

[Happy Wanderer]

OK - haven't trawled through the thread, but it seems odd that Naples can run a half page spread in what is possibly the best read GA monthly . . . saying they run JAA/JAR courses.

Anyone who isn't au fait with PPRuNe might find it confusing to say the least.

HW

[Confabulous]

Keygrip is correct - Naples is not authorised to conduct JAR training until some problems have been ironed out.

Read the thread as suggested and you'll find out why in short order.

Personally I'm beginning to warm to OBA now :ooh: :ok:

[dfletcher]

Chaps

As I have said before I did my PPL at OBA if you are serious about getting your PPL OBA is as good as any other USA based JAA FTO.

Without getting into the debate check out the OBA thread most of the posts including my own represent OBA as an excellent training orginisation. That was helpful at every stage from Visa aquisition to training thru to me getting that little blue piece of paper.

Bottom line - I did it, enjoyed it, Try It