Flight Safety Academy? (Merged Feb '09) [Archive]

Doudou

14th Aug 2002, 20:43

Hi everybody!
Dear Haaron, I shouldn't call 25000$ a "couple of dollars" as you say. In this academy, I guess they ask for a big deposit, which I DO NOT recommend anybody to do, even somebody tells you all good about the school, everybody hashis own experience, don't get stuck somewhere because of the money. I did my private in a school around L.A(I heard that we have to avoid naming the schools), where they rent plane, and the instructors are freelance, no deposit, you don't like the guy, you take another one..., the instructor was awesome. OK, it took me more than 50 hours to go to the check ride, the chief instructor desn't joke with the stage checks (it's harder to pass him than the check ried itself),I flew in class B airspace couple of times, landed in Class C airport, stalls and steep turns under the hood, visited a FSS, he showed me ILS approach... and many others, landed in I paid only about 5000$, and I know that to get the comm-Multi-IFR, minimum cost part 141 was about 16000$ (so finally should be about 20000$), add,mmm, let's be totally crazy, let's say 4000$ for the CFI, that's 24000$...we are far away from the 60000$ of Vero Beach, and OK may be you have FSI on your record, but I was just thinking: 60000$-24000$ = 38000$ = >200 hours of Multi, so I think if one day I decide to pay 60000$ to get my commercial, I would choose a cheaper one and pay time block to build up time in multi....

haaron

14th Aug 2002, 21:22

Well, the inflation rate must be soaring cause when I left FSI in Dec 2000 I had paid 30,000. I didn't do any CFI courses though. If I had have done my CFI's and been hired by FSI they would have reimbursed much of the CFI cost. There was no big deposit, however if you had no money in your account of course you couldn't fly.
Just be sure to compare apples with apples. Almost all my time at FSI was multi; the entire instrument course is done in the Seminole. Much more realistic and challenging than a C172! At the 'cheaper' schools you graduate with the minimum hours required for the multi rating (something like 10!) and the rest is single engine time...
Oh, and if you want to talk figures, I left school in December, got a job in January 2001 and have been working ever since. Someone I know went to a less expensive school before I went to FSI, came back long after me and didn't get a job till early 2002! Basically, they lost a whole years salary so who really paid more?!
Oh and by the way Doudou $60,000-$24,000=$36,000 not $38,000...and a chief pilot for a regional once told me 'bought time' doesn't get you many points! And, for that $20,000 how much spin training/unusual attitude work would you get (something important that is missing from the curriculum of many places). What was the CRM course like?
Choice of school is a very personal thing. If I had my time over I would go back to FSI. That doesn't mean there aren't other better, cheaper places, like I said before, just my opinion!
It is just like further education. Do you want to go to a community college or an Ivy League school? Gather all the information, think it over, then pick whatever floats your boat!!!

haaron

14th Aug 2002, 21:38

GoneWest - unless you count the months of research into just about every school in the US that I put in before I made my choice, no I don't have experience of other schools - I got it right the first time! However, there were many people at FSI who had started their training elsewhere and had come to finish up! Wonder why...
See ya later guys!

Facts Not Fiction Pls

15th Aug 2002, 00:03

If you like being a number, then these schools are where to go.

If you like personal attention, avoid like the plague.

Yes, these schools are good at the overall image, especially like Gone West said for after market training ie types, however the time to complete if often far longer, the scheduling very inflexible, and the groundschool goes only as fast as the slowest person.

In my class I had a person for CFI that had not flown in 25 years; I slept most of the course having just passed my Commercial, as we reviewed the basic basics! Not time either my colleagues or myself would have chosen! We would have preferred to spend the extra time on more challenging items! Passed first time mind, but could have got the same time and ground elsewhere for a great deal less spent on accommodation and ground. The problem is the rigidity of the course. The big schools are not flexible!

Doudou

15th Aug 2002, 03:56

Haaron,
Sorry for my maths.
Second, i didn't say that bought time was great, actually I wanted to say that 60 000$ is to expensive anyway, especially right now.
About the manoeuvre, nothing tells you not to take lessons with an aerobatic manoeuvers instructor instead of doing just P.I.C flying in a C-152, won't coast much more.
And about job, you're right, it's great to be hired direct after school, but what I see about some pilots, they don't wanna take any jobs, go make a quick formation and tow banners, or throw some sky divers, I'm not saying your totally wrong, if you have 36000$ too much in your account, go for it, but we are not a lot in this case, and what I really don't think is that you're getting out better pilot from FSI than some other school, so my conclusion is your more or less paying 36000$ to get hired, wich point of view can be understandable, but anyway, I don't have this money, and the most important is you're happy with your choice;)

Kenny

15th Aug 2002, 12:35

OK, I know I shouldn't take the bait but there are just a few un-informed remarks that have been made here. And I think I'm in a good position to answer a few of the questions.

I did my CAA PPL at Wycombe 6 years ago, and swore that it was just going to be a hobby. But like everyone else the bug bit and didn't let go. I decided to go the FAA way for reasons that I won't go into here, but suffice to say I'm happy that I did. So, I made a bunch of enquiries with different schools throughout the US and decided to get my FAA training at a flightschool near Miami. I looked at FSI but like everyone else had a heart attack when I saw the prices. At the time I couldn't justify the extra expense. I paid for all my training after spending 2 years saving for it.

The school I did my training at was by no means the best but, there were a few Brits and I had a patient and hard working instructor that made the difference. I was most definitely the student from hell, no patience and got angry with myself when I screwed up. Anyway I got my CPL/IR, Multi and all my instructor ratings. I started working there the week after my CFII ride and stayed for 6 months. I can't say I was flying a hell of a lot and certainly wasn't getting paid well, so I decided to try something else.

At the time FSI were losing a lot of instructors to ASA and COEX, which meant they dropped their mins to 700TT and 400 as a CFI. I just had the times so decided to give them a shot and somehow got the job. I've been here for the last 2.5 years, although I'm about to move on and hope I can give an unbiased view about them.

First off, there's no denying the expense. It is EXTREMELY expensive but there are a few things worth noting. The Flightsafety name does count in the US and to a certain extent overseas. I do the 141 checkrides, so I get to speak to students at all levels of their training and always ask why they chose FSI. More often than not, they say they spoke to an airline pilot, who recommended it. Maybe they recommend FSI Vero Beach because of the reputation of the Sim Centers around the world. Who knows? But remember for the price, you're going to do your instrument and CPL training in a 2002 PA-44.

The maintenance is first class. Not only are all the aircraft serviced every 60 hours but have the equivalent of an annual every 180 hours. Unless you've flown at a small school or even an FBO, you might not know just how unsafe some of those training planes are out there. I know it's not unsafe everywhere else, but I've got my own horror stories and I've heard plenty others. If you ask to be shown around the maintenace hangar you'll find a clean, bright hangar where you can stop any of the mecahnics and ask questions. That in itself was something that impressed me when I strated working here. At the school I'd been at before, the instructors had to justify every squawk and you didn't go near the hangar, unless you wanted to get shouted at.

We may not all be the best intructors in the world, but there are some outstandng one's and if you don't like your instructor there are plenty to chose from. The support for the instructors in terms of teaching materials and classrooms is good and far better than most.

I'm not actually the biggest fan of FSI as an employee, but I think you're going to be hard pressed to find another school of the same size, where as a student, you can get the same all in one deal. Yes, you may get better training at another school, with another instructor. But that may be luck, at least here you can pick and choose. You will certainly get a LOT of multi time as an instructor here. I got 700 hours of twin time in 9 months.

I'm sure there will be those that will pick this to bits, but these are my observations given that I didn't do my training at FSI and have worked at other flight schools. It certainly isn't for everyone, given the red tape and regimented way everything is done. So have a look at all the equivalent schools, ATA, Comair and Pan-Am. Ask lots of questions and only then decide what's best for you.

ggdb

19th Aug 2002, 09:12

do they train for jaa cpl ir ?

Tight Slot

20th Aug 2002, 14:30

Apparently I went to FSI at Vero (Zero) Beach in 1997 but spent the next few months in a drunken haze stumbling out of good old Bombay Louis and the River Side...

Argh I can smell it now.

PS - dont stay in room 110 unless you have an unhealthy liking for fire ants.

SAS-A321

18th Sep 2002, 09:34

I have been looking at Flight Safety International as a possible school for my education. But it's a very high price compared to other schools, and it's know that you pay for the name.
It's worth it?
Will it be easier to get a job in US/Canada if they can see that you took your license at FSI?

mark_bateman

3rd Feb 2004, 06:52

Hi,

I'm trying to decide which school to go to for professional flight training. I have a shortlist and would like comments from people who have checked them out and or attended. specifically,

Flight Safety
ITFA
Delta connection
Naples

Ideally I would like to come away with both FAA and JAA only IFTA offers this combined approach as far as I know.

Birky

6th Apr 2005, 15:25

Hi all,

I am based in the UK and am currently looking at all the possible options for a JAA ATPL.

It seems that one of the cheapest ways to do it (in terms of the number of hours TT achievable) is to get an FAA-ATPL plus an FAA-CFI/CFII at somewhere like Flight Safety International and then build your hours as an instructor after graduating. (FSI claim up to a 1000 can be done before your J1 visa expires) Finally, you go home and convert to it to a JAA licence.

My questions:

1. Has any Brit or EU citizen managed to do this?

2. If so, what pitfalls are there?

3. Is there still a market for instructors in Florida post 9/11?

4. How much can you realistically earn during your time as an instructor?

4. If not, are there other US schools approved to offer the same courses but who have more would-be students to cater to?

Any and all replies most welcome!

Happy flying...

Birky ([email protected])

hiflyer_777

22nd Apr 2005, 11:11

Hi to you all this is my first post in this forum.I know this question has been dealt with before and ive gone through all the postings to the best of my knowledge. Ive seen varied opinions more in support than against.well the question is about Flight Safety.I know they charge a bomb for their training so is it really worth the extra cash.I read one posting where it mentioned paying 30 % extra for brand name. (At the end of the day if the good training and brand name are going to land you a job im fine with it "i guess".) So my question , do flight safety grads enjoy advantages in recruitment over other flight school grads cause of the brand name.How do they treat their students (anybody from Vero Beach) .Im not here to start a debate and would love to here from current Flight Safety pilots as well as anyone who has trained there about their experiences, feel free to PM or mail me .I respect others opinions and believe everyone has their own experiences.Sincerely if i had the money id go to Flight Safety right away.Im at a cross road and would like your honest opinions.Thanks ppl

GrkPilot

22nd Apr 2005, 18:37

I graduated from Flight Safety in May 2004.
Your not paying 30 percent more for the name, whoever told you that is an idiot. You are paying for the facilities, maintanence, aircraft etc etc.
Very good school that will prepare you for the Airlines..
They are very strict on procedures especially IFR. Take the tour, you will leave with your mouth open.
Too bad Vero Beach sucks though. But heck, more studying.

Farrell

22nd Apr 2005, 20:44

i went to visit them a few times when i was in florida. they have a good pilot shop there!

spoke to the marketing department and they seemed to be highly organised. i met a few students who were buying bits and pieces at the pilot shop and they were all very impressed with the school.

the facilities are really first class and i agree with my learned friend that you are paying the extra for that! the aircraft were immaculate, the apartments were lovely, the briefing rooms and simulation rooms were clean and well equiped. to be honest, the place is a student pilot's wet dream!

the school is a bit of a distance from the vero beach strip, but there's a great fish and chip restaurant down the road (thank you Paul Thompson for that....and for the directions back to Indrio Road!)

A nice place - would love to go there. Am in talks with my bank at the moment!

hiflyer_777

19th Aug 2005, 03:23

hi all this post is particularly for ex Flight safety cadets.Do they provide Jeppesen kits for their ground studies or FSA produced books.Has anyone on a J1 visa ie the exchange visitor program become an instructor.What are the possibilities of becoming an instructor.Thanks

Barcadi

10th Oct 2005, 21:57

hello everyone
interested in flight safety internaional in florida....what do u think about this school...then convert license into jar later??
thx

Mercenary Pilot

10th Oct 2005, 23:52

If you have less than 60Hrs P1 you can get a visa to work there after finishing the training and gain about 1500Hrs. I cant remember all the details so the best thing to do is give them a call in the U.S., you will find them very helpful. Flightsafety are a quality company and I have no doubt the training you receive will be top notch.

european champion

11th Oct 2005, 07:59

If you are interested in getting a FAA license then i would say go for it maybe,the training is good but it will cost you a lot more than average schools in usa and i dont really think the difference in training would be that much.Now if you think of converting later to JAA i definetely would not recommend it unless you have lots of money and time that you want to spend.The quickest and more economical way is go direct to do the JAA training in a JAA registered country,forget about the usa.

Mercenary Pilot

11th Oct 2005, 09:38

The quickest and more economical way is go direct to do the JAA training in a JAA registered country,forget about the usa.

I couldnt disagree more! I did all my training in the U.K. It cost me a fortune and took longer than it would of in Florida due to the weather. After finishing the course, to convert, you will need to sit the 14 JAA exams, convert to a CPL which is "hours as required" and convert your IR which is a 15 hour course. 3 of my mates did it this way and have saved a packet. 1 of them is employed by an airline, 1 of them has been taken on by CTC and the other is finishing off as we speak. Flightsafety are a well known company and it will look good on your C.V. Also, last I heard they are planning to develop a JAA conversion course at their new base in Farnbourgh. I would have gone to Vero myself but unfortunatly when I was offered a place I had done more than 60Hrs P1 so couldnt get a working visa to build up the 1500hrs:* :{

Barcadi

11th Oct 2005, 17:26

ooh...

confused here...so should i or should i not???

B2N2

11th Oct 2005, 20:29

Expensive school, what exactly are you looking for ?
Don't just shop for a name..:ooh:

Barcadi

11th Oct 2005, 21:19

as its one of the best (as i heard) so think worth investing coz heard a lot about other schools just interested in yr money n' dont really care about how u fly

but if there're other good schools but cheaper that'd answer all questions!

any suggestion plz

Fair_Weather_Flyer

12th Oct 2005, 01:44

Flight Safety are a shadow of what they used to be. They have row after row of Piper singles and twins sitting on the ground at Vero Beach. The things never fly because they have very few students.

The courses they offer are very expensive and although I have heard the quality of training is good, it probably isn't any better than a thousand other schools. It also takes a good year to finish the training; too long! Where much of your money goes is on keeping those grounded aircraft flyable and their expensive full page magazine ads. Throw in the salary for the sales people and you end up with a pricey course.

As far as the J1 visa (which allows you to work as an instructor) goes what Flight Safety are saying about the P1 hours is BS. I am on a J1 myself and can tell you that it is possible to get the visa with quite a few hours, even a JAA FATPL. Speak to some of the following J1 schools if you want to know more.

Sierra Academy - California
Hillsborough School of Aviation - Oregon
North American Institute of Aviation - South Carolina
Ariben Aviator - Florida

Last but not least.... the topic of conversions. If you want to go the FAA route and convert to JAA later, listen to my advice. Complete the ATPL's after your PPL. Do not do them after the FAA training as this will result in a painful period where you have no income and are not able to fly. By the time conversion time comes round you will be rusty and will need more training.

Barcadi

12th Oct 2005, 09:41

thx for all replies
how do i convert to atpl....u mean i've to go to europe then convert n' then come back to u.s. for more trainiing??

yyzdub

13th Oct 2005, 09:34

Barcadi,

Firstly, having gone through the conversion from an ICAO CPL to a JAA CPL with ATPL theory, I can speak from experience and a number of years on have heard the stories of others having done the same route and I would have to recommend that you really think about which way to go. Personally, I'd save the money and complete all your training by the integrated method with one school that can give you a JAA license. Having done a conversion, I wish I'd just saved for another year and done it all here in Europe.

Once you obtain your FAA Commercial license and with the goal of converting to a JAA equivalent you will need to sit 14 ATPL theory exams along with of classroom work. In my case, this took about 10 months to complete as I needed to work during the time I was studying to fund the whole thing, plus I had to re-sit two of the exams. In Europe, most airlines require that you have completed the ATPL theory before you will be considered for a F/O position. Most schools will teach the ATPL syllabus in lieu of the Commercial theory.

You will also need to do 15 hours of Instrument time of which I believe 10 can be completed in an approved simulator. Once this is done, you will probably need about 5 hours of Multi time and I would say to allot yourself an additional 10 to familiarise yourself with the airspace and regulations where you will be undergoing your CPL and Multi IR skills test.

Once you pass your Instrument (10 hours x €140hr sim; 5 hours x €400 hr twin aircraft), Multi (maybe around 3 hrs x €400), and Commercial flight test (2 hours x €400) and have your ATPL theory completed (€2000 + €90 x 14 – test fees) (what is usually referred to as a Frozen ATPL) and have your JAA Class 1 Medical (€600) you will then need to complete an MCC course (€4000). These are all approximates of cost and hours required. So roughly €10 000 – which come to think of it is a lot less than I paid. Most would factor in about €15000 I think. Also factor in the time to complete all this and the cost of your accommodation and general living expenses.

I hope that is of some help.

Barcadi

13th Oct 2005, 23:37

thx
that really gives me some insight info about the converting
i just pm u kindly check plz
:)

SP2006

28th Jan 2006, 20:57

Hi I am in the final stages of my PPL in the UK after I want to go commercial. I am interested if anyone had being to train at The Flight Safety Academy Florida. If any one could give me some answers would be really grateful?

Eg Was the training of good quality ?

What are the advantages of training at Flight Safety compared to say spending 75k at Oxford Aviation Training?

Are there entry exams etc?

Most importantly did you get a job after training?

The process of getting there and length of training?

Cost?

Plus any other info?

BillieBob

29th Jan 2006, 09:52

Probably the most important answer, albeit to a question you have not asked, is that the Flight Safety Academy is not approved to provide JAA training.

Whilst you might be considering obtaining FAA qualifications and subsequently converting to JAA, there are many, equally good and significantly cheaper, alternatives to FSI.

razzele

29th Jan 2006, 18:04

Have you had a look at: -

http://www.aribenaviator.com/

they do FAA and JAA training in florida 10miles south of Flight Safety at St Lucie county Airport (KFPR)

Good luck in your choices

Cirrus_Clouds

29th Jul 2006, 22:58

Hi all, what do you think of the place, any pilots done their training there and successfully found a job with a regional carrier or airline?

I'm looking at the possibility of doing my training abroad and maybe fly/live abroad also.

Cheers! :cool:

msm

27th Oct 2006, 13:56

Hi everybody!! Very interested in the professional program This academy offers, so i would like to know if theres someone that did it or is in this Academy, it looks pretty cool and with greate instalations!

Marcelo

longbow64

29th Oct 2006, 01:22

Hi, I'm just looking for a good flight school to go to after I leave the Army! I plan to get my PPL before I leave the Army! My original plan was to go to MPAD, but it dosen't seem like a good program (No Instructing)! What are your opinions about FlightSafety (http://www.flightsafetyacademy.com/) and PanAm Academy (http://www.panamacademy.com/)! I would appreciate if somebody that went through either flight schools could give me some information! Thank you so much!

GrkPilot

29th Oct 2006, 20:19

I graduated from Flightsafety in 2004, great school ... all training is top notch with probably the best instructors out there. Very professional .. I wouldn't have gone anywhere else. I did me CIME there then went to get my CFI somewhere else..you can see a huge difference. You can't compare any school in the states to FlightSafety. I would go there ...

As for panam when I was there about 5-6 guys left panam and came to FlightSafety .. that says a lot to me.

Farrell

29th Oct 2006, 21:53

FlightSafety - without a doubt, the best out there.....if you can afford them!

B200Drvr

30th Oct 2006, 08:29

Read post #35
I did my training there, the planes might need a paint job, but that school has been in existance with the same owner for 20 + years.
At the end of the day, I got what I went there for, for the price they quoted, and in less than 6 months (full pro course) and I have never been unemployed since. They also offer JAA.

AlphaMale

30th Oct 2006, 14:03

B200Drvr - How long did it take you to get a job with 200hrs Multi on your log? I guess you needed to build another 800 on top of that which must be costly?

I am looking at EFT and will apply for a place when I know I can 100% afford it ($62,995 I think) I will come out with 1,000+ hours. I figure if I went to Aribenaviator and spent $35,995 I would still be looking at quite a few more $$$ to clock up my time. Even if I took advantage of their $8,995 for 100 hours of multi it's still gonna cost a lot :rolleyes:

Like everybody else here I don't have £70k/£80k to go to Oxford, CTC, CabAir or Jerez. But I must agree if FSI is like the US OAT and it's $65k that is only £35k our money (A huge saving over OAT) albeit not Itegrated?!?

The reason I am looking to go abroad is due to the people studying/flying in the UK and always complaining about taking 4 months to clock 15 CPL flying hours :sad: .

Thanks

Andrew
(Is there something I don't know about EFT?)

Edited to add;
Just saw EFT being advertised on the Air Ben website? I guess they work together through FAA/JAA?

B200Drvr

31st Oct 2006, 05:26

AlphaMale,
I instructed there for 3 months before getting a right hand seat in a King-Air (have never spent a sent on time building). Did that for 7 months on my M1 due to a legal loophole, and was then offered a position with the U.S. Government, No visa required. It was without a doubt the Multi time that paved the way.
If you stay to instruct, you will leave at the end of you visa period with 1200 hrs+ of multi time. There are hundreds who went before me and hundreds have done it since.

msm

9th Nov 2006, 00:26

Hi, i read at this forum that you can take exams in advance before going to an academy lets say if you are going to do the PPL ,how is this possible?? It would be nice becauce you can concentrate more in flying, and you already have your written tests passed...

Thanks

Marcelo

vern

27th Jan 2007, 10:54

hi,

any takes on FlightSafety Academy?

thanks in advance.

vern

28th Jan 2007, 07:12

does a CAE-allied IATA match or surpass FSA?

( scroggs, i tried searching, but found nothing :( )

Sid78

1st May 2007, 11:12

Hi,

I'm planning to attend Flight Safety Academy, Florida to go from ab initio to CPL. I believe it's a well reputed institute and I guess even the chance of finding a job after graduating from here could be very good.

Any thoughts on the school or it's reputation? Anyone graduated from here?

Sid.

Afraz

8th Feb 2009, 20:59

Hello evreyone I hope your enjoying the snow! ;)

I just wanted ask:

1. What is Flight Safety Academys reputation like in the airline aviation world? Are they considerd to be quality flight training providers on par with the likes of OAA?

2. A friend of mine also wants to know what you think of a flight training school that goes by the name of Phoenix East Aviation. What is the quality of training like there (student to instructor ratio, fleet, accomodation etc)?

3. Will UK airlines (as well as turbo-prop, charter, business jet operators) view a candidate negatively if they have completed all of thier training abroad and then converted?

Thanks for your help - I'm off to have a snowball fight in the garden before I recieve some snowballs from you PPRUNE'rs for asking stupid questions lol!

clear prop!!!

8th Feb 2009, 22:02

Apart from flight training, they are where some of the World's best employers go to have you assessed or type rated.

Way back, they had a CAA division at Vero, which was one of the best integrated / modular schools around,..then came JAA, and they could not be arsed going through the hoops and farce which were the early years of the said body!... and quite rightly so.

A brief and somewhat suspect tie up with a certain Irish FTO has now ended, along with a lot of bad press which did FS no good at all, so again, one of the Worlds best training organisations has no UK / JAA connections.

So back to you question, there would be no employer who would look upon training at FS negatively... if... you were able to do it!

Oh, and yes you could go down th FAA route and convert, but why, given the state of the GBP?

Flex_Thrust

8th Feb 2009, 22:42

Anybody know why PTC FSA went their seperate ways?

oneinthemirror

9th Feb 2009, 11:43

its been mentioned on one or two other threads, visa issues mainly which caused PTC to pull the plug, but also something about FSA not being up to JAA standards, which PTC promptly adapted to 'not being up to PTC's high standards' - which is technically true i suppose but did leave a few people scratching their heads...

oneinthemirror

9th Feb 2009, 12:39

daraireland,

it was problems with FSA admin apparently, problems with i-20 forms etc not the actual US embassy's end of it, so yeah, of course a visa is still necessary, but apparently FIT are a bit more efficient about the whole thing.

its explained in more detail on page 3 of the 'ptc - ya right' thread which is lurking around forgotten parts of this forum, i would post a link but im just not that computer literate, im still trying to figure out how to see through all the tipp-ex on my screen!

as for the marketing motor-mouth, im a past student so youre preaching to the choir there mate:}

skygeorge7

2nd Mar 2009, 13:54

Hi, to everyone that is interested in going to this place which is known as "CASINO"..... I was a former student(international) and what i have to say is only bad things. There are so many that i do not know from where i can start . The thing that make me more upset is how they treat the customers-students.They only treat them like a goodlooking girl treats an old man .In other words they are obsessed with money so much that they overcharge and they also use tricks to take you more money.They do not care about producing good pilots at all it is only Business over there like CASINO.I must admit however that from my experience(i have changed 2 schools first was flight safety academy-Vero Beach) and from other students that i met while in US i have to say that i did not listen many good words for any flight school in Florida.
The thing that i write down is a list of what a new student must be aware of.Everything applies to CAPT program and flight safety academy according to my personal experience with these 2 "schools"
1.Ask about experience instructors not time builders (this can save money and make you better because most time builders they do not pay attention to students -they care about hours)
2.Ask about the rates of each A/C and what rates apply if you do extra hours(try to have a contract with fix prices irrespective of fuel and other costs)
3. Be careful about the brifing hours that more instructors overcharge.If you are not in a brifing room and you are heading to the A/C is not part of the briefing!!!
4.Most important ,availability of A/C and good maintenance so that you can fly most of the time.In CAPT i flew once per Week.....because they have a contract with Chiniese and we were over 200 students with 10 A/C only.(cirrus sr-20: the only good about the school)
5.Forget about good words when you make the tour ask only students without any of the empoyees in front IMPORTANT.....Very IMPORTANT
I hope that i can help some people to avoid schools that are only businesses. Always high and with afterburner...

B2N2

2nd Mar 2009, 14:30

Well, if you are taking about the CAPT program in Flagler County, it's closing its doors:

CAPT Program approaching its end - Campus News (http://media.www.avionnewspaper.com/media/storage/paper798/news/2006/02/07/CampusNews/Capt-Program.Approaching.Its.End-1601382.shtml)

3. Be careful about the brifing hours that more instructors overcharge.If you are not in a brifing room and you are heading to the A/C is not part of the briefing!!!

Not necessarily true, I can tell you a lot of usefull things on the way to the aircraft. Just depends.....

skygeorge7

2nd Mar 2009, 15:06

I was a former international student August 2008 and my answer is DO NOT GO THERE.The ground is very good but the flight training with all these time builders instructors is not good at all .The kind of instructors that FSI uses cares only about their flight hours and they do not pay attention to students .Of course there are some very very few exeptions.
They are also very expensive not because of their reputation but because the school does not have the profitable # of students in order to operate correctly.I remember the prices before i went there and at 2006 they charged 170 $ approx per hour for the 30 years old warrior and now 193 $ and for the seminol 340 $ to me this is insane .This means 2500-3000 $ more expensive each year and also you have to take into account that they charge minimum FAA hours so you have to budget an extra 3000 $ in order to be realistic.I heard a lot of people saying about the reputation of the school and its name "flightsafety academy" I have to say relax and is the good instructor as well as the qualities of the individual that promote and sell a pilot in a good way and not the name of the school.When you go for an interview you are alone with your knowledge FACT .The school focuses on developing its customer department and how to bring more students .If you understand that it is obvious that it has a lot of implications to your trainig......... Good luck to anyone searching a good school.....

VeroFlyer

2nd Mar 2009, 17:28

Flight Safety is an awsume flight school! Nothing bad to say about it at all, prob one of the best on the world. Great instruction and one of the best places to completly immerse youself in an aviation campus style atmosphere.
Had the best year of my life at this place, made some really good friends and had the best laughs outside of school. Remeber it's not all about studying, now fly for a UK regional airline.
Riverside cafe still rocks when I went back for a visit last year! WOO!

skygeorge7

3rd Mar 2009, 08:47

I am pretty sure that you are an employ at flightsafety academy.Otherwise there is no way of telling these.........Keep in mind that the flightsafety of the past there is nothing to do with the flightsafety of today.

MerNion

3rd Mar 2009, 09:20

I am considering FSA as one of my option for atpl training in 6-7 months and i would like to know what are the cons of FSA today.. Are there problems due to the global economic crisis? Is the training at the same level it used to be? Are there the same number of students as it used to be in the past?
Thanks!

Mr_ATPL

4th Mar 2009, 14:31

I will have to back VEROFLYER up - FlightSafety Academy is the BEST you can get. To be honest it is the same if not better than the flight training OAT provides. I would probaly rank it higher than OAT - which is the best you get for the money in Europe. Both are VERY expensive BUT they both give excellent flight training.

For an FAA license go to Vero Beach
For a JAA license go to OAT
(if you can afford it :ok:)

skygeorge7, maybe you have had a bad experience with FSA, but thats not bad at considering the amount of students the last many many many years that have only positive thing to say about the place!
--If you feel they "robbed" (which very well could have been happing) you should have taking it up with the School Director.
--If you feel that you were flying with time builders (which very well could have been happing) you should have changed instructors. I believe that they have quite a few 80-120 to choose from. All the best in the future and good luck, maybe you can find an excellent schoold closer to home, like :
http://www.pprune.org/professional-pilot-training-includes-ground-studies/279816-egnatia-aviation-greece.html :ok:

MERNION: If you need an FAA license go to FSA.
For a JAA license (european flying) I can only reccomend you a European school (with some hour building in the US, to cut your costs). Maybe you should look at one of the many UK schools (the pound is very low against the Euro). For any other advise send me a PM, I went through the system a few years back. All the best. :ok:

jackofalltrades14

4th Mar 2009, 20:11

Former flightsafety student. Agree with skygeorge7's comments about hourbuilding instructors, whilst there are a few good instructor there, there are a lot of hour building instructors . For PPL and hourbuilding training I'd suggest going to a non-acedemy flightschool and find someone how does flight insturcting as a career, who probaly has thousands rather than a few hundred hour instructing.

PROS:-
- Course is very structered so it would be hard for an instructor to make a complete disaster of your training.
- Maintainence are very good, always happy to answer your questions and look at any problems that you may have. Only had to changes planes twice due to MX issues.
- Ground instuction is quite good, lot of experienced instructors.

CONS:-
- Course is very structered, my instructors always found it difficult/impossible to get an extra lesson in to work on one particular thing eg. crosswind landing
- Most students are there under an airline/military scheme, hence the staff and instructors don't see you as a customer and don't respect you as one
- If you there on your own, you are put to the back of the queue behind the airline/military students.
- If you're progress isn't as fast as they expect you could be sent on an evaluation flight, expect to be waiting several days for this, in my case 8 days, ive also heard of other people waiting this long. The reason for this "evaluation flights are sent to the back of the queue" scheduling departments words not mine.
- The aircraft fleet whilst well maintained is quite old, had numerous problems with mike keys jamming or not working properly, radio's transmitting badly, transponders not working correctly
- VFR cadet airplanes are very poorly equipped for x-country flying, 6 pack guages and one VOR, whilst this is good for building the basics is no where near adequate for longer x-country flight espicaly given all the MOA's and restricted airspace around Florida/Georgia. You can use an IFR cadet but only on weekend flights and subject to availability
- Check airman, the middle management of flightsafety. While a few are really helpfully the majority are bitter washouts who offer no help to you or your instructor.
There often rude/late for flights(with no apology given for delay).
- On site accomodation prices jumped 50% in the 3 months between me visiting the school and actually attending there.
- On-site wireless access is slow and unreliable
- They made a mess of my visa and didn't even apologise about it