Intro Flights

[Spunk]

Well, I know business can be tough these days but what happened to me today is just the lowest category of foul play.

Anybody in the world who runs a flight school (helicopter and/or fixed wing) is doing it, clients ask for it and so far it was tolerated by the authorities: intro lessons (without medical or any other kind of prerequisites).

Now, a local commercial operator, the only one around without FTO and/or RF, reported me and some other flight schools as well, to the aviation authority for conducting illegal intro flights.

I know that the authority is not really interested in taking action (some of them work as flight instructors themselves) but now that somebody has thrown the first rock, they have to.

As I mentioned before, those intro flights were tolerated so far. How about in other European countries? How do you handle intro flights?

[foxmoth]

Can you tell us more of where you are and why this is supposed to be illegal?
In the UK there is no requirement for any "prerequisites" until first solo and a genuine trial lesson or intro flight is no problem as long as it is conducted as such and some instruction (usually Effect of controls 1) is given.:confused:

[Spunk]

Hi foxmoth,
in Germany that would be. Besides JAR FCL 2 the German Air Law states, that prior starting flight training the flight student has to provide the flight school with the following papers:

ID
Medical
written statement about the absence of crime records

Whereas the ID and the written statement are easy to get, the medical is the sticking point. Just imagine that you have to tell your customer that he/she has to spend an extra 150 - 200 € on a medical prior going out on a 30 minute intro ride.
I remember that we had this discussion before when FCL 2 was introduced but none of the aviation authorities dared to take action (as mentioned before most of them work as part time instructors) and simply tolerated this loophole.