European License in USA

[mroczny]

:confused: Hallo,

this is my first post on this forum, so please apologize any mistakes.

I think about making my PPL in Florida, however I live in Germany and will be flying mostly in Europe, especially Germany and Poland. On the other hand, the training in Europe seems to be about 30% more expensive and it would be hard for me to complete it simultaneously to my job (surgeon). My actual flying experience is zero.:{

I have been looking through Internet to find information about different schools and modalities of training. It seems for me, that a school offering a JAA-PPL training in the States would be the best choice.

The OBA has a very appealing Internet information and their pack seems to offer most for the money. However, there should be very negative opinions about this place (I cannot find some threads at the forum). They are also not masters answering my mails...

Has anybody completed the European training there during the last 1-2 years? What was your total time /cost? Any recent reports from other schools offering this kind of training? Anybody with NOT-English-mother tongue absolving the training?

Looking forward to hear from you!

[PIGDOG]

Welcome to Pprune.

I went to OBA to do my JAA PPL about 14 months ago. I enjoyed it. I spent no more money than they advertised. The accomodation is fine for what you need. (About a 20 minute walk from the airport at the most.) I scheduled four weeks to make sure I would get everything done, but I could have been finished after 15 days if the weather has been better. As it was I finished in 20; one day less than three weeks. And I did all the exams while I was there (I did study a lot before I went though)

Of course, you will find others who had a different experience than me. But all I can tell you about is my experience...

I would recommend that you be prepared to work hard, be there and ready when you're scheduled to fly. And don't be a someone who complains about stupid things. (Legitimate complaints are a different matter). Before you go read all the procedures, about getting your visa, thoroughly. It is a complicated procedure, but OBA have it worked out properly. If something goes wrong it'll be because you didn't follow the instructions correctly.

Anyway, wilkommen to the world of flying and enjoy...

Tschüss


Oh, and if you written english is anything to go by, your english is fine. When I was there about half of the students were from non english speaking european countries. I don't think any of them had much language related problems.

[pumuckl]

When I went there in June last year there were several non-UK people on the course, including a French guy and a Swedish guy. Both are now flying in their own country, so I am sure it wouldn't be a problem.

I had a great time there and completed my PPL in 17 days. I spent as much as I was quoted - I found no hidden costs - everything was quoted upfront.

You will only get out what you put in. I did all my written exams at home, so was able to concentrate on the flying while there, but that was just me. Most did the exams there.

Hope it helps.

p. :ok:

[mroczny]

statement - I live in Germany, but I am Polish.:)

It seems that the records on OBA got better, let's see if other people can confirm this...:confused:

Thanks for both of you for a prompt answer:D

[BRAIN66]

Well you be sure to factor in things such as time/money off work,air fare,food accomodation,transport etc.The money you save might not be worth the hassle when you can learn locally and get familiar with the airspace etc.Plus once you get involved in the local aviation community their is usually ways to shave off a few Euros.The training is fun as well and there shouldn,t be any pressure to finish it in 3 weeks or so.

Good Luck :ok:

[JamesTigris]

MROCZNY,

I am in exactly the same situation as you except here in the UK the saving is looking like nearer 50%!

To be honest the driving force for me is the prospect of intensive training and continuity. That's worth a lot of money and time in my flying training experience (with the University Air Squadron, part of the RAF).

But I would also second Brain66, there is no substitute for training in the airspace in which you intend to fly. If you do go to the US you MUST budget for retraining back in Germany/Poland as you will find the airspace and, most especially, the Radio Communications very different from the US.

That's what you've got to balance.

[pumuckl]

I should mention that when I got back to the UK, I did not need any extra training. All I did was a check ride at my local club and I was good to go.

Cheers,

p. :)

[mroczny]

James and Brain,

many thanks for your contributions.:D However I do not think that the European training in an option for me. I have a small airplace 10 minutes from the place I live, and even a flying school here, but I do not believe in a perspective of sitting 80 hours in ground school and waiting for the opportunity to find time for the 45 hours of flying – the weather, my professional and familiar obligations, plane availability. :{

So I think the only option is to go to the USA, forgetting all other things and then devoting these entire three weeks solely to flying. After that I will try regularly use the air space here and this will be money consuming option of hours-building, but for me probably the only one. I am not so confused about the radio communication, as I live in a quiet part of Germany, with much less flight traffic comparing to the States. However, perhaps there is somebody at the forum who did this transfer from Florida to Germany or Poland?:confused:

[coodem]

Been there twice in the last 2 years, all went well. It was hard work, just try get the exams out the way first, or at least study a lot before you go, It will make it all so mu more enjoyable, leave yourself at least 25 days.

OBA is basic, with a nice fleat of aircraft, they will not spoonfeed you, but they will teach you to fly and get you ready for the skills test

Dont expect too much from their email responses, they are real busy, and won't hire people to answer emails, that the answers are most likely on their website. They need to keep the cost down as much as possible to stay competitve.

Once you sign up, you will get all the info you need, a total idiots guide to get the visa's, travel info. And then you will hear nothing till you get there. As there is nothing else for you to do

[BackPacker]

mcrozny, did you search this and the Professional Flying forum for information? The question comes up regularly and both myself and a fellow named SoCal Approach have posted a lot of info on this subject.

[mroczny]

BackPacker,
I have done some search at this forum and have found no actual information, perhaps my query was not good enough. Perhaps you can PM me the important messages, if they are available for you?

[BackPacker]

I'm busy writing a long article on obtaining a JAA PPL outside the JAA member states (ie. the US). It's in draft status now and not public yet, but I eventually plan on putting it up here on PPRuNe and having one of the moderators make it a sticky.

If anybody with knowledge of this process wants to receive the private URL where it's currently located, to perform a review, send me a PM.