Algoa flight school in south africa

[Peter McCormack]

Hey guys, i have been looking at there website and it seems to be a great set up down there. Im looking at Algoa to do my PPL, i could be wrong here but i heard the price for a ppl there is 4,700 rand, after i converted it it was like 350 euro.
this has to be wrong............right.

Anyway if i could get any info on this place it would be great.......

Thnaks:ok:

[birdlady]

Peter,

R 4,700 :ooh::ooh: Where do I sign up. :rolleyes::rolleyes: This is obviously a misprint. R47, 000 is more like it. Still a pretty good rate. I dont know what the exchange rate is at the moment but you would be hard pushed to beat this rate especially in Ireland. I have no affiliation with algoa but if one has to go on reputation only, its a pretty good club.


:ok:

[AlphaMale]

Yes - you have been ill informed if it's 4,700 Rand ... The print out I have in my hand states 55,430 Rand in a 152 and 69,880 Rand in a 172.

If you're there around March time then I may bump into you :ok:

Looks like a good club to me, I'm just a little dubious about the wind as PE known as 'The Winy City' and I fear this could delay my training.

Good luck.

[Peter McCormack]

ye guys thats what i taught haha i knew that price was crazy low ahhhhh well
but as long as it is a good place to train ill still go

[Leezyjet]

I trained there a few years ago, cost me £3,300 at the time. Great little club with a good social scene once the a/c are in the hanger for the night (don't dare leave them out or else :ouch: ). It's been going for over 50 years, not many schools even in Europe/US can claim that so they must be doing something right.

One of the reasons I chose PE was because of the wind. The airport has 2 hard runways at right angles to each other, and a grass runway that intersects them both, so there is not much chance that the wind alone will keep you on the ground.

I'd budget to hire a car a couple of times when your down there so you can get out and about and explore, there are some great places to visit with-in a few hours drive of PE - providing you are old enough to hire a car of course :\

PM me if you have any questions, I was last there earlier this year but they have had a few staff/instructor changes since then so I'm not 100% up to date on the instructors they currently have.

:)

[robmcn]

I echo the previous post, excellent school, best maintained aircraft i have encountered at a flying school and fantastic solo parties!

[Shunter]

Did some flying there last Xmas. Great place, great staff, great social scene. Wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. The whole procedure of taxying from the clubhouse down to refuel, then getting on the radio to the tower so they can open the gate to allow you to taxi onto the airfield never failed to amuse me.

Also, the lobster in PE is excellent :D

A pic taken whilst trundling down the Eastern Cape:

http://britishsportphotography.com/wc.jpg

[XXPLOD]

Just got back from SA. Had a quick flight in a 152 from Stellenbosch flying club. Exchange rate is pretty good - cR15 to the £ at present although did touch R17 recently.

Hiring the 152 worked out at about £50ph wet I think.

[AlphaMale]

Looks awesome!!!! :cool:

[G-STAW]

hello guys,

i plan to go out there in june, cant wait looks like great fun,

see you guys there i guess!


G-STAW

[preduk]

Wow... that looks amazing...

Guys who have been there, whats been the final price of it all (including flights etc)

[Shunter]

I incorporated the flying into a holiday, and wasn't exactly watching the pennies so my prices won't be much use to you. The Algoa website has some info on good local accomodation which won't break the bank.

If you need to validate a license over there I highly recommend you get a copy of Irv Lee's Book (http://www.uksa.flyer.co.uk/saonappl.htm) which explains how to do it, and if you plan it in detail you can have your SA PPL within a couple of days. If you're learning, no such worries. Still a good read though, with many useful tips (like the fact that mag variation is 20 odd degrees!).

You can fly to either Joburg or Cape Town, then grab a connection to PE with Kulula (SA low cost airline). BA and SA airlines fly from Heathrow, or KLM from Amsterdam. Roll a dice as regards prices. Best option might be to get the cheapest flight dates you can, then arrange the everything else around them.

[Kerosine]

Algoa is a great place to spend your time flying. As stated, a/c well looked after, instructors good, well priced, great solo parties and the surrounding area is beautiful.

[phillos]

I've just returned from Algoa having achieved a PPL in 6 weeks! Great place to train in weather conditions that were by no means perfect. Get in touch if you want to know more about my experiences!

[vabsie]

Hi Phillos ..

Do you have some photos to share?

Did you fly over Jeffreys Bay or possibly down the coast along the garden route?

Vabsie

[Leezyjet]

Vabsie,

Here are some from one of my many trips :-

Tsitsikama Mountain range en-route to Plett at about 06:30z.
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9752.jpg

St Francis point and airfield.
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9532.jpg

Elephants at Addo
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9971.jpg

Beachfront in PE - Summerstrand on final for 26.
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9779.jpg

Final R26
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9807.jpg

:ok:

[vabsie]

great photos thanks Leezyjet!

[ANJ]

Those photos give a good idea of why training in Port Elizabeth is a great idea! I was there in 2003 to complete my PPL, after struggling with Dutch weather. Had a great time, met a bunch of interesting people, and got a lot of value out of the cross-wind experience. I don't think I was ever grounded due to wind, but mist was an occasional problem (particularly when it was sitting in between PE and the training area). Highly recommended, wish I could find the time to get back there.

For weekend jaunts, Jeffreys Bay was fun, there's good walking around the Tsitsikamma gorge (Tsitsikamma Forest Village Trust, Bloukrans, Garden Route, South Africa (http://www.tsitsikamma.org.za)), and Shamwari is well run (game reserve nearby, a bit more like a zoo compared with the real deal up north (Kruger, Londolozi, MalaMala etc) but still fantastic.

Have fun!

[Leezyjet]

Since you enjoyed the others, here's some more for you :-

Refuelling South African Style:-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9717.jpg

Bloukran's Bridge, home of the world's highest bungee jump:-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9661.jpg

Sand dunes between PE and JBay:-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9549.jpg

Fort Beaufort Airstrip :-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_9983.jpg

One of Algoa's C-172's at Fort Beaufort :-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_0021.jpg

Right base, R26 at PE 5 mins before official sunset :-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_0077.jpg

Dolphin's playing in the surf :-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_0099.jpg

You even get to mix with the big boys at PE :-
http://www.fl400.com/Algoa/images/IMG_0093.jpg

All pics were taken by a fellow PPruner. I was flying, he was shooting things with his large canon.

:ok:

[vabsie]

Some really nice pics thanks!

I have a place in Aston Bay which is just a bit further up from Jeffreys Bay towards paradise beach, unfortunately haven't been in over 2 years .. lovely area.

SZ-MBP looks pretty much brand new?

Vabsie