School Transferring: Advice Please

[Rj111]

Good morning.

I am undertaking my PPL training at the minute and i have a nagging feeling that my school is not really right for me.

Another day today and another lesson cancellation. Ok, it is the weather and there is nothing we can do about that. However my school is impossibly busy. You have to book at least a month in advance to find a slot for a weekend lesson. And you can only book one lesson at the weekend. Also i don't have a dedicated instructor. Due to poor availability and illness to instructors i have ended up with 7 instructors for 9 lessons. :(

Overall, I am frustrated. I am confident with my flying skills but i have only managed 9 lessons in 4 months and it would have been even less without some annual leave. A lesson every fortnight and it's almost back to square one - let's say square 1/2. The discontinuity of the instructors has been very annoying too and i feel detrimental to my progress and confidence.

The question is, is this as good as it gets, do i stick it out, or look elsewhere? Sure, the weather is the same at every local school, however, like an airline overbooks flights to expect cancellations, i think i too need the ability to book at least 2 lessons at the weekend - to anticipate bad weather.

On the other hand, maybe i am not being realistic. Maybe it is like this everywhere in the UK for part time students, and a change in schools will only result in needing to adapt to a new airfield. Also, perhaps it is not a good idea to mess around at a crucial stage of the learning process.

Or maybe a more drastic approach is necessary, get my first solo under my belt, save all my funds, put the flying on the back burner, and do an intensive course somewhere in the summer.

I like my school, the people are friendly, and some of the instructors i have got on tremendously well with and really respect. But as i am spending lots of money on this, i really want to do it properly and efficiently. I don't want to end up having to do it over 18 months and needing 60-70 hours in the process.

So I ask you mighty forum of wisdom, what do you advise?

RJ

PS: I'm based in C.London

[CaptainTC]

I switched schools a few weeks ago mainly due to the distance i had to travel and the weather. I am now happy with my new school, and my instructor is really layed back which is good. As for the weather, that is England for you, crappy weather all the time, nothing you can do. Even now i have switched schools the weather is still a problem even my instructor told me that flying in the UK is crap. I am seriously considuring saving and just going to Florida to get my PPL because its just taking too long and life is too short. My instructor done his PPL in Florida and said it only took him 16 days, so it cant be that bad.

But if i where you i would look for another school if you can, or save and go to Florida. Sounds like its taking you ages between lessons.

Hope this helps.:ok:

[Molesworth 1]

Yours is not an unusual story. It can indeed be frustrating!

I figured that I had a 50% cancellation rate when I was doing my PPL. Mostly weather-related (I had the same instructor throughout, which was great). It's not that the weather is not suitable at all for flying - its just not suitable for what your instructor wants to teach you. You can wait months to go solo because the weather is not perfect. Cross-country is another hurdle weather-wise, as is the skills test.

Once you have your PPL you'll find that the weather doesn't restrict you to the same extent. If you are hiring they will usually let you have the aircraft for a longer period if you are delayed waiting for the weather to clear.

One thing though - if the wind is out of limits you can forget it. The wind doesn't change very much during the day.

Yes, double book your lessons, and do it as far in advance as possible. Your school will understand. You can always cancel the second one, but it's likely you need to catch up anyway.

Annual leave is also a good time to do a lot of flying. I was out of work for some months and was able to use the time to pass my PPL.

If going to the US don't do your whole PPL there - maybe just the first 30 hours or so. Flying here is very different.

[tropicalfridge]

I don't think any school would be happy with you booking extra slots just in case you need them, so best not do that or you'll certainly piss them off. Remember that flying schools loose money when aircraft are on the ground so they won't cancel your lesson unless they really must.

Its a buyers market out there just now, and there are plenty of flying schools. If your not happy, go and visit a few others in your area / travel distance, speak to the instructors and spend some time in the planning room getting a feel for the place. Consistency is they key.

[Molesworth 1]

I don't think any school would be happy with you booking extra slots just in case you need them

It was my instructor who suggested double booking! You don't need to cancel any lessons. At present you are only getting half the lessons you want? Right? Book double the number you need and the weather will even it out for you.

You can be quite sure other students are doing it. That's why you can only get a booking a month ahead.

What does make the schools cross is if you cancel after looking at the forecast and (as often happens) the weather turns out flyable after all. Phone the school before you set out from home to find out what the situation is. Don't cancel before then.

They also give priority to students waiting to do cross country. They don't tell you that, they'll give some other excuse. Don't worry - you'll appreciate being given priority when it's your turn!

[Cusco]

Remember: you're the customer and you're paying the bills. If you're not happy with how its turning out ask to speak to the CFI and voice your worries: If you don't get a satisfactory reply, vote with your feel and walk.

I was in a similar situation last December when I was struggling with a particular school and just racking up the hours and seemingly getting nowhere: No-one sat down and talked to me until I threw a mini-wobbly. Offers were then made but by then it was too late, I walked and am much happier at my new school.

Interestingly a fellow stude walked at the same time..........

Remember it's your hard earned cash.........

Good luck.

Cusco

[Molesworth 1]

I can remember the frustration after my first solo. Longing to go solo again/ feel I was making progress but... 8 touch and gos dual all the time being told I am doing everything wrong.. and then two more weeks to the next lesson.

Just when you think you are getting nowhere and you think you are going to be flying circuits forever it suddenly all starts happening and you are told to get your exams done and start thinking about your skills test!

[Gertrude the Wombat]

One weekend lesson per fortnight with 70% weather cancellations in winter, sometimes leading to a couple of months with no flying at all, and 40% in summer would be pretty normal. Really the only way to do much better than that is take time off work (which, even if you have a job where you can, could double the cost of the flying).

Seven instructors for nine lessons sounds a bit much though. Whilst there will continue to be arguments about whether it's better to stick with one instructor, for consistency, or fly with two or three, to get slightly different views on how to correct what you're doing wrong, I've not heard anyone advocate seven instructors as being positively beneficial!

[Rj111]

Thanks for the replies guys.

The instructor thing has probably annoyed me more than the times between lessons. I agree that you shouldn't stick to the same instructor forever, but i'm in a situation where i've never had a consecutive instructor. There's almost a little bit of pressure on me to prove myself to the next person. Also each lesson is taken literally at a time. For example, I did a landing on lesson 3 (though my instructor was probably putting a sneaky bit of input into it). Then i wasn't given the opportunity to land until i began circuits. In the meantime i could have racked up 3 or 4 more landings, which is almost an entire circuit lesson. But because there was no one really overseeing the broader picture of my development, i think that was overlooked. The same thing has happened with me using the radio, some days yes, some days no, i could be really confident on it now. I suppose i should be more vocal about what i want out of a lesson, but it can be tricky when you're the student, and you are building new relationships each time.

But that's happened now. I'm going to stick at it for the meantime and hopefully within the next few lessons i can get my solo under my belt, which i hope will be a great thrill. Then when that target is reached, i shall reassess my options.

Thanks for the input,
RJ