Cheapest and best PPL training?

[jimmyj]

Hi, I am 21, a graduate and a pilot wannabe.. .. .I have given up looking for sponsorship just now and am resigned to a job as a retail manager in order to save up for training.. .. .My first step is, obviously, a PPL. Cost is my utmost concern, as well as quality, and I would be willing to travel (if the overall cost of travel, accom and training would work out cheaper than training here). If I was to do that, however, it would need to be a JAA approved school as I want to build up hours back here.. .. .Anyone have any suggestions as to a cheap, quality JAA PPL course, in the UK or abroad? I would really appreciate any help you could give.

[big.al]

Yorkie Lad - . .. .The back of 'Flyer' or similar mags will give you some idea of the cost of learning to fly. The UK vs abroad option is something discussed regularly on the forums on PPRUNE and I guess there is no definitive answer. As for cost, it does seem that various options abroad offer better value for money if you can do an intensive course.. .. .I decided to do mine in a three-week intensive course and I'm off to Florida next month for this. The course is working out at around £3000 but I'm not using their accommodation so I'm getting about £300 off. . .. .Having not done the flying yet I cannot make any personal recommendation as to whether the US is better than the UK, or for that matter any particular FTO compared to another. If you are interested in finding out my thoughts after I've done the course, drop me a personal e-mail in June.. .. .If you are in the Sheffield area (I see you are from Yorkshire) I know that flying training at Pheonix Flying School are very cheap (Netherthorpe, near Worksop) and the CFI (Mike Lee) seems a good man. Only had one 'trial' flight with them so far, but I've been doing the ground exams there (not the study, I've been doing that at home). If you do take the option to go abroad, you will find LOTS of people advising you to get the ground exams done before you go. In my opinion this is the best bit of advice I have followed, as I now realise just how much there is to learn and how difficult it would be to take it all in in just a 3 or 4 week period!. .. .Happy flying.. .. .Big.Al.. . . . <small>[ 05 March 2002, 20:48: Message edited by: big.al ]</small>

[mad_jock]

Once you have choosen a suitably priced school from the back of flyer. Search the wannabies forum for the low down on the school. There are some fairly nasty operators in Fl and the cheapest with the biggest adverts and best sounding deals are usually the worst.. .. .MJ

[Who has control?]

The words 'cheap' and 'flying' do not sit comfortably together. Like most things in life, you get what you pay for, but don't pay up front.

[DVR6K]

Remember Yorkshire Lad, if it´s cheap, there´s a reason for it.. .. .I´ve been to "cheap" places and faced waterlogged grass runways and tatty aircraft, but the more expensive end boasts nice aircraft and full ATC with a few thousand feet of tarmac they call a runway apparently.. .. .Investigate carefully before choosing!

[BEagle]

Have a good look at the warnings on the CAA website. Anyone who instructs you in the US must meet JAR/FCL requirements for your flying hours to be counted towards a JAR/FCL PPL and the establishment itself must also do so.

[jimmyj]

Thank you very much for all your replies and advice. Big Al, I do live near Sheffield (Rotherham) and will look into a trial flight as Worksop is not far at all, cheers.. .. .I am aware that you get what you pay for but I have such a mountain to climb and already have uni debts above £10000 (god bless the British gov't) that any chance to reduce costs and, therefore, qualify quicker is very tempting.

[Irv]

Yorkshire lad (from another):. .I'm going out to have a bit of cheap fun flying with a South African school (Algoa) this month - I picked them as I recently checked out one of their brand new (SA) PPL holders here and he was fine, which is a good sign. The Rand's collapse means it's pretty cheap out there, so I decided to try it instead of Florida this year. I'll let you know what I think of the set up, but on sample basis of '1', they look pretty good!! They reckon that with the Rand the way it is, they can do a whole SA PPL (everything) (and including B&B but not airfares out there) for well under £2000.. .. .ps: I thought the point of going to Uni nowadays was to learn how to be permanently in debt and not to worry about it??

[englishal]

Cheap is not always bad. I rent a 2000 Cherokee Archer III in California for around $90 per hour wet, ~£60 per hour. Its all singing, all dancing nice new aircraft. I also rent, Warrior IIs in the UK for £100 per hour plus VAT, and although they fly ok, they're not a patch on the Archer III for 40 quid an hour less. Same Warrior 2 will cost about $60 per hour in the same nick as the UK ones....and when you step up to the Multi's you'll find you're paying £100 per hour wet in the US as opposed to £250 - £300 / hr in the UK.. .. .My advice is to go to the US and do an intensive course over there. Search these forums and you'll find a load of recommendations and info on peoples experiences. You'll get much better value for money, no matter what some people will tell you. And if you're a smart cookie, you'll have no problems getting to grips with the UK system on your return, after all you will have done a JAR PPL.... .. .Cheers. .EA

[NickGreen]

Yorkshire Lad,. .. .I think I'm the PPL Irv refers to! (Just 'fine' huh?). .. .I did my PPL in under 5 weeks at the Algoa Flying Club which is in Port Elizabeth South Africa. The total bill including accomm, car hire, return flights, 52 or so hours dual/solo as required, plus some Night Rating prep, and a part conversion to a different (complex) aircraft for £3,500. That was when the Rand was at 10 to the pound! Superb training. Although I did not set out to do my PPL for career purposes I have found the bug! As Irv says the concersion to the UK was a sinch. The conversion to JAR/JAA etc is also quite simple, so I have my licence and can build up the hours (to 100) and add the JAA bit quite easily, or it can be done by sitting the UK exams before reaching 100hours with a flight test. I fly a low cost hour builder from Popham (C150) at £60.00 per hour - so I can take it at my own pace. As you are lumbered with a student loan this may suit you better than doing the whole lot at once and you will be able to get in the saddle that much quicker. Good luck though - and I hope you find an instructor / mentor who's as good as Irv - have a look at his web site - . .<a href="http://www.higherplane.flyer.co.uk" target="_blank">http://www.higherplane.flyer.co.uk</a>. .The Frequently Asked Questions bit is very handy.

[Evo7]

</font><blockquote><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">quote:</font><hr /><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">. .ps: I thought the point of going to Uni nowadays was to learn how to be permanently in debt and not to worry about it?? . .</font><hr /></blockquote><font size="2" face="Verdana, Arial, Helvetica">Prepares you well for flight training... <img border="0" title="" alt="[Roll Eyes]" src="rolleyes.gif" />

[Whirlybird]

To those of you who've trained in South Africa, do any of you know any good schools offering helicopter hire? I fancy doing some hour building/fun flying there, but I've had my fingers burned in aviation before, and I'm not going anywhere without knowing something about it.

[NickGreen]

WhirlyBird,. .. .There's a helicopter charter place just next door Algoa Flying Club in Port Elizabeth, plus also some rotorheads are members of the club too. One was doing his fixwing at the same time as me - good fun watching his zero velocity landings in a C152! But he's gone on to do his CPL in record time.

[QUERY]

It is claimed that:. .'Anyone who instructs you in the US must meet JAR/FCL requirements for your flying hours to be counted towards a JAR/FCL PPL and the establishment itself must also do so.'. .If that is correct, why is there no similar requirement and CAA consumer protection against all the PPL establishments in UK?

[Sliding member]

Have you been in touch with either Flying Schools at Gamston? Normally good A/C availability there.'Tis a nice airfield although Netherthorpe would certainly teach you good short field technique. As most people will say get a feel for those clubs/schools that intrest you, it also depends on whether you want to stay local, I would certainly recommend learning in the UK, good for the economy!!

[farmstrip]

Yorkshire Lad,. .Wherever you do you're training suss it out before hand. Ask for personal recommendations, reputable schools won't mind referring you to them. Ask local pilots - and take their advice.. .Beware those who promise the earth and deliver nowt!. .Best of luck