To PPL or not?

[sigibbons]

Ok so I have had a half hour trial flying lesson and have a family member that wants to buy me another.

Should I just go with another trial lesson or actually start my PPL?

The thing that concerns me if I start the PPL is getting the whole course completed in around 24 months I think it is? I may not have the time or funds to do the 45ish hours in this time period.



On another note, do those of you who have your PPL have your own plane/share in an aircraft or do you rent per hour from a flying school? I'm just thinking of the feasibility of flying if I do complete my PPL.


Many Thanks.

[Gertrude the Wombat]

getting the whole course completed in around 24 months
You can take as long as you like. The limit is that all the flying tests and exams must be completed within certain times of each other, but you can train for as long as you like before you take a test or exam and start the clock ticking. And if an exam expires, so what? - you just take it again.
do those of you who have your PPL have your own plane/share in an aircraft or do you rent per hour from a flying school
Some of each.

[BabyBear]

When I was your age I was up and down like a yoyo doing trial lessons and debating whether I should take the plunge. In the end I decided that not only was it expensive to get, but also too expensive to keep up. Twenty years later I thought what the hell, it's something I have always wanted to do and off I went to do it with the attitude that even if I don't use it I will have achieved an ambition. Now the debate is do I buy a share, or keep renting club aircraft?

Do I wish I had done it when I was your age, absolutely.

Best of British, whatever you decide.

BB

[sigibbons]

Cheers guys.

Thats brilliant to know that it's only the exams and test that have to be done within a certain time of each other. How many hours into the PPL training do you HAVE to start doing exams?

It seems like a pretty obvious decision, if I am going to be doing a few hours a year just start the PPL. The only thing that may happen is that if I don't fly regularly I may forget what I learnt in the previous lesson...


I've seen dual hours from £130-170, is the going rate somewhere in between?

[BroomstickPilot]

Hi sigibbons,

First of all, I agree with what Gertrude has said already.

I would point out, however, that the PPL is not '45 hour course'. It is a course for which the minimum flying training permitted is 45 hrs. In practice, most people take much more, typically more like 70 hrs.

The quickest and (possibly still the cheapest) way to get a PPL is to go off to Florida for 28 days and do it full time. (Having passed all your ground school exams before you go). You will then require a little extra training on your return to acclimatise you to UK RT, small grass aerodromes and weather.

If by contrast you are only able to afford one flying lesson a fortnight, bearing in mind the UK's rotten weather, then it could easily take a couple of years and over 100 hrs to get PPL.

Whether you join a syndicate after PPL, or merely hire from a club, depends on how much flying you intend to do annually. If you intend to do less than about fifteen hours, it would probably not be worth joining a syndicate, (where you would have to pay at least £50 a month standing charges before you do any flying). Furthermore, so far as I'm aware, except perhaps for the large non-equity groups, most syndicates are not particularly welcoming to those who intend to do minimal hours.

I suggest you take a look at three axis microlight flying instead. The aircraft used by the microlighting community are mostly better than ours and much cheaper to operate.

Good luck!

BroomstickPilot.

[Gertrude the Wombat]

How many hours into the PPL training do you HAVE to start doing exams?
Many schools want you to pass Air Law before first solo, although this is not a legal requirement.
If by contrast you are only able to afford one flying lesson a fortnight...
... then don't do that, as you'll spend two thirds of each lesson getting back to where you were last time, thereby wasting most of your money. Instead, save up for a few months, then book a batch of lessons at the rate of two or three a week until the money's gone, rinse and repeat.

[sigibbons]

Ok, so buy in blocks at a reduced rate and take maybe 5 hours every couple of months?


I have a family member contributing to this lesson coming up, should I expand on this and go for a 3 hour block to kick start my training?

Has anyone trained at or has any experience of Bournemouth Flying Club?

Thanks!

[Gertrude the Wombat]

buy in blocks
No. Do not pay up front. Read the many earlier discussions here, and the tales of woe from people who lost all their money when the school went bust, and the tales of woe from people who get stuck with crap instructors and lousy service once the school has got their hands on the cash.

[BabyBear]

On the other hand I have flown 10hrs in the last month and benefited significantly from paying for a 10hr block up front!

[BroomstickPilot]

Hi sigibbons,

I would say buy your lessons one at a time to begin with, until you are confident that you have both a good, regular instructor and a good club. Then, and only then, buy blocks of never more than 10 hours.

At some places, for example, you can find yourself flying with a different instructor for every flight, no matter what promises may have been made to you before hand. (There is always a 'reason' why your regular instructor can't fly with you). Don't tolerate this for a moment; move to another club. This is one of the reasons why you do not want to be tied financially to a particular club until you know they are going to treat you fairly.

Under no circumstances buy a whole PPL course, paying up front, because if you do they have got you by the 'short and curlies'.

Remember also that flying clubs in general operate on a wafer-thin profit margin and are apt to go bust suddenly and with no warning.

Broomstick.

[Molesworth 1]

If you book a lesson a week it will probably work out about twice a month as about half will be cancelled due to weather or other reasons.

I did my PPL in 55 hours. I think that is about average.

[stevelup]

It does depend to a certain extent where you learn.

I booked a lesson every week (September > July) and had just three weather cancellations and one tech cancellation (flat tyre during taxi).

[sigibbons]

Thanks guys.

So from all the advice given I think I will go for an hour lesson at one of my local school (Bournemouth), I can then see if it truly is something I want to pursue and check out the flying school to see if they are up to scratch.

Should I have any preference as to which aircraft to go for, as they have a selection offered at different rates. Should I just go with the cheapest at the moment?

"Dual Hire Rates

Robin HR200 £151
PA 28 Warrior (Petrol) £187
PA 28 Warrior (Diesel) £181
Piper Arrow 200 £241
Bulldog B120 £215
Diamond Star DA40 £199
Partenavia P68B £347"

Thanks!

[stevelup]

I did all my training in Robins - nice aircraft with sticks and really good visibility.

You won't be compromising much by going for the cheapest option there - in fact, I'd say you'd find the Robin a more engaging and enjoyable experience than the PA28's.

[BackPacker]

What I'm missing in this thread is the question: Why do you want to do your PPL?

Although it's probably the golden standard in private flying, it is by no means the only license that allows you to fly. And if all you want is to experience the magic of flight, there are some other options you should consider, including:

- Take up gliding. Generally much, much more inexpensive due to the club atmosphere. And it's tough. In a different way than powered flying, but certainly no less demanding.
- Don't fly a normal Single Engine Piston aircraft, but go for powered parachutes/ultralights/microlights or something else that's small, essentially far less regulated (thus cheaper) and has far less carrying capacity/speed (thus more frugal). This can bring the cost of aircraft hire down to maybe 50 UKP per hour or even less.
- Don't go for a full-blown PPL, but go for an NPPL. Less medical requirements, less training hours requirements, but you are essentially restricted to UK airspace (foreign airspace only after approval from the foreign authority - France now implicitly approves all UK NPPLs) and you cannot add things like Multi-Engine or an Instrument Rating to it.

All these options will help to significantly bring the cost down, which may mean that you can obtain and keep your license within your budget. Sure, you may be more limited in the capabilities of your license/aircraft but if you'd go for a full-blown PPL you might never get there at all.

[Miroku]

I did all my training in Robins - nice aircraft with sticks and really good visibility.

You won't be compromising much by going for the cheapest option there - in fact, I'd say you'd find the Robin a more engaging and enjoyable experience than the PA28's


Couldn't agree more! I also did my training on the Robin HR200 and wish I could fly one now, unfortunately my club has only Warriors and Cessna 172s. The Robin is much more fun to fly.

Regarding the number of hours to pass your PPL. I seem to remember that there's a formula which is connected to age. I can't remember the details but I know that it was pretty accurate. Someone may know it...........