PPL and GA

[spacemantan]

G'day all, am about to go for my PPL here in sunny Brisbane and have a few questions in regards to flying in general.

My only interest in GA is pretty much having the opportunity to fly myself, family and friends around and have no real interest in advancing to a CPL in the near future. Thus i'm looking for an aero club that would allow me the opportunity to take away a light aircraft for a weekend. Or if I do some travelling around Australia... To take an aircraft from a local field for a few scenic flights.

My question is firstly, can anyone recommend a reasonably good club to join here in Brisbane, and secondly do clubs in general allow this sort of thing.

It might sound odd that i'm asking this question because if i'm going for my PPL I should already have this knowledge... I've finished pilot training in the RAAF and my GA experience is nil... Hope that prevents any odd questions coming my way.

Cheers for your help in advance

[Arnold E]

I've finished pilot training in the RAAF and my GA experience is nil... Hope that prevents any odd questions coming my way.
Would think thats going to start a whole raft of questions.

[maverick22]

Probably your best option is to head out to Redcliffe. The Aero club has nice late model aircraft, however they are usually quite busy so you might have to book well in advance. If you're only interested in private flying, then why not give RAAus a go. Redcliffe flight training (down the other end of the aerodrome) have a great little RAAus school going with new tecnams and great facilities.

[spacemantan]

Sweet, cheers for the info maverick

[dudduddud]

Most clubs will allow you to take a plane away for the weekend if you have demonstrated reliability and airmanship.

I guess the main questions they will be asking themselves are things like 'will this pilot look after the plane while its not being flown vis-a-vis tying it down and putting covers on, parking into the wind, not parking on the runway! etc...'. They will want to see you can choose a good parking place etc at an unfamiliar aerodrome.

They also want to have decision-making skills demonstrated. It's easy for club staff to discourage a club member from taking off from the base when it's not such a good idea but it's much harder when the member is out of touch at a remote strip.

Usually they have a 'minimum utilisation' if you are taking the plane for a couple of days to cover lost revenue but in my experience if it looks like the plane wasn't going to be used much anyway (or you're mates with the club president!) this is often waived.

[FokkerInYour12]

For very little outlay, consider Brisbane Flying Group and their two Grumman Tigers, based at Archerfield.

Effectively you become a shareholder for a very modest outlay plus monthly fee. Very flexible rules regarding number of hours per day. Far more flexible than most flying schools.

I know how they operate and have heard good things about them. Plus Grumman Tigers are beautiful to fly and cruise around 130 knots at 75% power (40 litres per hour). Just make sure you nail the correct speeds on final and don't try to force the aircraft down (keep it flaring until it doesn't want to fly) and you'll have greasers most of the time.

Brisbane Flying Group (http://www.brisflying.org/)

[Dvschem]

If you have just finished your pilot training in the RAAF and are posted to the Brisbane area, I am assuming you are based at RAAF Amberley.

Jump on the base directory and ring the RAAF Base Amberley Flying Club. Ex-F-111 aircrew Grade 1 instructor and a C172N for $145 per hour tacho. Take it wherever you want for as long as you want.