Fly EASA - PLEASE HELP

[GAZ45]

I’ve posted on this topic before but received no response. I know that there’s a fair bit of info on this flight school already on PPRuNe but much of it is out of date or out of context.

I am considering a JAA PPL course there;

All I really want to know is if this school is any good?

I know that experiences always differ. Two people can do the same course at the same time and have entirely different experiences due to a variation of factors.

I would plan to give myself a week or so more than the advertised course length, and also an extra bit of cash in the account (maybe £300/400ish) for any hiccups or extra lessons needed. Given this information, is it worth while?
I get the general feeling at the moment that this company are ‘OK’ at best and horrendous at worst. I also hear horror stories of 5K spent and no PPL at the end of it!

So I’m just looking for decent opinions that exclude things like “my lift from the airport was an hour late and my room was like fawlty towers”, because these issues really wouldn’t bother me. I’m concerned with getting the PPL in the advertised time (give or take a few days), very little/no issues with payment, and reliability of aircraft/instructors.

Oh and lastly, I understand that getting a PPL in the states isn’t necessarily cheaper than the UK; I’m actually contemplating doing the license over there as I can rely on the weather and get it done in a small timeframe.

Cheers
G

[Sean H]

GAZ45,

I did my JAA PPL(A) SEP(L) Rating, Night Rating and VHF R/T Licence with EASA.
It is a good school and will do exactly what it says on the tin !
Give yourself an extra week, this is a wise plan.
Only pay for the 45 hour course. You should get it done on time. In fact, myself and other's I know, did the JAA PPL skill test when we had 41 Hours done. So after the test I, and others had to do another hour or so solo to bring us up to the 45 hour mark that is required for licence issue by the UK CAA. By all means, have extra money with you, but have it in your own hands or your bank account. DO NOT, pay them extra until you actually have to.
To sum up the experience quickly for you, you arrive in Florida, transported to Ormond Beach accomadation, Get to know the others in the house, wake up, Get driven into the school on your first day, sign contracts, get taken to local police station for finger printing, get taken to aero medical to get your FAA Cass 3 medical, get intruduced to your instructor, S/He will show you around the school and the aeroplane that you will learn to fly.
You will know the day before what time your flying lessons will be for the next day. When you arent flying, study the PPL confuser so you can pass your written exams. Try and get extra air experience with the hour builders that are there, ask kindly if you can join them. Before you know it, its all over and you are on your jumbo back to europe!
Wait around a few weeks, the CAA post you your licence, then your go to your local club or a private owner, get a checkout, get familiar with local R/T and local area.
Thats about it really. It will go really fast your month in Florida but you should enjoy it.
In my view, for value for money, you cant beat EASA. They are simply the most cost effective for those with the lump sum of the course price in there pocket and teh quickest means of getting the licence.
With regards to weather, its ideal for training. Avoid July/August if you can. Too hot, sticky, bumpy, rainy, windy, lighting'y etc lol.

[GAZ45]

Thanks alot mate! Exactly what the type of info I wanted!

The specific course I want to do is the JAA PPL Deluxe with RT and Night Qual package. I personally thought it seemed like great value, and I've contacted them a few times and they've been quite professional in the responses they've given. I just got scared when it came to a few sketchy reviews of EASA on pprune!

As for the month, I want to go Feb/March and I cant wait!

Cheers
G

[XLC]

Hi,
EASA used to be another school up to last year. Which means another management etc., old threads are therefore out of context.
As for the period of the year you want to go: I went in Feb/March at another school in Florida, close to Ormond, and weather was a problem (mostly too strong winds). Therefore yes, take at least another week extra. But above all have your TSA cleared beforehand, I lost a lot of time just because of snow (not in Florida but in Virginia where everything is processed).

[BobD]

Hi GAZ45,

I am going to EASA for 4 weeks from Feb 14th to do exactly the course you are interested in (Deluxe including Night Rating), so maybe I'll see you there !

If not, I can let you know how I get on when I return. I have already taken and passed 5 of the exams at the Ground Facility at LBA (to take some of the pressure off what will be an intensive course). I have also booked for four weeks rather than three, to give some leeway. Like you, I have found them very professional, and have been very happy with the service I have receievd so far.

Counting the days now !

[Ringway004]

Hi guys, finnaly someone is going EASA:D I guess I'm not on my own then. I'll also be going to EASA FL hopefully begining of Feb till March to finish off hour building and (I hope) do my SE CPL over there. So if I do go then feel free to hop in with me, though I'll need to get back into flying first lol since it's been nearly a year without flying. I can say that I have been to Florida before as I did my PPL and night rating at OFT which was a great experience and a good school (personally) but had its own issues at the time and I just don't want to waste any time, and EASA does look very cost effective. Not sure about the weather in Feb hope its not that gusty but avoid June/July summer season u get freaked out storms lol.:ok:

[GAZ45]

Thanks for all the information guys! Very helpful indeed. I most certainly want to get the PPL exams done before I leave for the US, how is this done?

The ground school pack offered by EASA is downloaded from the site as far as I can make out. Are books sent to you? And how and where do you book to take these exams in the UK? Do EASA have a facility that they use?

Cheers
G

[A and C]

Just remember that it is likely that you will need between 5 & 10 hours flying in Europe before anyone will let you fly solo when you come home.

The gin clear skys of Florida and "freeway" navigation are not anything like a European anti-cyclonic summers day!

[NazgulAir]

I've been at OBA and found it a good school provided you are self-disciplined and assertive. It worked for me; did not work so well for others inclined to partying with their roomies in their lively house.
As has been said, OBA is no more -- it's EASA now.

Both the JAA and the FAA medicals were done there, with negligible delay. For the FAA medical I had to visit the examiner at Spruce Creek, the JAA medical was done at Ormond Beach.

What interests me: is it really under changed management? Or is the same captain in charge, who just changed to a more marketable name, given that EASA rules in Europe now?

I still have a plan to go back there, so I'm interested to hear from posters with recent EASA experiences. Thanks in advance!

[Kengineer-130]

I went in October 2010 to revailidate my license.... I also went to OBA in 2006 to do my PPL/night rating/hour building.

Both times I went, I had a fantastic time, and achived everything I set out to do. The main thing to remember is that it is NOT a holiday :} (even though +28°, warm beaches and gin clear skys most days is heaven for most brits!) but a working trip that requires a lot of effort & dedication.

The instructors & staff are very professional & friendly, and will help you out whenever they can, but no one will spoon feed you and force you to study or carry out your preflight planning, which is where some people fell down. Overall I would highly reccomend them, and hope to return in the future at some point.

Have fun, work hard, enjoy a few beers and a BBQ after a great days flying and you won't have a problem. Some of the best times I have ever had :ok:...

Oh, and the golf club on the airport does great lunches!

If anyone wants a chat, drop me a PM with your phone number & I will be more than happy to answer any questions you have.

[AN2 Driver]

Question to those who've done it. You have sparked my interest.

a) Does anyone know if it's possible to do an IR revalidation with them? My IR expired ages ago, the Swiss CAA say I need a full new theoretical exam plus the skill check.

b) looking at their prices, I wonder if this would be the outfit to get my wife a PPL? Just for her to have a more interesting time when we fly together but also as a safety feature.

c) how is the theoretical stuff done (PPL and others)? Distance learning? We're based in Switzerland so Leeds is not really an option.

Thanks

Best regards
AN2 driver.

[com304]

I'm also searching for the right school for my PPL training (I am from the Czech Republic), starting June 1st. Would appreciate any experience regarding this school. Thx :)

[TomTomClub]

I do not know who you are guyz. I guess you r workin for EASA.
EASA in Ormond Beach is and will probably be for ever a chaotic and unfriendly school. Students have to sign a terrible contract. Accom. is over priced.

So, all the friendly comments about EASA musst be fakes!

I know what I am talkin about:suspect:

TomTom (PPL)
Stockholm

[kalleh]

I can only speak for the old management (as someone else asked earlier, is it really new management or just a name change?), I went there and had a great time. No one will hand hold you but effort and dedication will be rewarded.

TomTom, when did you go there? I went there in 2007 and accommodation was great and certainly a lot cheaper than hotel/motel!

[BobD]

OK Tom Tom, I'll bite.

I don't work for EASA, but last month I got back from having the time of my life whilst getting a PPL at EASA. Most of the other posts on this topic are spot on, you won't be spoon fed, and you need some self discipline to ensure your get everything done in time (when there are plenty of distractions around). Like other posters, I would recommend an extra week, to allow for weather etc. I can also agree that it can be pretty gusty around Feb-March. It was also pretty hot, so I think it would be almost unbearable in July-August.

I really can't understand the negative comments about this organisation. OK, they are a commercial outfit, and you will pay for what you get, but in terms of value for money, they are hard to beat.

I have been PM'd by GAZ45, and been happy to answer any of the questions he raised, so I hope he has as good a time there as I did.

Whilst I was there, I did a daily blog with photos for the folks back home, so if you want to see what the place is like, and read a bit more about my experience, feel free to visit


Florida Blog (http://www.rjdawson.co.uk/flying/blog)


BobD

[tomboo]

I went to EFT in January and had a great time with very friendly European instructors. I have a few point to bare in mind;

- Log every hour you fly against charges as errors can be made!
- Confirm EXACTLY what is/is not included in the price.
- Get TSA clearance before going (Or you loose flying days)
- Complete ground exams before going
- Allow two weeks extra, Florida weather not as predictable as they'd have you believe
- Don't bother with night rating (Flying at night with single engine is wrong!)
- Allow about £1000 for living expenses per month.
- EFT lend you a car, make sure you can get to the shops!
- Check you can fly twice a day or allow more time.
- With EFT you either live at the airport (not bad at all and I have a thing for good hotels!) or a 20 min drive away (hence the free car)
- Read as much as you can while out there.
- Internet is a must for weather and flight planning! (Free in the apartments at EFT)
- It cost me just under £9000 from the time I decided to fly until the rubbish brown wallet arrived on my doorstep!
- Don't worry about uncontrolled American airports, they are all mental....

[carlleehaylee]

I trained here in 2010.

Id give it a 5 out of then.

flyEFT was my number 1 priority but made my choice based on money alone and i regret it totally.

Theres also two JAA approved schools in California which I heard are awesome. Dont know many details but research these.

EASA just care about getting as much money out of you as possible. Teaching comes third (second being getting MORE money out of you).

Theres a bad vibe between management and instructors which creates an awful learning environment. Instructors look like they are being screwed by management big time. So imagine what that does to your learning.

You may get your license in the end (probably after additional time and money) but trust me, it wont be an easy ride. You will have to fight off the money hungry management.

Oh, and dont pay accommodation in advance. You can get a beach front apartment (all to yourself) in Daytona or Ormond Beach for 50 dollars a day. EASA charges that for room in share house.

A nice room in a share house in Ormond and Daytona go for abotu 155-150 a week (most with bills included) EASA charges 200 on a shared room basis.

And they make every student buy their own fuel tester even though they could just have one in each airplane. Why? Well, that way they make more money( e.g 100 students a quarter means 100 fuel testers x 6.50 dollars as opposed to 15 testers for 15 airplanes) Get the point?

how low can you go? The place is owned by an english guy so that may explain the pettyness...

[Jerry Lee]

If I were to attend either FlyEASA, EFT, Naples Air Center or another school that offers a JAA PPL course, would I have to study all the theory in advance and seat all the exams in advance? Is it possible the study to the theory in the classroom, seat the exams in Florida and would it still be possible to finish the PPL course within 4-6 weeks?

[Slopey]

Yes, but it won't be an easy ride.

I did that with OBA back in 2006, did the exams while out there. I'd done quite a bit of reading in advance, and had a like minded house where every evening we sat around hitting the books and asking each other questions - they were a good bunch and we all completed the course in 4-5 weeks.

But if you do it that way, you need to be very disciplined and hit the books constantly - then when not flying, get upstairs to the computers and go through the CD-ROMs/hit the books again. In the entire 5 weeks I was there, we all went out for a beer on only 2/3 occasions towards the end - otherwise it was studying.

Several of the subjects are really quite trivial, but several are not.

If I did it again, I would try and get as many exams done before I went, purely because it would reduce the workload when out there.

But if you have the right mindset, you can do it. It is NOT a holiday.

The people had issues with OBA when I was there all fell into the same trap - turned up not even knowing the exam requirements, took girlfriends/wives and wanted to spend some time being a tourist, or expected a structured daily 9-5 class environment, which it is not - it is self study, with the exception of excellent class based lectures on a Wed night (dunno if the same chap is still doing them (he's here somewhere), but they were great).

(Less great was the cycling back in the dark with a maglite in your mouth by way of bike light! [:])

[rmcb]

Save yourself the distress - do the groundschool before you go out there. There is a lot of information, but it is not hard work.

[cattardbezzina]

I've been at OBA and found it a good school provided you are self-disciplined and assertive. It worked for me; did not work so well for others inclined to partying with their roomies in their lively house.

Spot on. You definitely need to be self-disciplined to complete your PPL at EASA in Ormond Beach. Sadly, I saw too many of the friends I made there leave from our house to go back home 'empty handed'. It is definitely NOT a holiday - I got my PPL/night there in July/August 2011

I had a little less than three months between finishing university and starting my full-time job at home in Malta. I spent one month (right after finishing my uni final exams) reading and studying all the PPL books. I had ordered the school's package and received everything at home. So basically I went to Florida all geared up for the written exams (even took the books with me on the 9+hr flight to the US!). I passed all of them on first go - easy exams if you study properly! Then I had about 5 weeks there which was more than enough to get it done as at the end of the course I had a two days left to enjoy Florida as much as I could! And overall I was grounded for about 4 to 5 days due to weather and aircraft problems. I only had about 12 hours flying after two weeks there and I was getting worried - but once you get your first solo done everything starts moving much faster!

My experience there was not all positive though. I can mention a few things which I did not like at all - mainly the fact that their advertised '27 aircraft' are actually only about 9 which are in flying condition. To make matters worse I had opted to go for the PPL with the Cessna 150, mainly because I now fly the C152 and C172 at home in Malta. My first instructed lesson was on a C150 (N704FE) which barely got off the ground with two persons on board and full fuel, not to mention the terrible heat and humidity there in August - overall a horrible aircraft, and very dangerous - and that was their ONLY C150 available for me! That got me very worried, especially as I had to share the aircraft with three hour builders but thankfully I was the only one doing the PPL course on the Cessna at the time. Ironically, the other school at Ormond Beach (Sunrise Aviation) had a whole fleet of beautiful Cessnas :ugh: About half way through my course however a C150A got out of maintenance (N9890J) - and thank god for that - a much better aircraft which solved many problems for me.. I really enjoyed flying that plane - and it was out just in time for my cross country navs.

The over-priced (and rather filthy) accomodation is another point which others mention. First of all students are responsible for keeping the house clean. But when u get students who wouldn't bother cleaning, the filth tends to build up... at least while i was there the housekeeping lady gave the house a good clean up! Also only four weeks are included in the PPL package so I had to pay an extra $300 for my 5th week - that was the only unexpected / hidden cost that I encountered (to be fair however, they did tell me about it when I got there). Other than that, there were no other hidden costs for me - but only because I did my research properly before and read all the fine print! And the EASA houses are a short 5min bike ride from the airport - if you manage to get hold of a bike that is!

Its also worth mentioning that I was lucky to have a great instructor - not the case with all the students there. Having a good instructor will definitely help you get through it in a month.

Overall - I totally enjoyed my time in Florida but I consider myself lucky that things worked out my way. I would only recommend EASA to people who are really dedicated and have a good aviation background or basic knowledge to help get them started... and please don't go for their Cessnas! :=

PS: I still use my fuel tester today - so that $6.50 was worth it :)

[simonwells1971]

Hi GAZ45

I do agree that the it’s a good school for the flying but I would avoid putting too much money down in one hit as you will struggle to get any of it back if you need to.
I went over in November and stayed in their provided accommodation but on day two of my training went down with food poisoning and had to come home early. The house I was staying in was pretty filthy as the students already staying there weren’t very worried about cleanliness and probably caught if from within the house!! But I might have just had a one off bad experience and you will probably find it okay.
I am still waiting to get my money back that I already had put into my account and this has really put me off going back there again due this fact…but don’t let me put you off.

Cheers and good luck!

:ok:

[dkwinstanley]

Hi GAZ45

I was wondering if you went to flyEASA and done the PPL? as i am interested in how your experience went, as i am looking to use this school to do a PPL!!

[Slopey]

My first instructed lesson was on a C150 (N704FE) which barely got off the ground with two persons on board and full fuel, not to mention the terrible heat and humidity there in August - overall a horrible aircraft, and very dangerous - and that was their ONLY C150 available for me!

704FE was my favourite aircraft when I was out there - nice and light on the controls, and everything worked! Flew her many times, and she never let me down - pity you didn't like her.

(iirc, according to the POH, she shouldn't have been able to get off the deck with full tanks and two up on a hot day anyway!).

Far better than the heavy Aerobat they had with the flap gauge built into the door frame - that was a bit of an experience to fly. Did my skills test in that one.

Fun times! [:)]

[Sad11]

no uniforms at that school or wht?

[Whopity]

Is it possible the study to the theory in the classroom, seat the exams in Florida and would it still be possible to finish the PPL course within 4-6 weeks?Yes, it is possible, but the amount of time required to do the exams will to some extent depend on how much you know already. The new EASA rules dictate 100 hours of theoretical training before you can sit the exams. Whilst this may not be implemented immediately, at 8 hours a day that would absorb 12 days out of your allocated time. If you have the opportunity to get the exams out of the way before you go, I think most would advise you to do so. You are not eligible to take the flying skill test until all exams have been passed.