Recommendations for training in US

[Skysurfer66]

Hi all,

Firstly, apologies if similar questions have been asked!

I am looking for recommendations for flying schools in the US (it's a cost thing!). I have a pretty specific set of requirements....

I have a lapsed PPL with 280 hrs TT. Not much I know, but I am looking to get back into the air again! My aim is to find:

1. A training school where I can undertake an intensive course to renew my PPL, do my IR and FAA Commercial. It needs to be intensive, as I will be finishing a contract here in the UK, spending the few miserly pennies I have saved, and need to still pay for my mortgage in the UK etc... so need to minimise the time I am out of work!

2. I would prefer a smaller organisation, I guess you could call it a "Mom and Pop" type flying school, where there is more focus on the individual, and you are not one of a huge group all vying to get through the course, trying to get air time on few a/c etc.

3. The school would need to be M1 Visa approved, (I guess?).

4. I would hit the books here in the UK before going out to the US, and would get the Class 1 medical etc prior to going out, so I can hopefully compress the timescales as per point 1.

5. I am happy to go anywhere in the US, but obviously would prefer to go somewhere where weather isn't going to impact on schedules.

6. I have been hurt in the past by a South African FTO which shall remain nameless, contracting for money up front for cheaper hours etc.... I know, I know..... Hence, I would prefer somewhere that people can recommend without bias.

If anyone can give me any idea's, I would be grateful.

[kaptn]

It seems you're asking for the eggs & the chicken money !
1-Your PPL never expires, however you'll need to have some current flying to keep on going up...FAA Medical should be done quickly (within a day or so), however TSA approval might taker longer.
A good school in a clear weather area as far as I know is in Florida...Depending on the pricing (wet or dry), some well known schools like American Flyers, ATP flight school, Delta Aviation Academy...from the top of my head,these school should meet what you're looking for...hope that helps.

[sapperkenno]

This is their website (http://www.aerobatics.com)

I don't fully understand your requirements, but if you have a look at the website I linked to, it will show you what they offer.

I can fully recommend them (I did a FAA instrument, commercial, multi-engine, instructor certificates and ratings there) as can many others.

You have an FAA Private Certificate, correct?

To answer your numerical points;
1, Yes, but I don't know if you already have a standalone FAA private, or a UK one, or what?!
2, Yes, they are a mom & pop outfit, read their website.
3, They are SEVIS approved for the M-1 visa, and offer part 61 and part 141 training.
4, I don't know what medical you are going on about, FAA or JAA. To do the FAA stuff you will need only a FAA Second Class medical. No need for any JAA one, unless you have a based-on (piggyback) FAA private, in which case your JAA PPL must be valid medical-wise... I don't think the FAA care if you have a lapsed SEP rating on your JAA licence, as you can just do a flight review to get your piggyback one legal and use that. Once you have an FAA Commercial, you can forget about your private... But you will likely do the Instrument Rating first, so you need a valid licence/certificate in order to complete that
5, They are in Arizona... The same state where Oxford and Lufthansa train. It's a desert environment, and flyable pretty much 99.9% of the year. Forget Florida.
6, I'm not biased, just recommending a school. I'd never heard of them until someone told me, so I'm just passing on the info.

[zondaracer]

1-Your PPL never expires
. UK PPLs expire

A good school in a clear weather area as far as I know is in Florida...Depending on the pricing (wet or dry), some well known schools like American Flyers, ATP flight school, Delta Aviation Academy...from the top of my head,these school should meet what you're looking for...hope that helpsThose are pilot factories, not mom and pop shops.

I agree with Chandler Air Service.

[Skysurfer66]

Hi guys,

Thanks for the replies. I guess I didn't put enough information into the original post...

My expired PPL(s) are South African and Zimbabwean, and yep, they both expire.

My aim was to go to the US, do the FAA PPL flight test (after a quick refresher) in order for me to do my instrument rating, and then go on to do the Comm.

I have a JAA class 2 medical, as I was initially intending to do my JAA PPL to begin with, but I recognise that this medical is not going to do anything for me if I go the FAA route. I propose to do my FAA commercial medical (not sure if this is class 1 or 2), which I am assuming will cover the PPL element too? Surely there is no need to do 2 FAA medicals?

sapperkenno, thanks for your response, very useful and informative.

I know that my requirements are pretty specific, with wanting an FTO that will look at my previous experience, low pupil:instructor ratio, ability to progress quickly etc, and it is really useful to get recommendations and understand peoples experiences, as it is pretty hard to make a judgement call based on websites!

Thanks once again for taking the time to respond guys!

[zondaracer]

An FAA class 2 is required for CPL, and it will cover you for PPL privileges, so only one medical required. You might as well get the first class medical while you are at it, for various reasons, unless you don't meet the requirements.

[Skysurfer66]

Cool, thanks for the advice ^^ Zonda!

[Jwscud]

Another +1 for Chandler Air Service. Learnt more in 10 hours doing a checkout and some Aeros with their instructors than I had in the previous 80 or 90 odd hours I had when I went over to fly with them.

[B2N2]

Sky, I send you a PM :ok:
They have experience with South African PPL's

[this is my username]

I'm just back from Tailwheels Etc at Winter Haven. They certainly meet the "Mom & Pop" requirement. Did FAA PPL / IR / CPL / ME in just under 6 weeks, arrived with 10hrs aeroplane experience and lots of rotary-wing time.

Student : Instructor ratio is 1:1, you just share an aircraft (typically with one other student / Instructor pair).

As with any school how well you progress depends a great deal on how well you get on with your Instructor.

PM me if you want more info.

[jeff spicoli]

unless you are intending to do some commercial flying under your FAA certificate ("exercising the privileges"), you will only need a 3rd class medical for your FAA practical test, so don't waste your money on a class 1 or 2 if you don't need to.

[MAW CPH]

I did my ME IR CPL (+SE CPL) with Sky Venture Inc. in Fayetteville, Arkansas, in 10 days in November last year.

I had a FAA PPL IR when I arrived. I had the same instructor from start to end. They kept their word regarding price, a/c availability, and quality of aircraft (Piper Arrow and Seneca with Garmin 430W and old dials). The school said before start that it would be hard and it was.

I can highly recommend Sky Venture Inc. for FAA-training or ME-building. Fair prices, well maintained equipment, and a service-oriented management and staff.

Cheers;)

[Gomrath]

My aim was to go to the US, do the FAA PPL flight test (after a quick refresher) in order for me to do my instrument rating, and then go on to do the Comm.

You will also need to be well prepared for the FAA written test before you can take any PTS. The PTS also comprises a fairly rigorous oral component with the Examiner so you will also need to be well familiar with the FAR's etc.

[Dibies]

Another +1 for Chandler Air Service.

I did my PPL and hour building in 2011, old fashion way of teaching: stick and rudder. You have as well the opportunity to do some aerobatics.

And not to expansive.

[Captain Mainwaring]

I would like ask if anyone can recommend a school having exactly the same good qualities but with a JAA license, fATPL at the end of it.
thanks

[INNflight]

Check out Prairie Air Services near Wichita, KS.

Did all my FAA training there, literally a family-run flightschool at an airpark (= house with taxiway and plane in the garage) with nothing but flying nuts living all over the place with their aircraft.

Very good prices (Kansas is not the most interesting place, obviously, but still.) and excellent instructors. Herb (the owner) has done nothing but instruct FAA ME IR for the past 30 or so years and flies his planes with eyes closed and legs twisted better than you, me or anyone else ever will.

He's also a mechanic and does all the maintenance himself, meaning very short downtimes and there's 30+ airports / airstrips in the vincinity of Wichita - I stopped counting.

Give him a call, the website may be outdated. Great family to spend time with, too - courtesy car for students there and you can live in a student's wing next to their house.

Won't look back.

[shawshank78]

With regards to Chandler Air I'm looking at somewhere a bit different from the norm in Florida and noticed the Pilot Proficiency course they do.
Looks good as feeling a bit rusty through not flying in 4 months.
Has anyone done this and are the hours classed as dual?
As from the UK can this be done on tourist visa.
Want to do about 25hrs in 2 weeks before hopefully enrolling on CPL course in UK.
With flying in U.S. I still have the green FAA card as long as everything current is that all that is required still for hour building.

Thanks

[zondaracer]

Is this what you mean by "classed as duel?"??

http://www.mousqbaretous.com/Lanne2003/images/duel.jpg

[shawshank78]

If you've nothing better to do than that crack on.

[Hitbacker]

Can only confirm what INNflight said about PAS, Herb has definitely the biggest bang for the buck. Flying checkrides after going through his quite demanding and meticulous training is a joyride. The rates here in Wichita are incredible (both rental and training), the selection of any kind of approach within short distance almost mind-numbing, any small village here has a well-maintained airport or airfield due to the training done here during WW II. I just did a x/c to LAX with some sightseing, had to wait 30+ min in Goodyear before takeoff. Here? Any vector, any approach, you name it, is done. Controlled and uncontrolled, practise area nearby for airwork, FTD in the house (recommendable, Herb is incredibly structured in his approach, the sim is harder than the Apache 76HK). No wasted time on the ground since the hangar is the garage on the other side, and 40 m from the taxiway; live in with the family at a "3 meals a day" 700 $ a month; weather not like in Arizona but 12 out of 14 days flyable even in the winter. Take the rates from the homepage and add 50 % to most, still unbeatable. Really honest treatment to any aspect (looking at your past experience).

Any questions, glad to answer it (PM). Cheers!

[Jerry Lee]

I do suggest you Skymates, in Texas. It's a very friendly school and not expensive at all.
Another flight school that I would suggest is Century Air, in New Jersey but very close to NYC.

[Gomrath]

I do suggest you Skymates, in Texas. It's a very friendly school and not expensive at all.
Another flight school that I would suggest is Century Air, in New Jersey but very close to NYC.

Do you actually have personal experience of either of these two schools?
I ask as a few months back you had not commenced flight training so wonder what you are basing this recommendations on?

[peterh337]

Captain Mainwaring (http://www.pprune.org/members/20665-captain-mainwaring)

You sent me an email but the reply bounces, and you have also disabled any replies via this forum :)

[felixflyer]

Why is there so much variation in cost for the FAA IR at different schools?

I know there are many factors that can change and different overheads between large schools and the mom & pop type, but in the links above we have one school charging under $4000 for an IR and others around $10000.

[zondaracer]

I haven't looked at the different companies but there could be several factors.

Old plane vs new plane ... Speaks for itself
Location... Some parts of the country, aircraft rental just costs more
Simulator... Use of a simulator brings down costs a little typically
Part 61 vs Part 141... Part 141 utilizes a lot more dual training, so you are paying for an instructor on every flight.
If it is part 61, maybe they are adding the 50 hours x-country requirement to the course, but like I said I haven't looked at the websites