Overseas PPL

[Jonnyx10]

Hello all,

I've been reading these forums for quite some time and find it a great source of information. I know this question has been discussed previously, however...

Does anyone recommend any over seas flight schools (currently based in UK) where myself can do an intensive PPL course - at a potential lower cost than the UK? I am also asking on behalf of a friend - as the rate here seems to be in and around the 8-12k mark.

Thanks in advance.

[Seanmul89]

Hello all,

I've been reading these forums for quite some time and find it a great source of information. I know this question has been discussed previously, however...

Does anyone recommend any over seas flight schools (currently based in UK) where myself can do an intensive PPL course - at a potential lower cost than the UK? I am also asking on behalf of a friend - as the rate here seems to be in and around the 8-12k mark.

Thanks in advance.

I'm doing mine at the minute in Ireland and it's probably the same in cost depending on how consistent I do it. The US is good start for sòmething less costly, but by the time you take flights and accommodation into account it might not be far off doing it here, but it will be done fairly quick with decent weather most of the time and I would assume they have challenging weather too at times.
Another would be Bartolini Air in Poland, they seem to have good feedback.

I will more than likely just stay in IRL to do it since I started here.

[Jan Olieslagers]

To what degree do you count the cost of staying abroad for several weeks, and the cost of at least one airline return trip?

You could of course consider the while thing a three weeks holiday, on which you'd spend those anyway. But if your total spare time and total budget are more limited, the idea might become less attractive.

[Martin_123]

why do you use the term "intensive course"? is your plan to go commercial? if not, why not go out every once in a while and enjoy yourself whilst getting a licence at some point?

also have you considered cutting the cost by getting the 10 ours of your minimum 45 hour journey to be done on microlights?

to answer your question - EASA licence in the states is not as cheap as people will tell you, you can get a PPL over the continent for about 7,8K, but then when you come back to UK, you don't know anybody, you don't know the weather.. you don't know the UK's RT procedures - you're pretty much useless. Good luck finding anyone who will be willing to rent you an aircraft. You get what you pay for!

[piperboy84]

I've done all my training in the US because I lived there and I find it hard to imagine that it would be any cheaper for a UK resident to go there and get a PPL. Firstly this idea that you can knock it out in 3 weeks just does not seem realistic. Yes the weather in California and Florida can be nice but they're certainly not immune from schedule busting IMC days, turbulence and convection sigmets, marine layers and winds that Orcadians would recognize. Then there is always the personnel and equipment scheduling issues that every school has no matter where you are. I suppose there as some Cracker Jack type folks that may at a stretch and with a bit luck get it done in 3 weeks but I suspect that for the 99% of us 'average Joe's' it would end up with spending a whole bunch more time and money on unplanned lessons, repeatedly extending hotel and rental car bookings, airline change fees, unexpected work absence and in the unfortunate event of a check ride failure sitting around for weeks waiting to get back on the examiners schedule while racking up several thousand more in accommodation and living expenses.

If I was starting out on a PPL and was determined to do it overseas I think I'd do it in Southern Europe, as a hop home prompted by choice or necessity is only a two hour ride and 100 quid on the discount airlines and returning back for more training would not raise any visa issues.

Again, that's just my opinion and as they say opinions are like arseholes, everybody's got one.

[LTCTerry]

Hello all,

Does anyone recommend any over seas flight schools (currently based in UK) where myself can do an intensive PPL course - at a potential lower cost than the UK? I am also asking on behalf of a friend - as the rate here seems to be in and around the 8-12k mark .



Flying is likely cheaper per hour in the US. However, if you add the cost of airfare, lodging, and meals to create the average hourly cost, that might not be the case. If you are going to fly a few hundred hours, maybe so.


If you are worried about cost, start with gliders or micro lights. Even if all of the hours don't later count towards requirements for the PPL, the information in your brain will save you time/money.


Imagine for a minute you take a trip to Spain and learn to fly. The weather there is not the same as in the UK. When you get back, you will have to 1) get checked out to fly locally and 2) learn to fly in UK weather.


If you simply learn to fly in the UK, then you build a long-term relationship with the place you are flying. You will be learning to fly in the same weather/environment you will later want to take you family/friends flying in. This enhances your safety and, you are spending your hard earned money in your own country.


Later, you can fly elsewhere for fun on holiday.

[Consol]

Beware, we have had a few people who did EASA ppls in Florida flying in my club. Very poor training and experience and they needed serious remedial training to fly safely here not to mention learning to fly off grass and dealing with weather in the north west of Europe.

[Ebbie 2003]

Hello

I can recommend NS Aviation at North Perry/Hollywood airport just to the west of Ft. Lauderdale in Florida.

I did my PPL there in Jan 2011 - I was then 51 so it did 'stick' - a very professional outfit - in some very, very complicated airspace - I have no worries about radios and airspace.

If you can make sure you get the low cost accommodation - they do commercial courses (the PPL, CFI, IFR......) thing as well as lots of we mere mortals doing their PPL.

I would suggest that Jan/Feb is a good time to do it as one does not get so much of the afternoon storms and buildups as one one does in the summer, but lots of nice crosswinds for landing practice.

Also - make sure you get the US training VISA and the TSA bla, bla, bla - just need it once - some people say they have ways around it - do not risk it.

The training at NS was very good - I bought an airplane 18 months later having no solo'd since the flight test, first solo three touch and goes (10 minutes) and then a 500 mile cross country through the Washington zone on the way down to Barbados.

Due to peculiar circumstances my airplane was stuck in the US for the past three years, only last week my first solo in three years Florida to Barbados - the training they gave me really 'stuck' - goes somewhere with 'commercial' pilot standards and complicated airspace - sets one up for life:)

[Martin_123]

The training at NS was very good

this has nothing to do with training - if you spend 3 years with no solo flying, setting out on a 1400NM journey over water will give most people a great deal of anxiety.. currency is the key! if you're not current and are not bothered by it, it tells me more about your psychological properties than it does about your training.

[Ebbie 2003]

And you sir are a nasty little man; oh my, oh my how can the insults fly - who rattled your cage.

No accidents, no incidents - since 95%+ of my flying is over open oceans in a single (yup, hundreds of miles from helicopter SAR) I do expect to go for a very long swim one day. All the sky gods who are so proud of themselves for making it across the Channel to Le Touquet were not properly trained - the risk has nothing to do with the distance, one can get very dead within the airport matey.

I think it his all about the training, that is my opinion - an opinion I backed up with some real live examples.

Some people do not get properly trained (thinking you may be one) - go a few months without flying and never get it back - personally I think the training I received at NS was excellent, the airspace is downright scary by the home airport, flying in it from day one means nothing is daunting.

[Martin_123]

And you sir are a nasty little man; oh my, oh my how can the insults fly - who rattled your cage.

No accidents, no incidents - since 95%+ of my flying is over open oceans in a single (yup, hundreds of miles from helicopter SAR) I do expect to go for a very long swim one day. All the sky gods who are so proud of themselves for making it across the Channel to Le Touquet were not properly trained - the risk has nothing to do with the distance, one can get very dead within the airport matey.

I think it his all about the training, that is my opinion - an opinion I backed up with some real live examples.

Some people do not get properly trained (thinking you may be one) - go a few months without flying and never get it back - personally I think the training I received at NS was excellent, the airspace is downright scary by the home airport, flying in it from day one means nothing is daunting.

I didn't mean to insult you, I've no reason to do so. What I meant is that apparently you are fearless and I don't think training can teach you that. I hear even from professional pilots that have been out from the game for a couple of months, they feel they are behind the plane at some stages of flight. if you can jump in and go just like that with a 3 year gap, fair play to you, I wouldn't be capable of doing that and I wouldn't blame my training for it.

[destinationsky]

I did my training in Florida in 2009. Back then I saved over £1500 which also considers the cost of accommodation and flight. I rattled it out in a little over 3 weeks.

The only drawbacks were that I spent a bit of time learning the airspace when I got home (not hard) and the RT is a bit different. But hey, I saved £1500 so that money went towards familiarisation and a few more hours meaning that I got more hours, more experience and had a blast all for the same cost as learning to fly in the UK.

Ignore those who say you don't get experience of weather... flying in FL gives you an appreciation of how quickly the weather can change and it means that you need to take more notice of the forecast. I remember a time where we were over 12nm from a storm yet still experienced up draughts and down draughts and extreme rain. You also get an appreciation of how temperature can affect landing/take off distances.

As previous posters have said "good luck with trying to find someone to rent you an aeroplane" or "they were useless when they came back" (para-phrased) they are clearly talking with limited experience and they have never flown in the states. Do your research and be realistic. Do your exams before you go so you can concentrate on flying and give yourself some time off to actually enjoy where you are.

Oh, and I got through my skills test on minimum time due to the continuity of training. No having a lesson one week then missing out for a few due to weather and then having to re-learn... 42 hours rattled out in 20.5 days and skills test taken in the minimum time.

Don't be put off by the miserable g*ts on this forum who are anti-doing-things-a-little-bit-differently. Enjoy the experience and learn in a way that is right for you. This forum is full of people who are negative and don't have a good thing to say and most are ill informed. Listen to those who have proven experience!