Seaplane ratings Lake Como

[BRAKEOUT]

Anyone got any experience of the Aero Club Como who can do EASA seaplane ratings? Thanks.

[Forfoxake]

See thread below entitled:

https://www.pprune.org/private-flying/624430-seaplane-rating-sea-float-rating-easa.html

See also some mixed reviews on Trip Advisor, though mainly about the organisation of trial/sightseeing flights.

[rudestuff]

Never flown there but I have visited. They seemed friendly enough - there was a monthly membership, but a 172 on floats was about €175 an hour - cheaper than one on wheels in the UK! I think it's 8 hours for the rating and they'll let you solo. There are plenty of hotels and restaurants you can land at too.

[Gertrude the Wombat]

Yes, I've done it.

[Less Hair]

What would be typical destinations to go to for some XC-flight? Would something close to Venice be possible?

[Pilot DAR]

We were planning to stop and visit Lake Como in the amphibian, but found that they had rather restrictive opening hours, and our arrival/departure would not be permitted during their closed hours. Thus, I elected not to go, as we would have been closed in for several days. I cannot speak for their allowing XC flights. However, consider the conditions, and infrastructure possibilities for such a flight. It's 160 miles from Como to Venice, with two lakes along the way. Yes, you could fly that distance, but if you arrive to Venice, and cannot land due to water conditions, you must have a reasonable alternate choice, and there may not be one. Can you get fuel and mooring at any place other than Como?

Were I to be the operator of the floatplanes at Como, I would want to be really assured that any cross country flight had lots of opportunity for alternates, and unplanned situations. It is really inconvenient to have your floatplane landed other than at a suitable water location. A land forced landing imposes a large task in getting the plane home. Even an uneventful water landing with a minor maintenance problem can become a big event. Locally here in Ontario, the floatplane schools are very restrictive where you can take the planes, simply to minimize effort should something unplanned occur. Over the years, I've flown a number of flights (and a few drives) to provide away maintenance or recover a floatplane which could not be flown home. The plan for an XC in a floatplane must be well though out...

[Jan Olieslagers]

There are precious few places in Europe that allow seaplane operations anyway. Belgium has just one, the Netherlands with its rich maritime tradition not many more. France has the historic seaplane bases at Marignane / Lac de Berre and at Biscarrosse, Switzerland used to have some but it seems to me they are dwindling.

For ultralight seaplanes, the situation is less bad, France has 20 aerodromes for them. And I hear rumours that in Spain and Portugal ultralights can and do alight at non-official places on the coast, near to restaurants or so.

I cannot remember ever hearing of cross-country seaplane flights in Europe, recently. Which of course does not mean it cannot and doesn't happen.

[Piper.Classique]

Might I suggest using a amphibian if one is available?

[Gertrude the Wombat]

Might I suggest using a amphibian if one is available?
A favourite way to kill yourself in a floatplane is to land on water with the wheels down.

I have decided that this will never happen to me because I will never get into an amphibian.

(Other people choose different risk mitigation strategies for this one.)

They did have at least one amphibian at Como but I wasn't going for a ride in it.

[Pilot DAR]

It's unlikely that an amphibious floatplane would be available for rental or primary float training, 'just too expensive. They sure are nice for traveling cross country though. We flew Bergen to Dubrovnik over a few days in the amphib, and it worked out fine. It ended up being super handy when Split airport closed (due to being too busy), and I could not land there for my meeting. With a lot of negotiating, I was allowed to land at the water aerodrome in Split harbour, so made it to my meeting.

Yes, landing an amphibious floatplane wheels down on water is risking being fatal, a friend of mine perished from such an event in early August. If some people prefer to avoid the increased risk, that is their informed choice, and to be respected. That said. we manage lots of risks while flying, and I see wheels down on water to be very preventable by pilot attention, compared to other risks which are equally dangerous, and much less within the pilot's skill and attentive technique. I have two amphibians, which I fly regularly. The drill is clear, landing gear position observed, and spoken out loud relative to the landing surface twice before every landing. I don't insure my amphibians for hull, I accept the risk myself. I used to insure the first one, but when the second one came on line, twice that rate was too much, and it does not get flown enough to warrant the cost.

The club at Como obviously has things very well figured out, they've been at it for a very long time. And, like any business, they're in it to profit. So what they charge will be reasonable, relative to the costs of their operation. I know that in North America this past summer, floatplane crashes were disproportionately high, and insurance has increased a lot as a result. I've been told that it has nearly doubled for experienced amphibian owners. My insurance will come up next spring, so I'll find out then, but as I don't plan hull coverage, increases will be modest.

Remember, like helicopters, floatplanes and amphibians are no more dangerous than your basic landplane. It's the operation, and vastly increased choice of landing areas which may be explored, which increase the risk. This is what the insurer's know. If a floatplane only operates from one lake, and only in certain conditions, it's risk is really not that much more than a wheel plane on a runway. The floatplanes local to me are rented out that way - home lake only, unless another lake is specifically trained to that pilot.

[BRAKEOUT]

Thanks all for your responses, appreciated.