Hour building in states at christmas, any ideas ?

[buster172]

Hi,

I need to do 10 hours before May as this is my second year of licence and dont want to have to take another test if I can help it.

I am thinking of going back to Florida where I did my PPL 2 years ago to build 25 hours for the price of 10 here.

Can anyone offer any other good schools that they could personaly recommend, I liked OBA but wouldnt mind a change.

I would like to fly C152/172 as I know these types allready.

Is anyone thinking of doing the same ? maybe we could have a mini stateside bash !

Thanks for taking the time to read this, all info is gratefully recieved.

Yours Buster

[ 25 October 2001: Message edited by: Buster172 ]

[Jockflyer]

Hi

I would fully recommend Merritt Island Air Services, Florida.

They have a great little strip and the people are great. Its near Cocoa Beach, so good to catch sun rays after flying.

They have a web site which I think is www.flyorlandoflorida.com, (http://www.flyorlandoflorida.com,) if not its in Pilot magazine. I've been there twice when I was building hours. They have/had C150/152, C172, PA28. They also have their own maintance hangar so no problem with a/c going tech. If you want to know more, I'd be happy to help. Drop me a line on my email.

Cheers

JF

[nickos37]

Hi guys,
I'm also interested of doing some hour building,pls let me know if you find a good deal,my e-mail is: [email protected] ;)

[buster172]

JockFlyer, Alfa,

Thanks for the replies. A friend of mine flew into Merrit Island and he also said it was a great strip, I had forgotton all about it. Thanks for the info and I'll check it out.

I may give you a shout if I need some more info on the place.

Thanks again for taking the time.

All the best,

Buster ;)

[GoneWest]

Now then, Query - wouldn't you think it pathetic if I came back with...

"Uh, oh, Buster172 is obviously employed in the marketing department of THAT school"

[buster172]

Gone West,

I am surprised you got that immpression. I have re read my original post to see if I gave the game away to easy.

Well, I have absolutely nothing to do with any organisation :mad:

I trained at OBA gaining my PPL, I liked it, and I so I said I like it. How does this convey I work for any organisation ??

I am interested in saving money, building hours that I cannot afford to as a full time student here in Britian. I would be interested in getting other peoples views as to where another airfield that is intersting, good value, reasonable aircraft, instructors, etc etc would be in Florida.

Is that not what this Forum is about, sharing experiences and thoughts ?

That is it, I am not pretending to be someone Im not :mad:

However thank you for your input, it was most informative and has helped me no end.

Buster

[Sensible]

Buster 172, that was a joke by GONE WEST. Briefly, whenever anyone talks about a school other than the one which you mention, QUERY immediately accuses thatperson of being in that schools marketing department. Before QUERY it was HENRI

Nothing aimed at you I can assure you.

Fly safe!

[GoneWest]

Buster...as he said, don't take it personally. It was pure sarcasm and not in any way aimed at you.

As Sensible said, the moment anybody posts a good report about any other school, they are jumped on and accused of being employed by the school.

It was nice of you to underline my point, however. The assumption that anyone who was impressed with service from their training provider should not be taken the way it always is by .... you know who.

Watch these pages over the next few weeks - it'll happen again - though I suspect Query will have changed his name again.

By the way!! There was a very strong message from the owner of this bulletin board a few months ago - stating categorically that no one is allowed to mention that particular school - either good or bad.

Enjoy the flying - congratulations on your PPL.

[Naples Air Center, Inc.]

Buster172,

Just a thought. If you are going to come out to Florida to fly 10 hours, why not do a night rating? That way you are current and you go home with an additional rating.

Good Luck,

Capt. Richard J. Gentil, Pres.
Naples Air Center, Inc.

[Sensible]

And Florida by night is at it's best, turn on the airport lights with a click or two of your R/T and flying in night air is so good!

[buster172]

Gone West, Sensible,

Please accept my sincerest apologies.

My rant was well over the top, a bad day which in no way excuses my actions.

Please check your inbox without delay.

Yours

Buster

[GoneWest]

Buster - kind of you to send an apology but not necessary.

We all jump to conclusions from time to time and it's hard to gain the full feeling of a message - even with emoticons.

Enjoy the pages of pprune - just be careful what you believe when you read it. There are many hidden agendas - and a certain guy from the beach area, just north of Daytona, Florida, is probably one of the most prolific.

Thanks.

[mad_jock]

Good idea about getting an additional rating but i would go for IMC. Its going to be much more use to you in the UK if the weather goes bad.

As for which FTO to use it is all a matter of cost. If there cheap there planes tend to be of lower standard than the more expensive FTO's. So if its a holiday and not hour building i would pay the extra so you don't get pissed off with crap planes. And choose some where that isn't in red neck country so you can go out at night. I could think of alot worse places to spend xmas than Merit Island.

Have a good one

MJ

And Gone West maybe query is a bit busy just now with his new kid to be ppruneing ;)

[calltheball]

Buster 172
I trained as part of my ATPL in Arizona. The time of year we were there (autumn) was very pleasant. We were based in the Phoenix area and it afforded many opportunities to visit many different airfields for training.
Pinal airpark (lots of stored heavy jets), Phoenix Sky Harbor (busiest two runway airport in the world(?)-at night!!) + many other interesting places.. I really enjoyed it, and although I don't wish to be accused of any advertising (I DO NOT work for any flying school) I would recommend UND aerospace at Williams Gateway.
I'm sure a search on the net would provide a list of many schools in the area at airports such as Williams Gateway, Falcon Field,Chandler,Gila Bend etc etc.
I would thoroughly recommend this beautiful part of the USA for flight training.
Best of luck whatever you decide..
Calltheball
PS what about a multi rating (the biggest saving on the UK -but keeping it current back here may be a problem..)

[onehunga]

mad jock,

Are you telling me you didnt like the sportsbar in WH. I know carol was a bit passed it but she only had eyes for you. Got my PPl as well thanks to cramming in 4 exams into the last week.

[mad_jock]

Good effort with the PPL.

Gone West do we need to be checking our 6 now when we do a rejoin? :)

Carol, as her daughter was the same age as me i just don't want to go there. Well sober anyway. She was a bit too wrinkly for even the Bosnia vets.

MJ

[Metro Pilot]

Why not try Sweden !
At our flyingclub we take £26/hour for a C150,£39 for a C172/PA28 and £78 for a Pa32
Membership fee is £65 and £7-8 a night in a nice clubhouse with sauna and Ryanair flies here for close to nothing.(But the weather could screw things up but i guess it's not a lot different from what you are used to maybe a little colder)
Hope to see ya all

[buster172]

GoneWest, mad_jock, calltheball, Metro Pilot.

Thank you all for your advice/information.

I think I may add a rating to my licence as mad_jock suggested. I have allways been interested in instrument flying and while I am aware it is not an IR, I would welcome having the ability to widen my flying experiences. The north east's weather has allready nearly caught me out !

If I complete the rating succesfully, does anyone know if the succesful pass acts as a revalidation for my ppl or do I still need to fly a minumum 12 hours.

Metro Pilot the prices you apeak of sound very reasonable, but I am running out of time to revalidate and really want to put the odds in my favour with regards to the weather.

Once again thank you for your time,

All the best,

Buster

[Sensible]

Buster, all of your IMC training will be as P2 - you need 12 hrs P1 in the second year to count for revalidation. P2 don't count and neither do hours in year 1

[mad_jock]

Under JAR its all classed as PIC.

This is a always being discussed and i have heard CAA examiners arguing this point. In the front of my JAR logbook it says you can log it as PIC with PICUS and dual in the other colums.

What the deal is with the old UK lic i don't know. I would email gone west because depending on where your going in FL he will proberly be the one signing off your lic.

Have fun with the IMC its great fun.

MJ

I am currently at OAT doing a brush up so i asked one of the air law tutors and they didn't have a clue either. But someone else mention that it would have to be a pretty tight examiner not to renew your PPL after having sitting next to you for 1.5hrs doing your IMC skills test.

[ 29 October 2001: Message edited by: mad_jock ]

[GPS Approach]

Metro Pilot,

Do you have a website for the flying club in Sweden you mention, or could you post some more details.

Many thanks,

GPS.

[buster172]

Thanks again mad_jock an Sensible,

I will have to find out for sure, maybe I will phone the CAA, do you think they will know :D

I think flying in and around the clouds is what its all about, there is nothing more beautiful than passing up through the cloud into the sunshine !

When I find out, I'll post it here so that there is no confusion,

Yours again,

Buster
:)

[QUERY]

Truly flattered that I am attacked on a topic on which I hadn't posted and, also, on a school which I have never recommended or commented upon in any way. The hypocrites then alerted everyone to their problem- you like Ormond Beach Aviation!
I have never questioned the fact that some Wannabes are both genuine and satisfied with the places they name but simply object to the repeated plugging of places on PPRuNe, by their agents, employees and owners.

My suggestion on your topic is that it is normal for novices to fancy a change of school, scenery etc. Equally true is that there is always somewhere which seems like it might be cheaper or better for hour-building but think carefully before you go somewhere different, especially if it is recommended on PPRuNe or just to save a few dollars or pounds.
Concluding with- if you are convinced you could do better, just go to San Diego or Sherburn or Shoreham or South Africa or Sweden or somewhere else- you(r money) should receive a very warm welcome anywhere at present!
Anything wrong with that advice?

[GoneWest]

Query - I'm interested to note that you are "truly flattered" - even though we are pointing out what a prat you are.

Also curious about the phrase "I have never questioned the fact that some Wannabes are both genuine and satisfied with the places they name ...." I have yet to see ANY posting where you have not immediately attacked the message writer as an agent of the company they recommended - normally in direct response to somebody asking for recommendations.

That - you @#$%^&* - was the entire point.

It really is nothing to be flattered about - indeed, it's more to be ashamed about.

[leading edge!]

Naples Air Center!! I gained my PPL there last year and strongly recommend them. If you thought OBA were good, try NAC as I found them quite excellent. If you want to drop me a line I will assist you re more info...Naples Airport is good experience too. It can be pretty busy which is never a bad thing for the grey matter!!

[QUERY]

re. Gone West's allegation:
'I have yet to see ANY posting where you have not immediately attacked the message writer as an agent of the company they recommended'
may be searched and dismissed as rubbish.

In any case, there are plenty of current topics, including this, on which I posted and in which companies are recommended by people and I haven't criticised them/it. Furthermore, I have just suggested going to San Diego, Sweden etc. if that's what suits.

I don't care where you go but search 'Gone West' and you will find Naples recommended as, no doubt by sheer co-incidence, does the person who posted after him !

[GoneWest]

Let me save you some time and effort...

I do recommend NAC - whenever I'm asked...and I do believe that OVERALL - I say again, OVERALL - they are the best outfit in Florida for JAA PPL training.

If asked for sepcific recommendations - I would suggest Debenair (TIX) for hour building when cost is the main factor, Britannia (GIF) for a JAA PPL if you want lowest price and/or are short of time (no more than three weeks)...and they have a GREAT atmosphere amongst the staff and students...for highly professional training (i.e. first rate JAA rated instructors) for either private or commercial courses my recommendation would be either European Flight Training (FPR) or International Flight Training (SUA). If you want a good centralised touring base then the vote goes to Orlando Flight Training (ISM).

Now - this information is based on my own views at this time and date. It is also based on the facts that I have not mentioned ANY of the "down sides" of any of these operators - each and every one has its own problems....some of them trivial, some of them quite serious (in my view).

Another point to take in mind is that I tell you this information openly, as a Florida based pilot with both JAA and FAA personal connections and flight experience - I do not pretend to be somebody else...say, for example, a private pilot in England when I actually own a flying school in Florida.

If I haven't mentioned anybody it is because I either do not know enough about them or do not recommend them if anybody asks me.

I am not employed by any one of these schools.

I have litle or nothing to gain wherever you guys go for your training - and it p****s me off no end when I hear schools whining about students having gone elsewhere. There is so much work coming across the Atlantic that there is enough for all the schools. What they ought to be doing is banding together to fight the JAA restrictions that are threatened, the Florida statute regulations that are seriously threatened and the bad name that Florida Flight Training gets when they all try to tear each other apart.

For ***'s sake, get together aim for the common good of the student - with the end result of the common good of the Florida training industry, with the common good of even more work being available to share out amongst yourselves.

I remember the time when Adrian used to put his efforts into contacting all the flight schools to fight against the first threat of JAA restrictions - that was in the days when I highly respected him....but at the moment???

[Jason2000]

METROPILOT;

Where abouts in Sweden is your flying school? Is it anywhere near Goteborg or Trolhatten???

Cheers

Jason

[GoneWest]

I missed a line out of the above...

If you are doing a JAA PPL level qualification (PPL, Night, IMC and - just maybe, multi) and you want my honest opinion...stay in the UK and do it there!!

And, NO, Query - I do not work for any UK based flying schools either.

[HollyDog]

Check out UKFT at Long Beach, CA. They're a good set up and the CFI is a dedicated instructor, with many hours under his belt.
I got my PPL finished there a few years ago.
The guy who runs the ops from the UK is ex Navy and a great chap - always willing to help. And NO this is not a plug - just a personal rec.
Dog. :)

[GoneWest]

QUERY...we are missing you...why have you not responded to my last posting??

(I actually know the answer - just making this current again)