Time to Solo?
Thread Starter
Time to Solo?
Apparently the norm to go solo in South Africa is 28 to29 hours if you can believe the person quoted here Crash pilot 'lacked respect for authority' | Stuff.co.nz
I'm sure aircraft fly the same way in South Africa as to what they do here, my experience is that most pilots solo in about 10 to 15 hours.
Do you think this guy was trying to cover up his inadequacies by saying the average was 28 hours?
At 33 hours I think would think that something was seriously wrong and would be suggesting a change of career, which is what appears to have happened in this case but this chap went off to another country to continue his folly. I wonder what stories he told to explain his past.
What's also hard to believe is that he still intends to carry on.
Just for the record I do not know any of the affected parties, I'm just flabbergasted at whats quoted in this news report.
I'm sure aircraft fly the same way in South Africa as to what they do here, my experience is that most pilots solo in about 10 to 15 hours.
Do you think this guy was trying to cover up his inadequacies by saying the average was 28 hours?
At 33 hours I think would think that something was seriously wrong and would be suggesting a change of career, which is what appears to have happened in this case but this chap went off to another country to continue his folly. I wonder what stories he told to explain his past.
What's also hard to believe is that he still intends to carry on.
Just for the record I do not know any of the affected parties, I'm just flabbergasted at whats quoted in this news report.
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I'm just flabbergasted at whats quoted in this news report.
Either I am getting smarter, and wiser.. perhaps even grumpier, BUT..
Almost every media release is so inaccurate these days.
Are the media ever to be held accountable or perhaps headlines are just plain more important.
I am having trouble with the solo after 28 hours thingy also.
How long to get a PPL ..... 300Hrs ?
Shirley..
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Do you think this guy was trying to cover up his inadequacies by saying the average was 28 hours?
Hope this helps.
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An approximation is to get the persons age in years and half it. The answer is approximately how many hours it will take to get them solo
However either way this is irrelevant here, this guy took 33 hours and would be in his early twenties I would guess.
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Why does it matter, surely competence is the key not time served.
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I might agree in some circumstances, however the two are interlinked here to some extent. I mean taking 33 hours to achieve that what is normally achieved in much less that half that time, to me that indicates a level of incompetency.
was the instructor suited to the student?
33 hrs to solo is not abnormal. i have found the average to be around 20, some have been ready in 10, others have taken up to 60! before you all jump up and say 60! he should be doing something different, it was an older student, only flying about once every 2 to 3 weeks, fulfilling a life long dream, even so, she is now quite the competent pilot.
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Guys/Gals
RTF article, he was on a full time course, training to fly as an airline pilot, we're not talking about someone flying for a hobby or someone doing it as a retirement activity.
RTF article, he was on a full time course, training to fly as an airline pilot, we're not talking about someone flying for a hobby or someone doing it as a retirement activity.
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The article quotes the pilot in question as practising compass turns on the day of the accident. I'm not all that bright but I would have thought that doing this solo would have been counterproductive to keeping a good lookout?
This accident happened in the circuit area, so I would doubt that any sane person would be doing their Compass Turns there, however hearing stories about some foreign pilots anything is possible I guess.
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I personally did it in 10 but know of someone who has only just gone solo with high 20's and has been training full time 8-5 5 days a week for 2 years. He's sat over 80 exams to pass the 14 required... international students will never be told that they are inadequate to be pilots as they keep paying the money. Which I think needs to change.
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Careful.
I can't help thinking this guy is going to end up a scape goat for what is a tragic accident.
This is not the first mid air collision and won't be the last, so now must we assume each of these accidents in the past, or in the future, have involved or involve an aircraft piloted by someone who was obviously incompentent, or one who failed an exam or two, or took a while to solo.
God help any pilot from now on that has an accident or incident and has failed an exam in their career.
We all know someone who has struggled with the aviation career path and has taken longer than most, but come out at the other end alright, so to crucify this guy because of perhaps nationality, attitude (we all one or two of these) or the fact he has struggled, is unfair.
Easy to point the finger, but believe it or not, even experienced pilots get it wrong sometimes.
See and be seen!
Just my opinion.
And yes, I have instructed, and fly in and out of uncontrolled airfields regularly.
.
This is not the first mid air collision and won't be the last, so now must we assume each of these accidents in the past, or in the future, have involved or involve an aircraft piloted by someone who was obviously incompentent, or one who failed an exam or two, or took a while to solo.
God help any pilot from now on that has an accident or incident and has failed an exam in their career.
We all know someone who has struggled with the aviation career path and has taken longer than most, but come out at the other end alright, so to crucify this guy because of perhaps nationality, attitude (we all one or two of these) or the fact he has struggled, is unfair.
Easy to point the finger, but believe it or not, even experienced pilots get it wrong sometimes.
See and be seen!
Just my opinion.
And yes, I have instructed, and fly in and out of uncontrolled airfields regularly.
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Thread Starter
WOOLLY
I don't disagree with with what you have posted. In fact it has been my experience that those that take a little longer to get there quite often end up as the better pilots as they have to work a bit harder and eventually reach a better standard.
My point was the fact that this pilot was attempting to portray the fact that it was normal to take around 30 hours to go solo. I don't think that anyone on here would accept that amount of time as being the normal for reaching solo standard.
I don't disagree with with what you have posted. In fact it has been my experience that those that take a little longer to get there quite often end up as the better pilots as they have to work a bit harder and eventually reach a better standard.
My point was the fact that this pilot was attempting to portray the fact that it was normal to take around 30 hours to go solo. I don't think that anyone on here would accept that amount of time as being the normal for reaching solo standard.