C152 or PA28 for PPL/CPL training
 

hey everyone, another wannabie here chasing the dream to become a pilot, in need of advice.

i have about 40 hours and am about to advance to the PPL stage of my training in Australia. Now I am undecided about which aircraft to fly in as due to the influx of Indian trainee pilots into Australia, many schools are now offering the option of C152s for Nav training. My current school at the moment only has one warrior as compared to many more C152s, and secondly the cost in a C152 is of course lower than the PA28.
So the C152 is more available and is also cheaper but does it matter in the end? Would it affect my chances of being hired in GA after completing my CPL? And some one please reassure me there are jobs in GA for new CPL holders with 150-200 hours? (i cant afford a instructors rating...) Oh, and would anyone know where i could do a MCC to supplement my CASA CPL?

Your comments and feedback much appreciated :)

Those two a/c are much of a muchness really. Both completely useless in commercial flying and both pretty simple and easy to fly (perfect for pre-ppl)

If you are looking at going CPL in the near future just jump ahead in your timeline for a minute and have a look at which school you will do the CPL with. Then look at what aircraft they fly/what aircraft you will want to fly. Ie for CPL you need to do it in a CSU equipped a/c with a TAS of at least 120kts. If you want the best chance foroppurtunities after flying school then do it in a cessna preferrbly 182 as this is the entry level single used in commercial ops.

Now stepping back for a minute- say you will be flying a 182 in your CPL training then go down the 152 route. Even though they are completely different you will get used to high wing and cessna design features by then. If you are just going to be sitting on a PPL for a while then go the PA-28 route, 4 seats, bit more speed, more versatile etc. If money is tight and you can live with not getting anywhere too quickly then just go the 152.


Yes there are.......but you have to find them!

can't help on the last question

1. Not only do you have to find the jobs, you also have to be ahead of the many, many, many other hopefuls with near-as-dammit *exactly* the same entry level qualification that you will have.

All that can be said is that the persistant or lucky or well connected newbies tend to be the ones who get jobs. Eventually.

2. MCC is a JAR 'thing'. It doesn't exist within the Oz licencing system. That doesn't mean that some company can't offer some sort of MCC course - just that it's not a recognised qualification as far as Oz rules are concerned.

Using a PA28 would really have no practical benefit in the training environment. The Warrior is more comfortable than a 152, but that's about all.

If you're going to stop at PPL, the Warrior is a more useful aeroplane, but training-wise, if you move from the 152 straight into a CSU (e.g. Arrow/Dakota/182 etc) it would be no harder than moving from a Warrior into the same aircraft.

The extra speed (all of about 10kts) of a Warrior is basically irrelevant for training because you're flying the same number of hours regardless of which aircraft you fly. The only difference would be you could go a bit further on your navs in a Warrior.

I'd stick with the ol' 152 and save your dollars. Maybe even consider using that saved money towards doing your CPL on a multi.

Assuming you wish to gain a CPL then go for the (slightly) bigger aircraft. Down the track you will need (a) experience dealing with passengers, even friends exert subtle pressure and (b) friends to share the cost of building some command time - more seats - more friends - less dollars per seat!

Not for ALL of the training though, only for the flight test and enough of the advanced training to cover sequences and ensure competence on type prior to the test.