How many circuits before solo?
 

I appreciate this is a bit like asking how long's a piece of string and related to student aptitude, conditions, sequence of training etc, but just to get a feel, how many circuits did you perform once you started the exercise before you went solo?

A lot, over several hours!

ircuits
 

Perhaps a better question is how many landings without your instructor haviing to correct or comment before you go solo ?
If he/she is smiling when leaving your aircraft then it won't be many. On the other hand if it is a serious expression then you might expect a few more.

I've been trying to remember this recently (being too lazy to check my logbook!). I would say, ballpark figures, maybe 10hrs in the circuit before first solo, on average (excluding go-arounds, orbits, etc...) about 6 circuits per hour. So that's 60 circuits.
I'm prepared to be corrected, but this seems reasonable to me.
But as has been said, it's all about quality, not quantity. I'm going through it all again at the moment doing a tailwheel conversion and I've prepared myself for an indefinate number of circuits! On any given circuit I'm getting at least one thing wrong, nearly always including the landing. As a result I'm getting comments from my instructor on a regular basis (though only one major correction so far!) and so I accept that soloing is a way off yet.

lol
 

Don't worry. On this website, you can be pretty much garaunteed of that in record time.

Can't remember exactly but around 18 hrs total flying before solo.
There's no rush,so enjoy it.

There are a few pratts on this forum but I imagine there are on other ones.;);)
There are also a vast number of experienced ones here ,that give us all valuable advice!
It might pay you to look at an old thread called Zero to 45 by Mazzy.
I'm sure that's not the right name but someone will post it here.
Lister:)

That really varies a lot... From when I started doing the pattern in earnest I needed four dual lessons before soloing, 26 circuits all in all. But then I already had 13 hours and 25 landings when I started the pattern excercises... I have seen many people at my school needing much more than that (and ending up successfully obtaining their PPL!), and a few who needed way less...

Upwards of five hours in the circuit, at 6/hr, so 30 minimum.

enough to go solo.....

Lots of circuits over about 17 or 18 hours. Partly due to weather, I got a lot of experience of various conditions, and partly due to my ineptitude.

From that I would agree with Lister and say don't be in too much of a rush. Make the most of the different conditions and the fact you get to experience them with the instuctor.

Hmm .. complicated?
 

I suppose if everything always goes to plan it might take forever! I met all sorts of situations at the busy airfield I trained at, and I wasn't ready until I felt that I knew pretty well how to deal with anything that might arise.

And once you have gone solo, guess what you will almost certainly do for the next few lessons. In my case it was, of course, lots more circuits. Going solo just meant a better rate of climb (which changed the routine a bit), a better view out to the right, space to put things, and nobody to remind me about the things I might forget.

Oh - and counting my own touch-and-goes.

And I met a few new situations I hadn't seen with an instructor. I quite missed the company!

This really is one of those "piece of string" questions, I have known students go solo at under 5 hours (very rare), I also took over a (not yet solo) student in my early days of instructing who already had over 50 hours and must have done at least 200 circuits, he had been recommended by at least 3 instructors to pack it in but continued because he enjoyed it, I took him out of the circuit and we just had some fun then did 3 circuits at the end of each detail, he finally went solo at about 60 hours having done probably another 10-15 circuits and eventually got his PPL.:ok:

I did a lot in my 23 hours to solo. Some of those circuits were memorable (read that as bad, or near disasterous), which is the stuff good learning is made of.

I still do a lot. Especially while tugging gliders. A good approach and landing is still very rewarding. A bad one is still very humbling, helps keep the ego in check.

-- IFMU

Im gonna be 1 of those prats who correct people! haha!

Bjornhall, a Circuit is a circuit. A pattern is a maneuver carried out whilst being asked to hold position. Pattern is often a word commonly misused for circuits.

I soloed after 20 hrs, they say between 15 and 20 hrs usually.

12 hours on a 150. Have 19,000 now. Still remember the early ones though.:)

They say it 's about fifteen to twenty hours, but then again it also depends on your instructor. I had one instructor who was keen to let me go at about twelve because he was confident that I could fly but he retired [instructed for twenty years] before I got there . My next instructor was a lot less experienced and therefore less confident in his own decisions, so with him making the decision I went at seventeen hours.

I do however recommend saying ALL your checks out so the instructor can hear them, that way he/she will know that you know whats going on and let you up solo maybe a little earlier. Just enjoy it though :ok:

It took me 2 hours and 30 minutes but I have to say that I was only 16 years old so you learn faster and I had done some glider flying.

On the other hand, I know one guy that recently needed 100 hours before getting solo.

In the Air Force where I instruct, the students get 10 hours of circuit training to get solo, if they fail they get 2 extra hours, if they fail that they are out. But before starting the circuit work they get 12 hours of general flying (SLF, climb, climb, descend, turns, stall clean, stal landing configuration, SLF in other configuration, range endurance, emergency descend, steep turns)

Bart

Having checked my ancient logbook (Vol 1) I can report a total of 4.8 hrs of circuits before First Solo. At some 6-7 mins per circuit this comes to .. err .. umm .. say 45 ? Bit of a guess really.

Speaking as an (ex-)instructor, I would let them loose after they no longer scared me and demonstrated a sporting chance of return to earth without damage to anything or anyone and an appropriate level of self-confidence. This could be anything from a minimum of about 4 hours to one very determined, patient and eventually successful lady in her 60s at about 20 hours on the circuit.

I agree that, in general, the younger you are the quicker you will learn. But, cost aside, it is not a race so enjoy it. I loved doing circuits while learning and I still do after 30+ years flying.

SI

Till your instructors happy!!! could be a million hours or could be 5, he will know when your ready.

I got solo in 3hrs 40 mins from scratch which was an oddety I supose but I do like to bring it up where ever possible:ok:like the work I do for charrrritttyyyyyy. :rolleyes:

The original poster answered his own question, there are simply too many variables to provide a definitive estimate. Consider student aptitude, instructor experience and skill, the chemistry of an individual student/instructor relationship and the permutations are endless. An important factor, of course, is continuity of training. All else being equal, someone on a full-time course, flying most days will progress more quickly than the student who only flies occasionally. The important thing to remember is that time/number of circuits to solo has little bearing on the eventual competence of the licenced pilot who emerges from the training.

Circuits are done under such high stress that the student learns very little about flying while doing them. So the answer can range from little to loads and loads.

They are an aviation tradition, along with the circular slide rule ;)

Too many variables example as follows:
 

My training was very broken that was over a 4 year period,approx 10 hrs then a year brake another 10 ish hrs 18 month brake and recovery from a smashed leg, so i could effectively say i then started again from scratch, i then went solo after 10 Hrs. so i had logged 30 hrs in over 4 years to solo, i used to be embarressed by that as it seems alot but when broken down and skill fade factered in its no so bad and i could posiblyargue i went solo in 10 hrs form when i restarted as the brake was so long.

I then went state side for 2 weeks got as far as first solo X _country, weather of all things lost me 5 days, A/C availability 2 days so never got to complete X Country qualifier or sit skills test, returned to the UK, no money left :(and haven't flown in 4.5 yrs, :{one day will eventually finnish i hope.:(

Thanks all. Reason of asking was that I've been in the circuit for ~5 lessons (35circuits I think), though I'm aware that another 3hrs of solo consolidation in the circuit is needed afterward. Seems a bit of overkill to me and would far prefer to have an instructor doing those 3hrs in progressively worse conditions which to me would be better experience?

I would have been in tears if I'd had to do 3 hours in the circuit after soloing... :sad: Almost all of my 10 hours solo was x-country, 8 of them done in one go at the end of my training... Loved it! :)

Funny how different things are done in different places; seems training in Sweden is nothing like doing it in the UK...

I do enjoy pattern work now tho'; getting better at it is fun, learning to do it in the first place was a tad not so IMHO...

My own experience suggested that it depends very much on the intention of the instructor. I started my ppl training about 3 years ago with a prepaid 45 hr package course.
By the time I did 43 hr total and about 140 touch and go, there was still no suggestion from the full time instructor that I could go solo . When I politely asked when I could do it, he just frown and said I needed to do the circuit and landing perfectly befor I ccould go solo. I felt, as a low hour student, I could not do perfect landing, so I discussed briefly with the CFI and he didn't seem to suggest anything else I could do. Out of despereration, I changed to a part time instructor, who was a retired gentleman, and within one and half hr flying he was happy to send me solo, and I did the best landing I've ever had. The full time instructor left for an airline job soon after.
Hope my experience contribute to the discussion on this subject.

When your instructor doesn't have anything to say and starts showing signs of boredom, just keep on keeping him bored.

We are not birds; so we need time to learn the perceptual clues along with the muscle motions.

As an instructor who has sent over 30 folks solo, I would like to provide my 0.02 cents.

First how long it took you to solo IMO will likely have very little bearing in how good an aviator you turn out to be. Anybody who boasts that he soloed in only X hours is IMO, a pratt as there is much more to flying an aircraft than being able to take off and land under the controlled circumstances of the first solo. I think it is important to understand that the circuit is used to learn how to take off and land. Before you get to the circuit all the esential aircraft handling skills should be there. In my experience when asked to take over students who were not progressing in the circuit I invariably found significant weakness in fundamental aircraft control skills. In all cases I stopped the circuit execises and we went to the practice area to work on the basics. Only when I was satisfied they could consistantly maintain a commanded attitude and airspeed, did we return to the circuit. The important thing IMO is that there is an improvement as you progress through your training and you have a clear understanding of what you are doing well and what is not satisfactory. If you are going around and around the airport and things are not getting better than it is important you sit down with your instructor and have a clear discussion on what he plan is to address your problems. Depending on how that goes a talk to the chief flying instructor maybe in order.

:bored::bored: Overkill, after 5 lessons :}:}

I have logged over 7000 landings in 13 different aircraft in my logbook and I still go for some touch and go's now and then.

As to the worse conditions, your instructor can not order the weather. If you want crosswind you may have to wait for weeks to get it.

I agree with Big Pistons Forever, basic flying skills are required before being able to fly the circuit because in the circuit you will be climbing, flying straight and level, reducing speed while maintaining altitude, configuring, descending, making drift corrections, and then finally the round-out.
No way you can do that correctly if you do not have the basic flying skills (SLF, climb, descend, trimming, attitude flying (nose position in relation to horizon))

Therefore I spend the first hours only doing these things, no circuits. Then I will introduce the circuit. The following flights I will first go to the working area for 25 minutes basic flying before going back to the circuit for 30 minutes.

This might seem a disadvantage for the student seeking to be solo ASAP, but I think it is better this way.

Bart

Went solo in 4hrs. after some gliding 17 years before. Although I was probably ready for it, it came completely out of the blue, and I didn't enjoy it much, as I felt I needed more. As an earlier poster said, very sensibly, you need as many as necessary!!!!!. I also conceded at one point to my instructor that flying sometimes scared me. His reply was 'good'. When I queried why he said that, he replied 'then you will treat it with the respect it deserves'. I always felt that his remark was the best possible advice for a student, and I always flew with that in mind. You can never have too many circuits, as long as you always strive to make them better and not get complacent.

As most of the folk here have already said, its whenever your intructor feels confident enough to send you on your way and when you feel ready. You'll get to the point where your circuits are almost faultless and you'll know its time!

I did 3 hours of circuits before I was allowed to go solo. Infact before I was allowed to go, I had to fly with the CFI and do a couple of circuits with him. I went solo at 13.4 hours... that was a month ago now! Just about to do my local area solo :ok:

Job Done
 

Thanks all. To give a feel to anyone else in future (though I agree with all above comments as per my original post), I went solo last night, think it was the 40th circuit. I was given the option on 30 (and felt ready, though tired) though decided to wait until the next lesson during which it wasn't possible.

Congratulations Okavango. :ok:

Greetings, Bart ;)

40-100
 

My little Registered Facility has soloed about 25 pilots. I think all of them except perhaps two were in the 40-100 landings interval. I see a quite strong correlation with student's age within the interval.

Good thread this. I'm about to take my 6th hour of circuits and was wondering if I was taking too long to suss out what to be doing.
Getting some bounced landings and some very smooth ones, just trying to get them consistant now....oh and get that exam out the way!

There is a formula, scarily accurate too.

Unfortunately I have forgotten it :) :)

Something like

time to solo (hours) = age (years) - 10

But the basic point is that the PPL training sausage machine's phychotic preoccupation with "going solo" is thoroughly unhealthy and wastes a lot of hours by stressing out the student through endless circuit bashing.

Thats made me feel better!;);)
My total hours to licence ---Years -10 =53
Lister:ok:

Good point - reading many post including mine there is an obsession with going solo as quickly as poss (bragging rights), but in the grand scheme of things just because you can claim to have gone solo after 3.5 HRS (who ever it was but not sure i believe him) it doesn't make you a better pilot than a 20 hr to solo or however many hours it takes for things to get in place to go solo. In fact the arrogance created could make you a worse pilot in the long run potentially.

If flying was like sex how many of you would be talking about your solo time?:E

Given the almost total lack of interesting women in GA, I would say 99% :)

GOOD POINT!
but i dunno practisin forced landings after takeoff. its a good idea to b well drilled in what to do IF it happens, but not sure its entirely necessary to actually practice. we just did a load of them on crosswind, downwind and base. but ur right, i dont think any1 shud go solo unless they no Exactly what to do IF.

Practising further for this came for me after my first solo.