Naples Air Centre
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Buying a bike....
Just in case anyone is interested.....
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/catal...3A61904%3A4180
Seems to be plenty of choice at Walmart, and for £60/$100 you can get a very decent (by UK standards) mountain bike even with Dual suspension!
http://www.walmart.com/catalog/catal...3A61904%3A4180
Seems to be plenty of choice at Walmart, and for £60/$100 you can get a very decent (by UK standards) mountain bike even with Dual suspension!
Join Date: Jul 2004
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Naples Air Centre.......again!
This was just written as a reply to a post i made on the interviews etc forum. A little worrying if true, although not entirely convinced as i've never heard anything about it and its only the guys second post:
Quote:
my advice: don't go to naples air center!!
they almost went bankrupt last year because they hadnt payed any insurance for their planes. they blackmailed me and other students to pay them or else they would go to the ins and kick us out of the country. they promised that they would get a j-1 visa status, but they never received it. last but not least, 4 months after i left naples, they stole $4000 by using my creditcard information without my permission. luckily enough i could get my money back from interpay (international creditcard company). nicky genitals and richard genitals are crooks and i just wish that nobody makes the same mistake as i did. so if you are wise... find another school!
s.m.
Anyone care to comment on it, to back it up or say its rubbish? I'm a little concerned as just paid my deposit for their career pilot program.
J.
Quote:
my advice: don't go to naples air center!!
they almost went bankrupt last year because they hadnt payed any insurance for their planes. they blackmailed me and other students to pay them or else they would go to the ins and kick us out of the country. they promised that they would get a j-1 visa status, but they never received it. last but not least, 4 months after i left naples, they stole $4000 by using my creditcard information without my permission. luckily enough i could get my money back from interpay (international creditcard company). nicky genitals and richard genitals are crooks and i just wish that nobody makes the same mistake as i did. so if you are wise... find another school!
s.m.
Anyone care to comment on it, to back it up or say its rubbish? I'm a little concerned as just paid my deposit for their career pilot program.
J.
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Oh no, not again .......yawn!
I'm afraid that there are some people who used to be employed by NAC who are just out to cause as much trouble as possible on the basis that if they throw enough mud then some of it will stick. I would ask that you report their post to a moderator and I think that it is likely to be BRL who will simply ask the "contributor" to identify him/herself and the usual reply will be..............nothing because these people are too shy to come out from under their slimy little rocks because there is no truth whatsoever in their little snipes.
Quite simply there is nothing wrong with NAC. only that they have employed a few people who have turned out to be malicious miscreants. Do you want my personal guarantee? I will gladly give it!
Quite simply there is nothing wrong with NAC. only that they have employed a few people who have turned out to be malicious miscreants. Do you want my personal guarantee? I will gladly give it!
Last edited by Pinga; 13th Sep 2004 at 17:54.
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Thought so
Not at all, tht's exactly what i thought as i've seen hundreds of posts about NAC, pretty much all very complimentary. I just wanted someone to confirm my thoughts that that post was lies, the fact that it was only his second post makes it very suspicious.
J.
J.
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Oh dear not again!!!!
Pinga has beat me to it, so I shall simply second exatly what was said above.
If you would like me to give you a personal recommendation for Naples Air Center then I shall gladly provide one with my full name, address, email, telephone number etc.
Best wishes,
Charlie Zulu.
Pinga has beat me to it, so I shall simply second exatly what was said above.
If you would like me to give you a personal recommendation for Naples Air Center then I shall gladly provide one with my full name, address, email, telephone number etc.
Best wishes,
Charlie Zulu.
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http://www.pprune.com/forums/showthr...hreadid=144570
Above a link to the original thread by J1mbo.
Apart from the occasional use of SPELLCHECK nothing much to add really. Would be interesting to know if Capt. Skidmark
is the only one that ran into this problem.
You seem to know a lot about a lot of things Mr (or Mrs) Pinga, are you sitting close to the fire?
As far as the personal recommendations, sure why not?
I'm sure NAC has happy customers, you go there, get your ratings clear off again..everybody happy.
It's the grumpy ones that are always flamed by the usual suspects.
But then again, why would you care if you're not the one that had the problems.
Excuse me, before I forget http://www.pprune.com/forums/showthr...hreadid=138715
gets interesting after post 9 or 10.
Got closed by the moderators.........still makes interesting reading.
Above a link to the original thread by J1mbo.
Apart from the occasional use of SPELLCHECK nothing much to add really. Would be interesting to know if Capt. Skidmark
is the only one that ran into this problem.You seem to know a lot about a lot of things Mr (or Mrs) Pinga, are you sitting close to the fire?
As far as the personal recommendations, sure why not?
I'm sure NAC has happy customers, you go there, get your ratings clear off again..everybody happy.
It's the grumpy ones that are always flamed by the usual suspects.
But then again, why would you care if you're not the one that had the problems.
Excuse me, before I forget http://www.pprune.com/forums/showthr...hreadid=138715
gets interesting after post 9 or 10.
Got closed by the moderators.........still makes interesting reading.
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My first delve back into Pprune after many days of enforced lay-off (thanks to Hurricane Frances) - but, despite any perceived bad feeling from the un-educated, I do not believe for one millisecond that NAC would steal funds from a clients credit card.
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You seem to know a lot about a lot of things Mr (or Mrs) Pinga, are you sitting close to the fire?
Close to the fire? I guess I soon will be because Autumn seems to have hit with a vengence yesterday in my neck of the woods. I gather that you don't like my informed posts. I wonder why? Could it be that they don't support your sad little agenda.
As always, I am happy to give my UK telephone number by PM to anybody who wants to talk through the content of my posts with me. And yourself JABI? Is that an offer that you will match?
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Ok Mr Pinga, Sir...allow me to elaborate on my sad little agenda.
Prune is obviously a marketing tool for NAC, they have a banner here..fine no problem there.
It's also a "free" forum that allows the posting of personal opinions. Now, how hard is it to comprehend that some customers had a less then wonderful experience with NAC.
My point is their opinions need to be heard also without being flamed by the same posters everytime.
I'll bet some posters are on the VIP list with NAC meaning they will be pampered, their experiences are obviously good, bear with me.....
You go to a foreign country for a short period of time and leave with a license/rating in your pocket. If most things went without a glitch fine, excellent even. My point is (previous post different thread) some people are not that lucky, but why would a happy customer care? Also if you've spent a short period of time at NAC you will most likely have no insight in how the place is really operated. Capt Skidmark (not my first choice for a screenname) was obviously one of the long term customers who did figure out how things are done. Less than perfect, same as my experience.
So let's just say that I'm a "critic" making sure that the other side of the story is not neglected. For some reason it's fine to criticize
any other FTO in Florida except NAC.
No calls please, PM is fine.....
Prune is obviously a marketing tool for NAC, they have a banner here..fine no problem there.
It's also a "free" forum that allows the posting of personal opinions. Now, how hard is it to comprehend that some customers had a less then wonderful experience with NAC.
My point is their opinions need to be heard also without being flamed by the same posters everytime.
I'll bet some posters are on the VIP list with NAC meaning they will be pampered, their experiences are obviously good, bear with me.....
You go to a foreign country for a short period of time and leave with a license/rating in your pocket. If most things went without a glitch fine, excellent even. My point is (previous post different thread) some people are not that lucky, but why would a happy customer care? Also if you've spent a short period of time at NAC you will most likely have no insight in how the place is really operated. Capt Skidmark (not my first choice for a screenname) was obviously one of the long term customers who did figure out how things are done. Less than perfect, same as my experience.
So let's just say that I'm a "critic" making sure that the other side of the story is not neglected. For some reason it's fine to criticize
any other FTO in Florida except NAC.
No calls please, PM is fine.....
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No calls please, PM is fine.....
Prune is obviously a marketing tool for NAC
Well JABI (Just Another Broke Instructor) You will just have to accept that there are people including myself who do have positive comments about NAC and can clearly see the hidden agenda through your postings. I note the times of your postings and conclude that you are residing in the USA rather than the UK. I strongly suspect that you have never been a customer of NAC and work for a less successful competitor.
Edit;
I'll bet some posters are on the VIP list with NAC meaning they will be pampered
Last edited by Pinga; 16th Sep 2004 at 08:37.
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NAC- not all it's cracked up to be!
I have been watching this post with interest and having been to Naples on more than one occasion I feel well placed to add comment. It appears that all posts about NAC seem take the same path- individual asks for advice on NAC, said person disappears into the background and post slowly deteriorates into a slagging match between one or two people that had a bad experience and the NAC cheerleaders!
I too like Jabi and many others feel annoyed at the way NAC is portrayed as a perfect flight school. Of course we all know this is not true, but the first sign of any bad press and the post is bombarded by the usual suspects. Guys and you know who you are- give it a rest, we all know you had a great time in Naples, but come on let others express there views without you constantly shooting them down!
I would like to start by saying that Naples has never been a bad school, its just never been the great school that many portray.
Firstly the aircraft- they are maintained to a fair standard, although at times you have to border this on the legal limit. Whilst @ NAC this year, there were a number of planes with minor defects, which although legal are not particularly comforting.
For instance, there were 152 & 172's with holes in the engine cowling, tyres on the bare minimum, rivets missing from airframe, shimmy dampers not working, instruments- faulty or not working e.g. primer, VOR etc
Sometimes these faults would be corrected if pointed out, on one occasion a maintenance guy came out onto the apron, tapped in a rivet or two and walked off. Other times, the student was told to like it or lose the slot, the impedance was definitely put on the student, and as you know if anything goes wrong the PIC is solely responsible. Half the time these were PPL students who had no idea of the repercussions and funny enough no one @ NAC felt inclined to point this fact out- be warned, if in doubt DO NOT FLY!
I met one student who had just done his check ride and afterwards he told me about the problems he had prior to the test. He had booked the plane the previous day, but just before he was due to pre flight he was told the plane had been switched on him, he was given an alternative, but commented this had problems with aileron control and he asked to be switched back. I dont know all the details but what ensued was a slagging match between him and the owner, the owner telling him that he had no choice and to fly the plane allocated. After much debate he refused to fly, which eventually resulted in him being put back in the original plane and successfully passing the flight test.
If for the record anyone would like full details I will ask him to post here at a latter date, believe me he left as disillusioned as I did, but that's another story and I will leave it for him to tell.
Aircraft availability can at times be very poor. My personal opinion is that NAC have grown at such a rate they can no longer sustain the throughput of students. This in itself is not a bad thing, but they have failed to grow with the expansion and add to the fleet (discounting the hilarous!). If you get a cancellation to your schedule it is very unlikely you will be able to book another slot in the forthcoming few days. I met a number of people that failed to complete the PPL in expected time frames and two or three left with about 32 hours over three weeks!
If you intend to train on the 172 or PA28 it is very unlikely you will finish in the specified time, therefore your best bet is to stick to the 152s.
The other big problem is guys over hour building. I can comment on three or four people that have failed to gain the necessary hours and have either left disappointed or have taken there business elsewhere. This has been for a number of reasons- planes in tech (unforeseen!) which happens a lot, backlog of PPL training in which case you fit in around their schedule. I also found they would change the schedule the night before and then fail to call the student to inform them. This happened on a number of occasions, not only to myself, but many others. The student turns up in the morning expecting to fly, only to be told, we had to change the schedule, didn't you check it last night?!?!
I can tell you on one or two occasions the students let rip- surely its not asking too much to call the student when the changes occur, surely you'd expect this from any other service provider and at the end of the day you are paying them, do not forget that!
Many people are treated like kids, not paying customers!
I've never known such organised kaos in all my life. If you want to speak to anyone at the front desk, you are told to wait and you're generally still waiting 20mins later. Guys- you really do need to invest in a little extra help, almost everyone I met commented on the attitude of staff at reception and the hostility they received.
One point I do have to mention is that the instructors at NAC are mostly top notch and there are some great guys working @ NAC, most are foreign and over on the J1 visa building hours. This doesn't mean to say you are getting inferior training, but personally I would have to say that the quality of UK PPL training is on the whole better and this is after the fact I completed the first half of my PPL in the UK and the second half at Naples.
Overall, I would like to iterate that I've had a whole spectrum of experiences at Naples, some good, some bad, the most recent of which has definitely put me off returning. If anyone would like some more info feel free to pm me and I will discuss further.
I too like Jabi and many others feel annoyed at the way NAC is portrayed as a perfect flight school. Of course we all know this is not true, but the first sign of any bad press and the post is bombarded by the usual suspects. Guys and you know who you are- give it a rest, we all know you had a great time in Naples, but come on let others express there views without you constantly shooting them down!
I would like to start by saying that Naples has never been a bad school, its just never been the great school that many portray.
Firstly the aircraft- they are maintained to a fair standard, although at times you have to border this on the legal limit. Whilst @ NAC this year, there were a number of planes with minor defects, which although legal are not particularly comforting.
For instance, there were 152 & 172's with holes in the engine cowling, tyres on the bare minimum, rivets missing from airframe, shimmy dampers not working, instruments- faulty or not working e.g. primer, VOR etc
Sometimes these faults would be corrected if pointed out, on one occasion a maintenance guy came out onto the apron, tapped in a rivet or two and walked off. Other times, the student was told to like it or lose the slot, the impedance was definitely put on the student, and as you know if anything goes wrong the PIC is solely responsible. Half the time these were PPL students who had no idea of the repercussions and funny enough no one @ NAC felt inclined to point this fact out- be warned, if in doubt DO NOT FLY!
I met one student who had just done his check ride and afterwards he told me about the problems he had prior to the test. He had booked the plane the previous day, but just before he was due to pre flight he was told the plane had been switched on him, he was given an alternative, but commented this had problems with aileron control and he asked to be switched back. I dont know all the details but what ensued was a slagging match between him and the owner, the owner telling him that he had no choice and to fly the plane allocated. After much debate he refused to fly, which eventually resulted in him being put back in the original plane and successfully passing the flight test.
If for the record anyone would like full details I will ask him to post here at a latter date, believe me he left as disillusioned as I did, but that's another story and I will leave it for him to tell.
Aircraft availability can at times be very poor. My personal opinion is that NAC have grown at such a rate they can no longer sustain the throughput of students. This in itself is not a bad thing, but they have failed to grow with the expansion and add to the fleet (discounting the hilarous!). If you get a cancellation to your schedule it is very unlikely you will be able to book another slot in the forthcoming few days. I met a number of people that failed to complete the PPL in expected time frames and two or three left with about 32 hours over three weeks!
If you intend to train on the 172 or PA28 it is very unlikely you will finish in the specified time, therefore your best bet is to stick to the 152s.
The other big problem is guys over hour building. I can comment on three or four people that have failed to gain the necessary hours and have either left disappointed or have taken there business elsewhere. This has been for a number of reasons- planes in tech (unforeseen!) which happens a lot, backlog of PPL training in which case you fit in around their schedule. I also found they would change the schedule the night before and then fail to call the student to inform them. This happened on a number of occasions, not only to myself, but many others. The student turns up in the morning expecting to fly, only to be told, we had to change the schedule, didn't you check it last night?!?!
I can tell you on one or two occasions the students let rip- surely its not asking too much to call the student when the changes occur, surely you'd expect this from any other service provider and at the end of the day you are paying them, do not forget that!
Many people are treated like kids, not paying customers!
I've never known such organised kaos in all my life. If you want to speak to anyone at the front desk, you are told to wait and you're generally still waiting 20mins later. Guys- you really do need to invest in a little extra help, almost everyone I met commented on the attitude of staff at reception and the hostility they received.
One point I do have to mention is that the instructors at NAC are mostly top notch and there are some great guys working @ NAC, most are foreign and over on the J1 visa building hours. This doesn't mean to say you are getting inferior training, but personally I would have to say that the quality of UK PPL training is on the whole better and this is after the fact I completed the first half of my PPL in the UK and the second half at Naples.
Overall, I would like to iterate that I've had a whole spectrum of experiences at Naples, some good, some bad, the most recent of which has definitely put me off returning. If anyone would like some more info feel free to pm me and I will discuss further.
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Welcome Skyrocket 10, welcome to the "dark" side.
That makes 2 (yes, two...) critics of NAC currently on this thread.
Well we might have more soon and be able to give a little more objective view of the JAR FTO's.
Mr Pinga, Sir.....your attention flatters me.
What's your other great hobby...fishing?
Unlike some here I have a life besides Pprune therefore not able to post during regular office hours. Do you mind?
Oh excuse me, NAC's competitors?
As far as I know they don't have any, they are in a whole special league of their own. I'm sorry to disappoint you.
Ok so far for the personal chit chat, back to business.
If you READ my posts, especially the latest ones, you should realize that I feel it is unjust for potential students to make their decision on where to go to spend their money solely be based on the comments of 3 (or 4) NAC pushers.
It's already dificult to get objective advice in the aviation industry as it is, as far as training is concerned it seems almost impossible.
Excuse me one more time, I have a phone, a cordless phone even. Just don't feel it's necessary to sit next to it all day.
That makes 2 (yes, two...) critics of NAC currently on this thread.
Well we might have more soon and be able to give a little more objective view of the JAR FTO's.
Mr Pinga, Sir.....your attention flatters me.
What's your other great hobby...fishing?
Unlike some here I have a life besides Pprune therefore not able to post during regular office hours. Do you mind?
Oh excuse me, NAC's competitors?
As far as I know they don't have any, they are in a whole special league of their own. I'm sorry to disappoint you.
Ok so far for the personal chit chat, back to business.
If you READ my posts, especially the latest ones, you should realize that I feel it is unjust for potential students to make their decision on where to go to spend their money solely be based on the comments of 3 (or 4) NAC pushers.
It's already dificult to get objective advice in the aviation industry as it is, as far as training is concerned it seems almost impossible.
Excuse me one more time, I have a phone, a cordless phone even. Just don't feel it's necessary to sit next to it all day.
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i had a great time at the groundschool in naples...
but flying there was such a different story....dealing with the admin staff was always such a chore.
i totally agree with...
typical
and
again a very common sight
but somehow many other people seem to remain quiet about the behavior traits of "capt" D.G !!
but flying there was such a different story....dealing with the admin staff was always such a chore.
i totally agree with...
slagging match between him and the owner, the owner telling him that he had no choice and to fly the plane allocated
typical
and
Many people are treated like kids, not paying customers!
but somehow many other people seem to remain quiet about the behavior traits of "capt" D.G !!
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Thanks guys for your comments. This is all very worrying! The whole reason I chose NAC was to avoid the problems mentioned above. I've encountered just those issues with another well known school in Florida and I had really hoped NAC would be different and the threads on this site had led me to believe this would be the case.
I'm commited now so I'll just have to ride with it. I'll make up my mind when I get there.
Thanks again,
Biscuit
I'm commited now so I'll just have to ride with it. I'll make up my mind when I get there.
Thanks again,
Biscuit
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I echo your comments biscuit! I chose NAC because of the generally positive comments I had received about it both on and off pprune.
Hope it goes well for you and let us know how you find it when you get out there.
I'm planning on heading out in a few months so will eagerly await yours and anyone else feedback on the school.
PW
Hope it goes well for you and let us know how you find it when you get out there.
I'm planning on heading out in a few months so will eagerly await yours and anyone else feedback on the school.
PW