Stay Away From Cabair Bournemouth

[blue_sky_here]

STAY AWAY FROM CABAIR BOURNEMOUTH!!

I've had a horrible experience with cabair;
The reasons are:

-Lack of instructors

-Poor standard of training:I've been with Cabair for a while,met a bunch of students and NEVER,I say again,NEVER anyone got a first time pass.(This is not an opinion but simply a fact.)

-Management/Operations: The school is the furtherest away (compared to the other one in Bournemouth) from the planes.You will need to walk for 15 minuts before you get to the planes.
The ridiculous thing is that there is an operator at the school but she could not even tell you if the plane was refuelled or not. You will waste 1 hour.

-Too many mistakes in the accounting. You need to double check always your balance otherwise.....

-Aircraft always in maintanance.

-No flying schedules;Most of the time you just stay at school all day with no idea what time you are gonna fly. You need to go to school in the morning and then wait and wait....

-The treatment and attitude towards the student.

The worst school I have ever attended and I hope few people are gonna make my mistake.


I didn't do the ground school with them,but it seemed ok.

This was my experience of the cabair school.

[SilveR5]

Isn't Cabair considered as one of the top flying schools there??? that's a shame!

look buddy..I know nothing about Cabair...but I think BCFT is a great choice for less money..check them out

all the best

[outertrial]

My friend is with Cabair and the way hes being treated is nothing short of disgusting. If I were him and his classmates I would sue.

[Robthestudent]

As regards BCFT i don't think they have covered themselves in glory either looking at the number of students they are losing.

[trucky04]

I love this website! Not just for the GOOD, usefull things people have to say about schools but also for some of the amusing complete BULLSHOT too!! Sounds to me someone likes their grapes SOUR for some reason or just because they look to blame someone else for their OWN failings! I wonder how many local flying associations will jump on the band wagon and offer a 'helpfull guiding' hand suggesting you go to them instead as one in particular often does!

[T's & P's]

-Lack of instructors
-Poor standard of training:I've been with Cabair for a while,met a bunch of students and NEVER,I say again,NEVER anyone got a first time pass.(This is not an opinion but simply a fact.)
-Too many mistakes in the accounting. You need to double check always your balance otherwise.....

I did my ATPL ground school and IR at EPTA (cabair bournemouth), passed first time with no issues, so thats not really a fact is it? I agree with the lack of instructors - not really their fault, and keeping one eye on your account is standard practice with most schools is it not?

-Management/Operations: The school is the furtherest away (compared to the other one in Bournemouth) from the planes.You will need to walk for 15 minuts before you get to the planes.
The ridiculous thing is that there is an operator at the school but she could not even tell you if the plane was refuelled or not. You will waste 1 hour.

BCFT are in a good position in that they have a door leading directly to the apron. Unless your crawling from cabair to the aircraft its a five minute walk tops. Also, the fuel truck does the rounds quite often and fills up the a/c without prompting, hence why ops won't know the status. They normally call through to check but its usually down to the student to sort it.

-Aircraft always in maintanance.
-No flying schedules;Most of the time you just stay at school all day with no idea what time you are gonna fly. You need to go to school in the morning and then wait and wait....

With only 3 twins and a couple of singles it only takes one aircraft in maintenance to stuff up the schedules...anyway, the aircraft are rather old and i'd rather them properly maintained than not! Again, flying schedules were rather good when i was there (2 months ago!), hanging around all day can become common practice but if your training for a license you should have plenty to do , right?

-The treatment and attitude towards the student.

Lastly, i found that the way you treat the staff dictates the way they treat you, become a little whinger moaning at the slightest of hiccups and your not likely to get much respect in return. They do their best to get you through whichever course your doing so they can make way for the next student. If you have any genuine issues talking to Jane or John (CFI) is probably the best bet. Moaning about it on a public forum is not professional in the slightest.

Just thought a reply from someone who actually trained and completed a course there might be a little more subjective

[blue_sky_here]

If justifiable criticism is considered "sour" then unjustifiable defence of the indefensible can be considered irresponsible.

It would be better for Cabair (according to the response i've had) to take on board authentic complaints and constructive criticisms and make and effort to improve their services which cost their students "DEARLY" in every sense of the word.

[spinnaker]

Originally Posted by blue_sky_here

You will need to walk for 15 minuts before you get to the planes.

So when you finish training, how far away do you think your new shiny jet will be, and how far do you think the car park will be from the crew room? Or will you only accept job offers from companies that provide a crew bus?

Walking is good for you. Don't take my word for it, ask your AME next visit.

[student88]

Apparently you're not allowed to post any negative comments on PPRUNE. There's always someone who tells you you're being sour and that it's actually you whos failed when they actually have no experience of the situation or know who you are. There are some real winners in this forum.

So guys, please. No more negative feedback - some of us don't like it apparently.

S88

[T's & P's]

Negative feedback makes this forum a great place, it helps prevent other people from experiencing the crap other people have to go through. However, blue_sky's comments are really unfounded and at best apply to probably most schools in the UK (lack of instructors/maintenance issues/scheduling and account issues), its unfair to single out this particular school when in reality there are no major issues affecting it and the student just wanted a moan.

[JugglingSpence]

Hehe, I like it student88.

Personally I've not have the best experience with another branch of CabAir. This thread shouldn't be slammed just for the content although maybe the maybe the original post could have been worded in a slightly better manner.

If I had known how my 'Flying Start' would pan out then I would not have invested in 5 hours flying with them.

In 4.5 hours I've had 3 instructors (2 of which very open about how they were just instructing until that 1st jet job came along), 2 technical problems, a few cancellations, a random phone call asking for £52- they knew they wanted the money but weren't sure of why, the best that they could come up with was maybe it was an upgrade to a 4 seater for 2 hours even though I'd been told that one wasn't chargeable as the C152 had developed a fault, they then canceled that charge and told me that it was a charge for 1 hour but still £52. This, on top of the fact that I always needed two weeks notice to book which given the weather makes getting airborne more than once a month a bit of a lottery.

I've now decided that I've had enough of flying with them and have decided to write-off the remaining 1/2 hour on my voucher and find a new FTO.

Maybe if people felt safe enough to speak freely on this website they may be more inclined to share their experiences.

Personally, I would not recommend using them but I'm sure they have been great for many many people.

[Oliver Bailey]

Dear Blue Sky Here.....

Firstly, I am totally shocked and quite offended by your recent outburst. Just to list a number of things....

"Poor standard of training: I’ve been with Cabair for a while, met a bunch of students and NEVER, I say again, NEVER anyone got a first time pass.(This is not an opinion but simply a fact.)"

I started with Cabair Bournemouth in June; starting the CPL course...which Cabair say takes 6 weeks....I did it in four weeks with a first time pass, as did my flying partner.

Then it was onto the IR...which took the scheduled 8 weeks...once again a first time pass..out of 5 of us that took the IR 3 passed 1st time, and two partialled.

I'm not sure what you actually expect from a flying school...being spoon fed springs to mind. You are training to be a commercial pilot...now as a commercial pilot, are you not expected to be at the aircraft AT LEAST an hour before, making sure the a/c is fuelled and you are good to go...surely this is not the fault of Cabair Bournemouth...but your own.

As for the walk....it’s a 5 minute walk...tops...please refer to spinnaker's reply, put very well.

This is my favourite..."No flying schedules; Most of the time you just stay at school all day with no idea what time you are gonna fly. You need to go to school in the morning and then wait and wait."

At Cabair Bournemouth...the schedules are planned by a lady called Amy...personally, the best personnel behind an ops desk I have experienced. Schedules...as in any flight school are planned in advanced, you expect some change, not once did I have any bad experiences. As for the "no idea what time you are going to fly"...I think this sums the post up...nothing a simple phone call...or a slight bit of personal organisation can't help.

I cannot recommend Cabair at Bournemouth enough...I had a great couple of months on the coast, all the staff were VERY helpful...always looking out for the student. I believe you get out of your training what you put in. I have no experience of other flight schools around the airport; however I have heard good reports from all.

[VFE]

I find it a commendable and sometimes brave practice to use the anonymity of this website to air bad experiences of FTO's. Most thrive on silence given the implications a grievance has on the bearer so don't shoot each other down for speaking up. Lawd knows you are all spending enough money on this trip so it's foolish not to read what people already involved here have to say. Sometimes we don't want to hear things which may upset us but to accuse someone of "sour grapes" when they start a thread like this is childish and extremely patronising. Nobody can catagorically state whether anything here is fact or fiction, that part is down to your own intellect when reading. My advice is to count up the good posts versus the bad posts when assessing a potential FTO.

VFE.

[preduk]

Oliver if you're truly offended by his comments then you need to get a life mate, your not the CEO of the company, you don't own it and your not a staff member so you have no reason to be offended.

It's amazing that people call them sour grapes, what are they supposed to do if they have had a real bad experience? Just shut up and let them continue doing it.

Get a grip.

[Oliver Bailey]

get a grip...didnt really think pprune was used for personal abuse. however when you've spent the majority of your training with a company and made many friends...its not the type of thing you want to read.

[BigGrecian]

I've never been to Cabair Bournemouth but the comments certainly meet the stereotypical weak student who expects to be spoon fed.

However, it all depends on who you talk to about pass rates, hang out with those who fail then you'll hear those stories. Those who pass first time tend to move on pretty quickly and get their first job pretty quickly as their not sat around moping. Those who fail and pick themselves up do the same.
Those who sit around moping - moan on PPrune as well and are still looking for their job

[ChrisLKKB]

Its such a shame. When the guy who runs Cabair was running SFT it was such a good school, a lot of ex students will testify to that, that is it was until it closed it's doors with everyones money on the other side.

Originally Posted by BigGrecian

I've never been to Cabair Bournemouth but the comments certainly meet the stereotypical weak student who expects to be spoon fed.

Yes you are probably right BG, students shouldn't worry about trivial things like a lack of instructors or poor trainning standards, students should be naturals, stop whining and teach themselves.

Students should automatically know if a plane requires fuel and if it does he should spend his own time waiting for it and allow it to eat into his own flying slot.

Why do they always moan when the accounts department gets their bill wrong, they should just pay up and be gratefull they are allowed to fly at all and as for complaining because the aircraft always seem to be in maintenance, how absurd, this is a flying school what do you expect, they'll be expecting some sort of flying schedule next.

All schools have students that moan about them don't they ?

Well not all of them, PAT at Bournemouth and Bristol rarely if ever seem to attract any complaints here, I wonder if that's because they are run the way a flying school should be run.

[Flying Squid]

well well this has ruffled some feathers hasn't it. Ollie...congrats on having a great experience with Cabair, sadly many other don't and that's the reason EPTA are desperately trying to stop the hemerage of flying students to other schools on the airfield. It's absurd that people should be shot down for criticizing these companies, if you aren't getting what you're paying for then speak up or vote with your feet guys.

As far as the 15 minute walk to the aircraft.....no it's more like just over 5 minutes so can't back anyone on that one I'm afraid.

It's a shame that EPTA is going down hill on the flying side because the girl that does Op's is good at what she does and the instructors are good too. Sadly I think the problem lies with the attitudes of certain other figures within the school and this together with the more expensive training costs are the real reason people are staying clear and going elsewhere. I know of many students who were fed up with the way they have been treated throughout groundschool and that put them off CPL/IR training with them. In essence, I think it's fair to say that one side of the company is directly suffering s a result of the other side's action's. They'll always be bad stories coming out of every school, it's to be expected.

I maintain that the groundschool is very very good and DOES produce impressive ATPL result's. However when people are considering where to spend the next wadge of money, they think about their experience over the course or their ATPL's which will generally count FOR Cabair. What will sadly piss all over this positive point is the treatment of students whilst on groundschool. When EPTA starts treating groundschool CUSTOMERS as CUSTOMERS then they will soon see the number of flying students rise! Until then I think that the flying side of EPTA will continue to unfairly suffer. That's my 2 pennies worth, have a great weekend all!

F S

[biaeghh]

I understand the flying side is moving over to the other side of the airfield, with the groundschool staying in the west side. It would also appear they have taken a stake in world wide aviation, the maintenance company, which ultimately means another company will lose its good reputation. hey ho

[Robthestudent]

Sadly Cabair have always had a poor rep, in the case of bournemouth you only have to look at the management, in particular the md who brought around the demise of sft. Looking at the previous post it does not make any sense for the flying side to be 'off site'..so bia i would check your facts.