Hours to solo. Is there an age trend?
The Original Whirly
Joined: Feb 1999
Aviation Qualifications: CPL
Posts: 4,327
Likes: 2
From: Belper, Derbyshire, UK
DWHLO,
80 hours is not that unusual. Took me 90, and like you, I'd done practically everything before I went solo. National average is around 60-70, with loads of individual variation. People learn at different rates, and schools and instructors teach in different ways. It doesn't always mean anything either, in terms of your ability. At the school I went to, one young chap did the whole course in 40 hours (the minimum pre-JAR) then got lost on a cross country from Welshpool, landing at Llanbedr instead of Caernarfon. Now getting lost is common, landing at the wrong airfield not that uncommon, but confusing Llanbedr with Caernarfon!!!! They're miles apart, on very dissimilar bits of coastline, and have apbsolutely no resemblance to each other. So doing everything in record time doesn't necessarily make you a good pilot. At the other end of the scale, an instructor friend of mine regularly has students who take over 100 hours. The school owner is very meticulous, and won't sign them off until they really know what they're doing. Whereas some people seem to get their PPL's when they can just about fly, and just about navigate, in good conditions, on nice big runways, etc etc etc. There's much more to flying that counting the hours.
80 hours is not that unusual. Took me 90, and like you, I'd done practically everything before I went solo. National average is around 60-70, with loads of individual variation. People learn at different rates, and schools and instructors teach in different ways. It doesn't always mean anything either, in terms of your ability. At the school I went to, one young chap did the whole course in 40 hours (the minimum pre-JAR) then got lost on a cross country from Welshpool, landing at Llanbedr instead of Caernarfon. Now getting lost is common, landing at the wrong airfield not that uncommon, but confusing Llanbedr with Caernarfon!!!! They're miles apart, on very dissimilar bits of coastline, and have apbsolutely no resemblance to each other. So doing everything in record time doesn't necessarily make you a good pilot. At the other end of the scale, an instructor friend of mine regularly has students who take over 100 hours. The school owner is very meticulous, and won't sign them off until they really know what they're doing. Whereas some people seem to get their PPL's when they can just about fly, and just about navigate, in good conditions, on nice big runways, etc etc etc. There's much more to flying that counting the hours.
Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 382
Likes: 10
From: England
Hmmmm... Ive got 3 hours so far and the next lesson is slow flight with stalling. After that and maybe some spinning its onto circuits so how long would it take me to go solo, probably, given that it does take longer to learn to land a Tiger?
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 3
Likes: 0
From: Balloch
11hrs at 16 at Glasgow Flying Club . 44hrs total after today 18/8. Was ready for skills test <40hrs thanx to GFC only one more hr to go...Damm will have to sit the skills test now-nappies please...heheheRoss
Joined: Jul 2001
Posts: 40
Likes: 0
From: UK
I Did mine after 4.5 hrs at 18 years old in 1980. 
I know this is quite unusual but I had a nut for a CFI. It was in the days when we had to do spinning. He would take us up to about 4000 feet and we would spin down to 2000 before we recovered!!!! Anyway I’m still here to tell the tale. As I recall it was one of the best landings I’ve ever made 
I know this is quite unusual but I had a nut for a CFI. It was in the days when we had to do spinning. He would take us up to about 4000 feet and we would spin down to 2000 before we recovered!!!! Anyway I’m still here to tell the tale. As I recall it was one of the best landings I’ve ever made
Thread Starter
Joined: Nov 2000
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
Good response everyone. Keep them coming. Some interesting points too. Ez. 8hrs and shaking? Care to elaborate. Shaking with excitement or nerves! Whirlybird. Excellent point. I suspect some instructors may be of the opinion that solo in minimum hours reflects their instruction skills. Whats the hurry eh? George T. You`re lucky to be alive!
Supercharged PPRuNer
Joined: Nov 2000
Aviation Qualifications: ATPL
Posts: 1,188
Likes: 15
From: Doon the watter, a million miles from the sandpit.
Age 29, first solo took me from 10h50 > 11h15. ("Just one circuit" said the man. Little did he realise I was about to do an impression of a space-hopper riding a pogo-stick. ).
18 hours in and I'm still in one piece, although I think the instructor retired on health grounds.
).18 hours in and I'm still in one piece, although I think the instructor retired on health grounds.
Joined: May 2001
Posts: 26
Likes: 0
From: Surrey, United Kingdom
well, 4.5hrs to solo - maybe. My instructor was honest and told me he could sent any chipanzee solo once they's sussed the circuit, but he said he wouldn't send any of his students up on their own until they had mastered a flapless, short field and a glide. Damn I thought, more hours....am I being tucked up here???................ Sure enough the chap in the circuit in front of me on his 1st solo had a flaps failure. He made the circuit and safe landing. Lucky for him we shared the same instructor. Moral? I'd rather have gone solo at 25hrs and been properly trained than thrown up in the air at 10 hrs in the hope that nothing went pear shaped in that magic 8 mins....
PPL now in 57 hrs. Same instrucor now required for my IMC.
PPL now in 57 hrs. Same instrucor now required for my IMC.
Joined: Feb 2000
Posts: 7
Likes: 0
From: Upstate, New York, USA
I thought I held the world's record but after reading all these I don't feel so bad. 46 years old, 37 hours to solo, 79 hours to PPL. Now 437 hours later I'm 3 days away from taking my IFR checkride.
Joined: Aug 2001
Posts: 47
Likes: 0
From: Oakland-California
When reading that ppl solo at under 10 hours it makes me a little concerned. Im a flight instructor and have soloed quite a few people. 16 years old to 50+. I could have soloed some of them at less than 10 hours just for the purpose of getting them soloed, but I rather have a safe pilot up there in the pattern. Granted, the airport enviroment ive instructed in have always been very busy so the ability to adequately deal with fast communications and sometimes non standard instructions have been imperative.
The point is that the student needs a minimum of 40 hours (USA) to get his/her lisence. Why not spend atleast 15-20 hours making sure the student knows more than only the minimum needed to survive a solo?
My students solos at around 17-25 hours depending on how strong their radio skills are, and how their PIC attitude develops.
I think it shows a little shortsighteness from the CFIs side when they let ppl go off solo at around 4 hours...
Just my 2 cents.....
[ 19 August 2001: Message edited by: SkyBug ]
The point is that the student needs a minimum of 40 hours (USA) to get his/her lisence. Why not spend atleast 15-20 hours making sure the student knows more than only the minimum needed to survive a solo?
My students solos at around 17-25 hours depending on how strong their radio skills are, and how their PIC attitude develops.
I think it shows a little shortsighteness from the CFIs side when they let ppl go off solo at around 4 hours...
Just my 2 cents.....
[ 19 August 2001: Message edited by: SkyBug ]