Flight Schools around Stansted
 

Can anyone enlighten me as to the location of any flight schools near Stansted airport. I would reckon anywhere within a radius of 40-50 miles would do. Does Duxford have an FTO?

Andrewsfield is right on the edge of the Stansted CTR and it's an excellent little flying school, did my FI there with Carol and thoroughly recommend it ... lots of Stansted-based airline captains like to go and have a drink in the aero club bar on a friday night as well, so maximum potential sucking-up value :ok:

Could also try Stapleford. I've just completed my cpl/ir there.

I can also vouch for andrews field. I did my night rating there and know some of the people who fly there regularly. All seem a friendly bunch esp the hardcore friday nighters.

If you want to do your cpl/ir stapleford might be a better bet as it has an FNPT2 sim which you can do upto ?35? hours of the ir in. Half the price of acutally flying the twin.

When i spoke to carol about the cpl/ir at andrews field, i think by her own admission, the twin is/was a bit of a problem during the wetter months. Best check with them to see how they're going.

Send me a pm if you want more info about stapleford.

Thanmks for that. Theres a chance I may be goin to Cambridge with work and Ive got about 30 hours. I reckon I'll finish my ppl in Ireland, but if there was a flying club nearby, would be nice. I'll go to Andrewsfeild and see if I can get introduced to a nice hosti which are very plentyful around STN. :ok:

Its been a few years since Ive been in STN , but I seem to remember seeing an airfield somewhere along the M25 as i was driving to London. Is that Andrewsfield or Stapleford?

Stapleford. There is also North Weald on the other side of the M25.

Did you do the test at Stapleford, or did you have to fly to Cranfield for it?

WX Man,

Yes, one downside is the fact that you have to go to Cranfield for the IR. The CPL, however, they come to you

Do all IR tests have to be done at Cranfield, or can you do it at base aerodrome as long as the facilities are there?

No, you can take your IR from wherever there happens to be a CAAFEU (CAA Flight exam unit - i think)

I think there are some at the following airports

Cranfield
Oxford
Bournemouth
Exeter
Prestwick

Probably more.

I think Leeds has a unit. One of the Multiflight bods could confirm

Bristol has one but I think Exeter might have gone(don't quote me on this one).:=

Yep Leeds has one

I can also recommend Stapleford. I have just finished my CPL/IR there. The staff are very helpful and the instructors will go out of their way to help you (specifically starting early in the morning, finishing late and working through lunch).

The sim there is approved for 35 of your 50 IR hours. This is good and bad. Firstly, it means that most of your flying is not dependent on the weather. Also, although you will sit your test from Cranfield, every exercise you fly in the sim is from Cranfield, so you are very familiar with the procedures by the time you sit the test. Finally, on the plus side, it is cheaper than doing all of your flying in a real aircraft.

On the downside, it means that when you finish your IR, you will only have around 21 hours of multi time (6 from ME rating and 15 from IR). When stating your experience to prospective employers, they are much more interested in "real" aircraft hours than those in the sim.

However, I think that the benefits outweigh this negative. Overall, the standard of instruction is high, particularly on the IR course. The Head of Training also still flies 737s two days per week for a major airline so knows all current procedures and the Chief Sim Instructor has been flying for 60 years and used to be a CAA IR examiner.

Any further questions then send me a message.

Good luck. :ok:

Whjat about staplefor for an CPL/IR renewal? Can you do the IR renewal in the FNPT2 - which by the way is excellent value for money - just think about the economics - what employer is really going to give you a job with an extra 20 hours of 'real time'? You might as well save the money and spend it on something else to make you stand out.

Also do stapleford have a Multi like a seneca and can you do CPL/IR on a single?

You'll have to call them about the specifics, but they are pretty flexible around your needs.

They have definately done IR renewals on the sim.

What club down there does all of this?

There is only one. Stapleford Flight Centre

stapleford

Yep I too did my IR at Stapleford and while I've got nothing against them personally there's no way I'd do the same again for one simple reason ... the airspace around the south east!

Comparing the freakin nightmare I had on test day (I got the normal CFD-CAM-CFD, but had an absolute nightmare with controllers, first of all in the airway en route to cambridge getting sent about in all directions before even getting to CAM expecting the ILS, and THEN having to carry out about 6 unscheduled laps of the NDB hold at CAM with the examiner watching every one :{ ) I was so knackered by the time I even got onto the ILS I very nearly lost it altogether. If you speak to the IR candidates who've gone and done their tests out of there they just about all have some similar horror story to tell.

Comparing that to some of the stories of people who've done their tests up in Scotland or over the west country and it just sounds like a breeze by comparison.

Yes the IR instructors at STL are very very competent (is Eric STILL there by the way?) and I'm sure so are the instructors at the other Cranfield based schools, but they would have to be in my opinion, to get their students through the massive disadvantage they're at by virtue of their location.

Do they have a FNPT2 down there?

Guys,

Let me just clear a few things up here; after having completed my cpl/ir with Stapleford Flight Centre this year, I am now about to sit on the RHS of a shiney new jet with 250hrs.

This in my opinion is 100% attributable to the quality of training, facilities, the people who work at Stapleford Flight Centre.

Please do not listen to the rubbish that springs up on this site like; you get 20hrs multi in the ir 35 sim, so what? Same at every other school in the country, and believe me 20hrs or 100hrs in a twin piston will make sod all difference to an airline!

The School is professional, the instructors are professional, the facilities are excellent, and it makes me laugh reading about one cry baby winging about doing the ir at Cranfield, so what? Its ten minutes flight in the seneca from stapleford!

Personally I think its the best school in the london area by a very long shot, and they even provide a B737 MCC now which is second to none.

If you want a cpl/ir at a very good price and with a very good chance of getting a job at the end go to Stapleford and ask to see Colin Dobney.

MG. :ok: