Phoenix East Aviation?
 

Does anybody know anything about Phoenix East Aviation in Daytona FLorida?
I'm thinking of going there this summer for my CPL/IR.
Any information regarding this school would be welcomed.
Thanks in advance.

I wouldn't recommend that school. Quite disasterous. I would recommend Phil Air Flight Centre on the other side of the airport. PEA is also expensive for crap training.

GR340,
Bring plenty of cash, and be prepared for a long, long, stay!
I signed up there for a 4 week PPL course.
6 weeks later I gave up and went somewhere else to finish.
While I was there, 1 English, 2 Irish, 1 Austrian, 1 Spanish, and 1 Italian also gave up in disgust, as well as quite a few Americans. The only one to actually get a licence was the Spanish guy, and that in itself is a really funny story! He threw a tantrum in the Chief Pilots office, and went back to the hotel in tears and called his Mother. She called the school, and he got his licence the next day in a 152. That evening, he was also checked out in a Warrior, Archer, Arrow, and 172.

The Italian is sueing. I WAS going to sue to get back an extra $1500 I was conned out of, but decided not to. There were 48 other suits already filed in the local court, as well as numerous others in different courts.

Personally, I would never go near them again.
Send me an e.mail and I'll give you all the gory details, if you want.

Guys,
if you want to get specific about any reservations you have about ANY flight school, stick to personal e-mails. Don't post them here unless you also want to post your real name, the dates you attended the school, and the details of the incidents concerned. As this is an anonymous forum, the operators of Pprune are responsible for any libellous statements made here. Please respect our position and keep your public comments under control!

Phoenix East Aviation??
 

Could any kindly soul out there tell me if Phoenix East Aviation (PEA) is still operating as a flight training establishment. I sent two e-mails in the past week and although their web site declares enquiries will be answered within 24 hours, I have yet to receive a reply to either.

Any assistance will be greatly appreciated :)

Or does anyone know of a flight school/ acadamy in the States that is reputable and value for money.

Fly safely

BOTR

Anybody heard of Phoenix East Aviation in Daytona
 

I am looking at courses in Florida to ATP and was wondering if anyone has any information on Phoenix East Aviation? Professional training etc?

Done alot of flying in the DAB area and have never heard anything bad from anyone about Phoenix East...

You'll have fun...
Check out 'Lollipops' if you get chance!!!! ;)

I did my PPL with PEA about 7 years ago now. It was a good school if you got a good instructor, like many. However, since then I've heard some bad stuff about it, all rumours though. I'd suggest shopping around a bit as there are a lot of schools on offer in Florida.

Personally I'd recommend the school I taught at but it was in California and more expensive than East coast establishments.

Hope this helps. :)

Info on Phoenix East Aviation(FL) OR Debonair(FL)
 

If anybody attended either of these schools or plans on attending them, what are your thoughts?
Thanks.

Phoenix East Aviation
 

Evening all,
Just wondering if anybody has had an experiences of Phoenix east aviation in daytona beach , Florida??? Im thinking of going to do the Full 2 year course there. Get your PPL,CPL, CFI,ME and teach for a year, come out with 1000hours for $26,000. Looks quite good from the paperwork sent through.
www.pea.com....check it out , c what u think!!!!

To be perfectly honnest, I didn't even take a look at the website you mentioned. From what you say, they're trying to sell you exactly the same package as if 9/11 had not occured. But, as you may know, aviation in the USA is not the same: foreigners are not welcome anymore. Well, at least not like it used to be.

So if I were you, I wouldn't count too much on the CFI-part and the 700-800 hrs of instruction. Actually, in your position, I wouldn't even bother to get the licence. It's expensive and now more than ever you don't have ANY garantee that you'll be able to use it. There are lots of CFI-CFII out there, not enough students, and those who have the best chance to get a job are Americans. The European CFI-CFIIs I know came back on this side of the Atlantic many many months ago.

Sorry if I rain on your party, but be careful and NEVER EVER believe what flying schools are saying. They may tell you the truth 99% of the time, but when it comes to your future and your money, they tell you exactly what you want to hear, and they lead you exactly where they want you to be.

Stratocaster,

Not sure what experience you have had, but if you do everything by the rules, you can come over and do exactly what Lewy Boy wants to do.

When you come to the U.S.A. on one of these courses you need to be on a J-1 Visa. You will be able to complete all your F.A.A. Ratings and either instruct at Phoenix East or at any other Flight School in the U.S.A. until your J-1 Visa runs out. If you take a job at a flight school other than Phoenix East, you will need to keep in touch with Phoenix East at all times, since they are the ones sponsoring you while you are in the U.S.A., and give then monthly progress reports on your training (in this case amount and type of instruction given).

I currently have 7 instructors working for me who have J-1 Visas from other schools. They all trained for their F.A.A. Ratings after September 11th.

Happy Flying,

Capt. Richard J. Gentil, Pres.
Naples Air Center, Inc.

I think thats a bit harsh strato....im currently dispatching at LGW and have been asking the flight deck themselves and they now say the FAA is the way to go becuase you without any doubt need hours under your belt before employers will even look at you. A JAR CPL/IR with 200 hours isnt what it used to be!!!!

I don't have any problem with the FAA, the regs, the tougher immigration laws, the new security screenings, the hour building as CFI, etc.

But I do have a problem with the marketing techniques used by some flight schools (could it be the majority indeed ?). By telling potential customers "Hey, come over here, you'll get all the licences you can dream of, and you'll also build hours as CFI" the flight school lies. Nobody can garantee you anything (usually nobody really does) and the word "garantee" is carefully withdrawn from the flight schools' vocabulary. No matter what they say and how, at the end of the day it's right there in your brain cells "I'm going to make hundreds of hours as an instructor, cooool !". Maybe you will, but probably you won't. Especially now with an industry still recovering from 9/11 and a few other things that were already there before the attacks.

My previous message was just a warning to you, Lewi, just in case you didn't realize where you're going. Being a dispatcher in contact with the "real" airline world, you should be okay and know what is right, what is not, and what to expect for your money. Go get a few licences and some hours in the States, you'll probably enjoy it as much as I did. But be careful. If something is too good to be true, it probably isn't.

And, for the records, I'm not a CFI, and never wanted to be one. I was offered a CFI job last autumn (provided I did the course with the flight school, of course) but was well inspired to turn down the offer. 90% of my friends who were CFI/CFII or on their way to become one at that time left the country months ago, some of them even changed their mind and never took the CFI course.

Stratocaster,

You did bring up an excellent point. How can any school guarantee you a licence, rating or job without meeting you and doing a full assessment of your abilities.

I currently have a 17 year old, and a 60 year old training for a PPL. It is impossible to make guarantees to people that have such differences in abilities, range of knowledge and experience.

Everyone is different. There are areas which one person could pick up immediately while another would have difficulty and other areas where the first person has difficulties and the second picks it up immediately.

Look for the school that tells you the truth, not just what you want to hear.

Take Care,

Capt. Richard J. Gentil, Pres.
Naples Air Center, Inc.

Sorry for busting the copyrights, but I thought the following piece of information really deserved to be here...

"Flight Schools Still Suffer


Flight school operators say tougher rules are sending foreign student pilots to other countries to get training. Rudi Dekkers, of Huffman Aviation in Venice, Fla., told the Associated Press his business hasn't recovered since 9/11 inspired a crush of regulations aimed at weeding out terrorists. Many of those involved in the 9/11 attacks took training at U.S. flight schools. Huffman Aviation trained two of them and Dekkers closed his Naples, Fla., flight school in December because he had no students. Where he normally had about 20 foreign students at any one time before 9/11, he now has just one. The stigma of that association is also hurting other companies that provided training. The terrorists also took lessons in Arizona and Minnesota. It's not just foreign business that was affected by the new rules. Pan Am International Flight Academy invested heavily in three commercial airliner simulators at its Minneapolis facility only to have a big chunk of its market stripped away by regulations banning inexperienced pilots from taking a whirl in one of those machines. Zacarious Moussaoui, the alleged "20th hijacker," was training at the school before an instructor got suspicious and tipped the FBI. AOPA spokesman Warren Morningstar said it's "unfortunate" that foreign students are being discouraged from training in the U.S. as "... the vast majority of people who come to the United States for flight training aren't terrorists." But it doesn't take much of a minority to cause some real problems, as we all now know."

(Outrageously stolen from AvWeb.com's newletter)

Don't always believe what you read!
 

Hmmmmm...... did anyone ever tell you the press does not always report the real events as their source can obscure things!

I get really frustrated when schools blame the hideous act of 11th September for their business failure. I know one school that closed down one week prior to this fateful day and was then on the news stating that they had closed down due to the disaster.

Dekkers other flight school, Ambassador, had a deal with SFT. Now although SFT say they closed due to the disaster many would question this as it happened so quickly after 11/9. Whatever the reason, they went under, they did not pay Ambassador and therefore hurt them. However, a school that is prospering does not close for the sort of money we are talking about. There has to be other ingredients.

What 11/9 did was weed out the schools that were living a little close to the wire. I have spoken to a number of schools that have never had it so good than at the moment. There are those that are struggling and will put some of the blame on 11/9, however, the majority blame it on a number of things as well.

Mr. Dekkers could not have known that the students at his school were the individuals plannning the heinous acts and therefore no one would blame him. However, how many times did he go on the news to talk about it? Surely this was not the advertising that would help his schools!:rolleyes: Especially when he publicly ridiculed the INS system. I think perhaps this did not help his cause!

Lewy Boy
 

In trying to answer your original question, I can say that Phoenix East is your standard FBO. They work together with the PanAm Flight Academy and Sunrise Aviation of Daytona Beach if memory serves me right. I personally trained next door at Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University.
As for experiences I’ve had with them I can say that, as the DAB airspace is rather crowded, some difficulties were had with poor English language from some of their students, resulting in some confusion at times. Other then that, as a flight school, I’d say go for it.
In so much as the post 9/11 foreign flight student’s legal matters are concerned I have following advise; Look into flight schools in South Africa, New Zealand, Australia and as far as I know even the UAE for that matter. They’re just about as expansive and offer a similar well balanced training as the US of A. The reason for that advise, is not that I have any doubts to the comments made by "Naples Air Center, Inc.", but rather because of the news that have made the rounds lately about the paranoid actions and reactions by the authorities. Further, should Bush indeed lunch an attack on the Iraq soon, the situation may turn to the worse for foreign students.
As a foreign student, I have felt the US (at least in Florida) to be a police state, no offences intended, but never leave your flat without a picture ID. I can’t imagine how much daily hassles foreigners receive nowadays.
Anyway, be sure that you know all the facts, training, legal and otherwise, such as what to do and how to do upon your return to Europe before you pack you suitcase.
Al the best to you and happy flying.

Would you recommend Phoenix East Aviation, Inc.?
 

Hey guys & ladies

I currently got my Private Pilot Licence in Trinidad and I will like to head out to the US to get my Commercial License with IR andMulti-Engine. I heard about Phoenix East Avaition Inc. and I would to know how many of you all out there know this school?

I would like to get a review on the school from anyone who knows or who have attended there?

I heard that there are a very good school and I see that there are offering some pretty reasonable Specials.

Is it as really good as they claim?:hmm: Let me know. I would really like to know before I spend my money.

Thanks alot for your co-operation guys (& Ladies) :ok:

Trini_Pilot

Do you mean the one who is located at Dear Valley Airport in
Phoenix AZ?. I hope not. If they are somehow connected with
WestWind AV then you better follow somebody`s recommedation
to somewhere else. I had a Dutch guy who was there for a while
and he told me scary stories of the kind of customer care they do.

NG

Hey guys,

Thanks alot for your replies. This school is't located in AZ. It's in Daytona Beach, FL.

The site is Pheonix East Aviation, Inc.

It just got the name Pheonix but is no where there.

Do anyone know this school and can you recommend it?

Hoping to get some replies.

Trini_Pilot :ok:

Hi Trini,

I did my training at PEA. They have reasonnable prices but be sure that you will always have to pay more hours than what is planned in the training syllabus ( don't forget that they are here to make money....).

As far as the management the Chief Pilot is a former Saudia Pilot and is only interested in making money. The Assistant Chief pilot is an asshole, a 40 years old guy frustrated for not having an airline job.

For the CFIs it's like everywhere, you got good one and bad ones.

I would recommend you to go there if you don't have any other feedbacks from other schools. They are not better or worse than any other flight schools.

Hope this helps

hi there

I have completed all my licences at PEA and really don't have many complaints. The prices are based on mimimum requirements just like any other school and I would always price over. There prices are not too bad but the planes are old but are very well maintained. They are currently building their 172's up and have several SP models R models all of which are equipped with GPS.

As far as flight instructors go there are good and bad instructors everywhere but they have no objection to you changing if you do have any problems.

My general experiences have been good and have found the majority of people friendly

Good luck in your search

Phoenix East Aviation
 

Right up front, I am an admissions officer for Phoenix East. I think "eaglejet" made some comments that need addressing. First, we really care for our students and if you come and speak to people here (Americans, Brits, whatever) I think you will find they are quite happy. That is the only way to really find out about any flight school.

The Chief Pilot is an ex 747 driver, and FAA examiner, and a very experienced aviator. He is willing to help anyone who asks for help and has arranged for many advantages for our students, like a 50 hour Part 141 Commercial Course. If he is so interested in only making money, why would he institute a course that saves our students 70 hours of flight time over any other school?

We have our own professional mechanics and several new to 2 year old 172 SP's. They are in great condition, and will remain that way.

If you have any issue here, just come and see me and I will make very sure it is taken care of. That's a personal promise, and I personally guarantee that we deliver what we promise.

As to extra hours, we sell only the minimum number of hours to get each license or rating. We know you will need more hours and we recommend up front, that you add about 15% to the price of any course or program. Any school that does not do that is misleading you. Would you rather we add a lot of extra hours that you might not need?

Wherever you choose to go, good luck. If you want an honest assessment, visit the school and talk to current students without any staff members around. That's how to find out what really goes on. Cheap shots on the internet, particualrly where people will not identify themselves, is hardly the place to look for truthful input.

I would recommend Phoenix East!
 

Hi Trini Pilot
I have just recently compleated my private training at pheonix east. I have found the staff to be friendly and supportive, (I had an issue with a check pilot there and it was handled very professionally). As for the prices of courses, well of course they are going to quote the minimum requirement ,.....doesnt everyone? The school has a large number of international students (I am one) and I have found the student support there to be outstanding. Like any other training/learning envoirnment it is really up to the student to make the most of it themselves, after all we are not kids anymore. There are of course good instructors and not so good instructors, but there is no problem with changing an instructor if an issue develops, of a matter of fact it is recommended by the admissions staff in the event.
In short I have been here for three months now and find the school an excellent envoirnment to learn. If you have any other more specific questions feel free to post another question to me directly and I will be more then happy to oblige.
If you read the negative feedback posted...............well all I can say is, .................. everybody is going to get on with everybody are they?

Phoenix East Aviation...
 

Anyone have any info about it? I heard it's been running for some 30 years and that their aircrafts are OLD but well maintained... Anyone want to reinforce that?

pea
 

Hi,

I know they a resonable fleet with a few new 172sp's

But a lot of there aircraft are old but i don't agree with the
WELL maintained.You really get what you pay for with them.
There prices are higher than a lot of the other schools.

Safe flying all

mike

anyone else who wants to shed some light on this matter?

PEA better than rumoured?!?
 

I got this email from an admissions officer at PEA....

_________________________________

CK, I don't know who these people are, but I have my suspicions. We have a
small "competitor" that may be making some of these posts.

Personally I don't believe anything that anyone says who is afraid to use his
name. You can adopt that philosophy or not, but I find it works.

Second, and I would really ask you to POST THIS ENTIRE EMAIL ON THE WEB SITE
FOR ME. I challenge ANYONE to find one person that will give their name, who can
say I EVER lied to them about ANYTHING . My name is Mike Kolendo and I am an
Admissions Officer at Phoenix East. I don't lie to people, and never will, to
get them to come to school. If you come and tour the school you are welcome to
walk around and talk to anyone you want. If you find someone that says I lied
to them, I will pay for your trip. I has never happened. Now, some of you with
big mouths, what will you pay to me if you can't find anyone? There's your
challenge. Does anyone have the manhood (sorry ladies) to accept the challenge,
or even give their real name?

Third, I have a little over 2,000 flight hours, have owned a Citabria 7KCAB, a
Cherokee 6 and a Pitts S1. Some years ago I flew competition aerobatics (only
in the sportsmans class.) Was I a professional pilot? No way. But I do have a
license that is over 25 years old and can probably answer a lot of questions
about flying that those making unfounded accusations can not.

It is really a shame that people put so much stock in these anonymous forums.
If you come to Phoenix East and see for yourself, you will find a nice place
that cares about its students, tries to help you every step of the way, has good
prices and MOST IMPORTANT, gets real airline jobs for its graduates. In a very
recent 90 day period we got jobs for 22 of our 50 instructors with (I think I
remember correctly) 7 different airlines.

Come and speak to students at Phoenix. Talk to those that you know are actually
going through the training. Sure, some may have a compaint or two. Find a
flight school that doesn't have any students with complaints. What you will
find is some happy people, working hard but also enjoying Daytona Beach, who are
generally very glad they chose Phoenix East Aviation.

Of course we are not perfect, but we are a bunch of people that love aviation
who are trying to support our families by offering a good education at a more
than fair price. Our students leave as friends, and return to visit often.
Read the unsolicited letter on our web site from a recent graduate; Jason
Prestigiacomo who now flies for United Express. No school lasts over 32 years
by treating people the way these accusations say they are treated.

If no one wants to challenge me, WITH A REAL NAME AND ADDRESS ONLY, don't
believe the nonsense you are reading here. Any questions? [email protected]

PLEASE POST THIS, CK. And if you want to beleive anonymous nonsense where
people don't even have the nerve to use their own names, go ahead. There's
nothing further I can do to change your mind. I made you a personal promise
that I would look after you. I can't do any more than that. In return I ask
you to put this on Pprune, or whatever it's called.

Mike Kolendo
Phoenix East Aviation

So...

One of the admissions officers is a pilot, how about the rest.

How about the chief pilot? What's he like? Quite an enjoyable fella'

Phoenix East
 

Has anyone heard of Phoenix East? Is it a good school? Do you think I should get my license there? Which course do recommend?

Easy tiger......!!

Think about your options and the questions you want to ask, and then write them all into one post.

And check your Private Messages

Farrell

Phoenix East credit courses
 

Have anyone attended in Phoenix East Flight training school in daytona, Florida? I read about it that they would give the credit courses that we took toward a bachelor degree ( credits that is transferable to some university). Is it true though?

Hours building Phoenix Arizona
 

Hi,

Just getting towards the end of my PPL(A) and looking to build some hours.
A mate of mine is willing to come along for the ride and share some costs (accommodation etc) and he really wants to go to Phoenix, Arizona. No idea why there in particular... Looks like a good place to fly around though, presumably could go up to the Grand Canyon and possibly across to Vegas too?
Anyhow, I'd love to hear from anyone who's done this or something close and any suggestions of places to rent from. I have had a little search but didn't come up with a fat lot.

Just editing to add another thought. It's cheaper to fly from UK to Las Vegas. Is it worth looking to rent from somewhere in Vegas and fly to Phoenix and around?

Cheers...

I did 100hrs at Chandler AZ, just south of Phoenix. Used Chandler Air Services where I got a piper warrior for $64. Plenty of places to visit when there, i.e Las Vegas, Tuscon, San Diego, Los Angeles and even New Mexico. I went in the summer when it is unbelievably hot but thats when its the cheapest for accommodation. Any questions just PM me.

I also did around 100 hours at Chandler Air Services - not the cheapest around, but IMHO the best, especially if you want to do any hour-building on tail-draggers (which I highly recommend). Bear in mind that all my information might be 4 years out of date.

As for Grand Canyon, do what I did and land at Grand Canyon airport, then walk across the airport to get into a tourist helicoptor across the canyon because they are allowed to go places you're not. There are a couple of GA lanes across the top of the canyon, though, and with hindsight I should have flown across the canyon too.

Another good day trip is Tucson (land, watch everything from F18s to A320s land too, get a follow-me to guide you to your parking space and then give you a ride to the executive terminal - all for the grand price of nothing, then get a cab to the Air and Space Museum), or Sedona (get in touch with a company called Pink Jeep Tours for a great day out - they'll pick you up from the airport).

For longer trips, try Las Vegas (I flew into North Las Vegas airport, which was fine, but with hindsight I wish I'd flown into the international airport), or Los Angeles as llesson says.

FFF
----------------

Chandler Air Services were fantastic - good aircraft rates and very helpful, friendly staff. Good range of aircraft - from what I remember Warriors, Archers, Arrows, Cub plus Great Lakes and Pitts if you want to do any aero's.

Some great flying around that area too! Probably best to go between Jan and April for the best weather before it gets too hot in June/July/Aug and a bit rainy Aug/Sept.

I stayed in Mesa/Chandler and was pretty cheap - sorry cant remember names of anywhere though.

Phoenix East Aviation in Daytona Beach, FL
 

I know this has probably been covered before, but as you all know the old threads aren't accessible at the moment :bored:
I'm looking for information about this school in Florida. They seem to offer quite interesting rates and employment opportunities as an instructor (J-1 visa). www.pea.com
Could anybody give their experiences with that school?
thanx

no way
 

I've just registered on this forum, because I wanted to warn you about this school; stay well clear of them.
I started in P.E.A. about 4 years ago, and they are absolute cowboys! I left even before i finished my ppl. be very carefull about goign to this school.

If PEA is no good try Flyaviator-
 

Have you had a look at: -

http://www.aribenaviator.com/

They do FAA and JAA training in florida at St Lucie county Airport (KFPR)

Good luck in your choice