Picking a proper flight school would be 1 of the most important step in your aviation career.
There is a lot of flight academy in the market; but which can really be your flying partner, to guide and assist you to Professional Aviation Career?
I have seen a lot of students got frustrated with their flight training and school. It is heartbroken to witness so many young flyers giving up their wings and passion of flying.
So lets discuss some flight schools that you know(good or bad)
Share your own stories.
@Gary Law thats actually not bad at all. 32hr to get an EASA LAPL(A). Consider you got it completed in just 28days;that surely an great achievement!
According to what u said, seems like the EASA LAPL is actually better the FAA RPL. it got less restrictions compare to RPL.
Btw, that’s some great insight for flight training in Europe. Be honest. I don’t hv much idea about aviation industry in Europe; except Ryanair is being ‘Cheap’ to their ‘employee’ and AF always on strike lol. With your knowledge, is there much Hker flying GA in London? I am curious!
Anyway, thanks again for the info
It is easier for me as I was aiming for LAPL(A) instead of PPL(A), which is the EASA equivalent of the UK CAA old National Private Pilot Licence. LAPL only requires 30 hours (NPPL 32 hours) instead of 45 hours and a shorter Qualified Cross Country Route. I got it minimum hours with around 32 hours with 1 hour of the exam. The weather was not great and it took me almost a week to take my flying test.
The only limitation or difference between LAPL and PPL is that it is a sub-ICAO licence so you can only fly within EASA airspace. The MTOW is 2000kg instead of PPL's 4500kg. You can only take 3 pax max. Also you need another 10 hours solo before taking pax. (To be frank it is not a big deal if you are not flying something like Cessna 206). The written exam is the same with 9 subjects. The flight test is basically the same, just that doing VOR cross-cut is not required in LAPL. (But my school followed PPL syllabus whatsoever)
The EASA PPL requires a much stricter re-validation requirements as you need to have 12 hours flying time immediately before 12 months preceding the rating’s expiry date. If it is lapsed you can only go for a flying test. EASA LAPL instead has no deadline but a rolling validity in which you must fulfil 12 hours PIC time within 24 months before the date you fly your plane. Even if it's lapsed you can still fly solo to get back the 12 hours before you can take passengers again. It is more flexible for me who might not be able to come back to the UK.
Bi-annual flight review does not exist in EASA land. But basically you can do the same to cover your validity for 24 months after a flight test with an examiner. But this route is a bit too costly for low hours pilots IMHO.
@Gary Law
Thats very lucky of you! Cramp everything within 28 days is not easy! and getting your license 2 hours before leaving~ it is amazing how everything works out for you!
In my flight school before, we had our legend there. That's one guy got a 6 months tourist Visa and target to start from Zero to CPL; and he got it with a week to spare.
Consider PPL IR and get 250hr for CPL in 6 months is hella work~ But of course, he is fully committed during that 6months.
Anyways, that's a great story of yours again~ Maybe I shall consider making you a blog writer here~Share your interesting stories to more aviation lovers~ haha
I know I have been the lucky one. I decided to take the flying course as one of my friends gave me the key of his house in nearby town. My idea was a very intensive course of around 28 days in which I would like to try to cramp in as many hours as I could and perhaps obtained a licence.
I sent the flying school an email but there was no reply after a few days. So I phoned them up with IDD straight away. A lady picked up the call and she said she would talk to the instructors to see whether they could take up the challenge. I was probably the only full-time student pilot in the school.
She contacted me through her own facebook message and said she found an instructor who would take it as a challenge. My instructor is a car mechanic in his dad's garage and he took a month's leave just to have me as a student and he would pick me up every morning at 7 and drove me to the airfield and took me back home after work at 6pm. Then I had to revise for the 9 ground exams at night.
Eventually I managed to get my licence 2 hours before I headed back to Hong Kong within 28 days. Ever since, I always go back and have a bit of flying around Southern England. B with them every Summer. The school is like my second hometown and people there treated me really well. The school is Anglian Flight Centres in Earls Colne, Essex near Colchester. However I doubt it would be suitable now as they don't really have full time instructors at the moment and most of them only work at weekends.