Private Pilots Licence

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

A while ago I was given a voucher for a 60 min Extended flight voucher for a present and was looking to book this up in the next few months before it expires.

Shoreham Aviation flight centre is likely to be the most convenient location for me - on looking at their website, I was distracted by their PPL packages, which looks to be around £12k in total.

For those of you who have done this, how long do people normally take to do the 45 hours required flying time? Realistically one or twice a month would be the maximum commitment, so it would take 2-3 years to complete the hours.

[hidetheelephants]

How long is a piece of string? It's not unusual for leisure pilots to take that long, between getting free time and the vagaries of UK weather mean you won't get flying every time you have time. This is why flying schools in Spain and Florida etc are so popular.

[fat80b]

A couple of years is probably about right.

I did my ppl at 17 on weekends and it took me a couple of years start to finish. I spent a lot of time at the flying club waiting for a gap in the weather to squeeze an hour in.

I’m always surprised that more people don’t fancy getting their ppl or at least learning to first solo stage.

It’s about 10 hours to first solo at which point you can fly a plane.

You then can choose whether or not to keep on going with the other skills and tests etc.

For me, I learnt in North Wales and my final test was to fly into Liverpool airport - there is something quite cool about landing behind the 737 in your little Cessna and heading into the departure lounge before filing your flight plan for the next leg.

Do it - even if you never fly much afterwards ( which I what I ended up doing) it’s a pretty cheap thing to do if you think about it.

[Mercdriver]

Yes but you will not get a lot of poor weather experience in Florida or Spain. You need a rounded experience if you intend to continue to fly in UK. During training the instructor will guide you regarding the weather but eventually you will have to make the decision for yourself. Getting trapped above low cloud in the rain is not a pleasant experience.

Nothing worse than spending a miserable day at a rain sodden airfield.

As above, how long is a piece of string, it depends on your commitment, remember you have to study for the exams as well.

But go for it you will enjoy it, lots of satisfaction after a safe well flown flight.

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Thanks - I’ve not even had the trial experience, so this is somewhat getting ahead of myself, but assuming I enjoy the experience, I do like getting new skills and the technical nature (mathematics etc) appeals to me - similar to when I did Scuba diving etc. I ’ve been doing exams all my life, so these don’t put me off at all!

The £12k cost (does this seem reasonable as in all-in cost?) is feasible if it is spread over 2-3years, is there anything else I need to think about?

I was wondering about purchasing the first PPL book to read up ahead of my trial experience - would this help make my first experience more interesting, do you think?

Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Sunday 31st December 14:41

[hidetheelephants]

It may do, some of it is a bit dry but they will help you understand what's going on assuming you can overcome the sensory overload that is being in an aluminium tube propelled by a glorified beetle engine. Don't buy new though as they're fortunes, you get most of what you need from used books and what gaps there are can be filled using online learning tools(some are free, some you get a taster then pay a sub) and help from your flying school/instructor.

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Just seen this:
https://flyer.co.uk/shorehams-fta-flight-school-cl...

But the Shoreham website suggests that they are offering training / flight experiences again, so I assume this got resolved.

Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Sunday 31st December 15:09

[Sticks.]

Sport_Turismo_GTS said:

Just seen this:
https://flyer.co.uk/shorehams-fta-flight-school-cl...

But the Shoreham website suggests that they are offering training / flight experiences again, so I assume this got resolved.

Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Sunday 31st December 15:09

If that's the case it's not the first and won't be the last. I was told never to put a lot of money up front when doing a PPL.

I think you'd need to be looking to fly more than 1-2 times per month. Otherwise, weather being what it is, plus planes being repaired or serviced, you could easily go a month or more without flying and you'll spend half the lesson remembering what you did before.

Other costs will include club membership, charts etc, headphones were £500 when I did it so more now I imagine. Plus landing fees - if you 're paying hourly are they included?

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Sticks. said:

If that's the case it's not the first and won't be the last. I was told never to put a lot of money up front when doing a PPL.

I think you'd need to be looking to fly more than 1-2 times per month. Otherwise, weather being what it is, plus planes being repaired or serviced, you could easily go a month or more without flying and you'll spend half the lesson remembering what you did before.

Other costs will include club membership, charts etc, headphones were £500 when I did it so more now I imagine. Plus landing fees - if you 're paying hourly are they included?

Thanks!

[Mercdriver]

+1 for not paying up front, Tay side flying club went t1ts up, even worse some were commercial pilots so some lost a substantial sum of money.

Shame cos it was a good club, easy access into and quick to take off, not a lot of waiting for clearance to take off, which you are paying for per hour.

[jjones]

Don't pay upfront, so many training schools have gone pop over the years.

Rule of thumb is add an extra hour of training for every year old you are over 18.

[eharding]

jjones said:

Rule of thumb is add an extra hour of training for every year old you are over 18.

Never heard that one before - taking 45 hours as a baseline? FWIW, first powered solo for me at age 36 after 13 hours dual (flown in just over a month) and general skills test at 9 hours solo and 42 hours dual (4 months, 3 weeks from first lesson). As others have said, trying to learn on the basis of 2 lessons a month is going to be challenging when trying to maintain a sense of currency, whereas an intensive course (generally abroad due UK weather) will get you qualified in a matter of weeks, but then you'd probably need some time to get used to the UK weather anyway.

Back when I was training at White Waltham, I aimed to book three lessons a week with the expectation of a 30% weather cancellation rate, but from looking at my first logbook it looks like 48 flights over 19 weeks, so the actual cancellation rate was probably only 15% or so, but this was spring-summer 2003 and from memory it wasn't a bad year for weather (compared to late 2004 - early 2005 when I did my IMC rating, when the weather I recall was particularly foul - not such as issue for IMC training, but I remember slogging round the Woodley NDB hold wearing largely redundant IFR goggles when the whole cockpit lit up. the ADF needle stated swinging wildly and my instructor said "Ooooh - they *do* point at thunderstorms!". We also had to split my IMC exam flight in two as the turbulence trying to shoot the Farnborough ILS was so bad the examiner had his head smacked hard against the door frame and decided he didn't want to play any more).

Edited by eharding on Monday 1st January 12:03

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

When I was suggesting two lessons a month, I was going on the basis that I probably could not commit to more than 2 weekends a month, given other priorities (and the potential costs), and wasn’t sure if this was feasible or not.

However, allowing for flying on both a Saturday and Sunday on the same weekend and/or the odd mid-week excursion (particularly in the summer months when the daylight hours are so much greater, and which would be much more accessible now I’m working at home 2 days a week), then 3 or 4 times a month, on average, might be feasible.

Let’s see how my first ‘extended flying experience’ goes and then I can decide whether this is something I want to progress or not!

Anyone have any experience of training at Headcorn airport?

[Sticks.]

Sport_Turismo_GTS said:

Anyone have any experience of training at Headcorn airport?

I did, a while back now.

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Sticks. said:

I did, a while back now.

How long ago - recent enough to still be relevant? Names of the instructors you dealt with?

Good / bad / cheap / expensive / recommended or not?!

Any information gratefully received!

Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Monday 1st January 15:35

[fourstardan]

Sport_Turismo_GTS said:

A while ago I was given a voucher for a 60 min Extended flight voucher for a present and was looking to book this up in the next few months before it expires.

Shoreham Aviation flight centre is likely to be the most convenient location for me - on looking at their website, I was distracted by their PPL packages, which looks to be around £12k in total.

For those of you who have done this, how long do people normally take to do the 45 hours required flying time? Realistically one or twice a month would be the maximum commitment, so it would take 2-3 years to complete the hours.

Good luck if you do PPL.

I got bought a 60 minute flight at Shoreham for my 30th, it was one of the greatest gifts ive had, the feeling of being up there within seconds was just amazing.

If I wasn't into golf I'd do PPL as I live about half an hour from Compton Abbas.

[Sticks.]

Sport_Turismo_GTS said:

How long ago - recent enough to still be relevant? Names of the instructors you dealt with?

Good / bad / cheap / expensive / recommended or not?!

Any information gratefully received!

Edited by Sport_Turismo_GTS on Monday 1st January 15:35

A friend of mine still flies there so hopefully this is still about right.

Some of the instructors there have been so for a long time, so very experienced and all very helpful. The one who taught me isn't though, and to al large extent it's who you get on with. If you feel it's not working, say so and change, it's your money.

So a pretty friendly and relaxed place with a club atmosphere. All grass, so subject to closure if it's too wet in Winter and you don't experience concrete/tarmac landings until you land elsewhere. Some people don't like it because of the (small) no fly zones and the parachuting. But the circuit is easy to learn and the airfield easy to find, (except from the S) being by a long stretch of straight railway and the area is largely flat.

There were (not sure if still are) 2 Cessnas, 4 Robins and a PA28. I hated the Cessna I tried. The Robins are forgiving in the last few feet, which is handy, though they get very hot in Summer. My favourite was FV, which is a 120hp because the instrument layout was vaguely sensible and it handled as you'd expect. I wonder if they ever fixed the P1 seat ratchet. The 108 I hated and the 140 and 160 are more expensive per hr though better for distances.

Summer and weekends can get busy, which is not only a pain but adds risk as people are unfamiliar with the circuit, plus parachuting and microlights. Planes can need attention on Mondays, so not a good day to book. Plane unavailability was an issue then. There's an opportunity for night flying late in the year. It's licensed to 19.30 iirc.

Given what you've said about your availability I'd choose wherever is nearest to you so you can go as often as possible, maybe book one last minute if the weather's better than forecast, say. Otherwise there's a risk of giving up a lot of time for not much gain.

[this is my username]

I'm a flying instructor.

For some people getting the licence is the priority - maybe they are on a journey to become a professional pilot, or they have a particular project or requirement for which they need to be able to fly. In that case the most cost and time effective way is to fly frequently so that by the time you are near the end of the course you haven't forgotten too much of the stuff that you were taught at the beginning.

For most people they are looking for a new leisure activity - in which case getting a licence is a journey not a destination. It doesn't matter how long or how many hours it takes as long as you are enjoying yourself on the way. Flying doesn't suddenly become free (or even cheap) once you have a licence, so extra hours with an instructor aren't costing you much more than you would be paying if you are flying on your own.

If someone comes to me and tells me that they are planning to fly once a month, I will normally tell them that they are unlikely to ever get a licence with that run-rate. If they come once a week, then it will work. Somewhere between the two there is a cross-over where achieving a licence will happen - where that is depends on their ability and how much effort they put in.

As others have said - avoid paying up front (flying schools regularly go bust; offering discounts for up-front payments is not a sign of good financial stability), and if you do pay up front use your credit card.

[Sport_Turismo_GTS]

Sticks. said:

A friend of mine still flies there so hopefully this is still about right.

Some of the instructors there have been so for a long time, so very experienced and all very helpful. The one who taught me isn't though, and to al large extent it's who you get on with. If you feel it's not working, say so and change, it's your money.

So a pretty friendly and relaxed place with a club atmosphere. All grass, so subject to closure if it's too wet in Winter and you don't experience concrete/tarmac landings until you land elsewhere. Some people don't like it because of the (small) no fly zones and the parachuting. But the circuit is easy to learn and the airfield easy to find, (except from the S) being by a long stretch of straight railway and the area is largely flat.

There were (not sure if still are) 2 Cessnas, 4 Robins and a PA28. I hated the Cessna I tried. The Robins are forgiving in the last few feet, which is handy, though they get very hot in Summer. My favourite was FV, which is a 120hp because the instrument layout was vaguely sensible and it handled as you'd expect. I wonder if they ever fixed the P1 seat ratchet. The 108 I hated and the 140 and 160 are more expensive per hr though better for distances.

Summer and weekends can get busy, which is not only a pain but adds risk as people are unfamiliar with the circuit, plus parachuting and microlights. Planes can need attention on Mondays, so not a good day to book. Plane unavailability was an issue then. There's an opportunity for night flying late in the year. It's licensed to 19.30 iirc.

Given what you've said about your availability I'd choose wherever is nearest to you so you can go as often as possible, maybe book one last minute if the weather's better than forecast, say. Otherwise there's a risk of giving up a lot of time for not much gain.

That’s really helpful, thanks.

Headcorn is around 30mins away, subject to traffic, so this is likely to be the most convenient location for me. It’s a shame that the flight voucher that I have is for Shoreham.

[magpie215]

If your planning on going for a ppl

No money up front

Fly often and start boxing off exams usually air law first as its req before first solo.

Get your class one medical done early.....no class one no ppl.

You can pick up most of your required items used I got a load of kit in pilots bag from a guy who had to give up flying due to ill health.