Training Archives - Page 3 of 7 - Golf Hotel Whiskey

Paying for flight training tips

Learning how to fly and especially the actual flying time spent in the cockpit is an expensive endeavor for most pilots. Hence, a question posted by Kevin Jones on the Ask a Flight Instructor site along with the responses it generated are well worth reading. Specifically, Kevin noted that he began taking flying lessons about 10 years ago until school and work took over. However, he is not set on becoming a pilot but not on taking out loans or using credit cards to do so. Hence, he asked:

Is it more normal for me to wait and save up the money over time or take lessons as I have the money along the way. I have such a desire to get into the air and don’t really want to wait. Any Pros or Cons would be helpful in making my decision. I am afraid if I wait and slowly save up the money something else will come up that I will have to use the money for. So…. is it normal for students to pay as they come up with the money?

Micah responded by saying that he will usually tell his students not to start flight training unless they have enough money saved up in order to complete the training. Otherwise, he would suggest that once someone has a good idea of the budget needed, he or she should save up a significant portion ahead of time under the expectation that the rest will be set aside before the flight training is finished.

Michael Ladd then noted that in many cases, “paying as you go” will end up meaning flying a couple of times a month rather than a couple of times a week. However, he noted two things that he did which helped him considerably:

He saved up a good chunk (about 1/3) of the funds ahead of time.
His flight school offered “block time” where if you pre-paid 10 hours, you could receive an hour free.

Meanwhile, Earl Kessler pointed out that training sporadically is like going to the gym once a month – while its better than not going at all, its not much better.

Finally Jim Foley wrote that he flew whenever he had the money but this meant that he also had to repeat many flying lessons. Moreover, many of his flight instructors were just out of college trying to build up their hours – meaning they were coming and going and he ended up having 8 instructors during his training with his first or second flights with each one being so that they could find out what he knew. In addition, his flight school was also buying, selling and leasing back aircraft – which further threw off his training.

However, we want to ask you our readers, especially any based in the UK or in Europe, any tips you may have for keeping flight training costs down. In other words, have we left anything out?

Why you need an instrument rating

Jason Schappert of MzeroA.com has created a short video listing three good reasons why you need and should seek an instrument rating. The reasons Jason listed included:

Lower insurance costs. Having an instrument rating will help you save money on insurance. Moreover and if you plan on buying an aircraft, the savings on insurance from having an instrument rating will be considerable.
Increased safety. Having an instrument rating will increase both your safety as a solo pilot and the safety of any passengers you take onboard.
More flying days. Having an instrument rating means that you will not have to delay your flying due to morning fog that will eventually burn off or have to wait for perfect flying conditions.

Jason concluded that getting an instrument rating will be a pilot’s most difficult and yet most rewarding rating to pursue during your flight training.

What is the best university degree for pilots?

If you are thinking of becoming a pilot as a possible career option, Brenda has posted a great question on AskaCFI.com concerning what type of degree one should obtain:

What is the best degree that you can get along with a pilot license? Something related to aviation, that way its not completely different and can help if you discontinue with flying. Please help me.

Corporate pilot and flight instructor James replied by writing that any degree from an accredited university is a good thing to have. However, he would encourage someone looking at a career in aviation to get a degree in a field besides aviation in order to have more options in case of a bad economy, a lost medical etc. He also pointed out hat he has never come across a pilot application or interview that required him to have a degree in aviation BUT most applications will probably require a degree.

Meanwhile, JamesCFI wrote that he wouldn’t get a degree in aviation and suggested a BA in marketing or business as these are disciplines that might come in handy in general. He also added:

…if you are trying to go the military or major airline route in your future career, you will NEED a 4 year degree and no they don’t care in what (be it a BA in basket weaving or a BS in BS).

On the other hand, Micah wrote that getting a flying related degree is a good idea because you can then get a flying related job. Hence, he advised looking at flying related jobs and going from there:

Do you want to teach at a university that has an aviation program? Get an advanced degree that is useful. Do you want to run an FBO? Do you want to work in airline management? Do you want to work for Boeing? Run a maintenance shop?

Micah also suggested attending a school with reasonable costs and pursuing a double major with one degree in aviation and a second degree in another field.

In other words and unless you get completely turned off aviation, its probably useful to have a degree that can lead to another job that is ideally aviation related just in case a pilot career does not work out or if you become grounded for other reasons.

Are you too short to be a commercial pilot?

Justin Bowen has posted an interesting question on AskaCFI.com regarding any height requirements for being a commercial pilot. Specifically he wrote that he is planning to go to ATP next year for the remainder of his ratings so that he can fly commercial. However:

My biggest concern however is about my height. I am 5’4” and have never really had a problem in general aviation. I am fine in most airplanes I’ve flown, but depending on the year of Cessna 172, I am more comfortable with a back rest. I also know you should be able to fully extend the rudder pedals without shifting your body weight. I am usually fine, but like I said, sometimes I have to shift my weight in a 172. Will this be a problem getting hired by a major airline? Are there limitations I should know about?

In other words, Justin does not want to waste his money on expensive commercial pilot training if he won’t be able to get a commercial pilot job because of his height.

However, John D. Collins responded by saying that he has a friend who is 5 foot 1 and 1/2 inches and flies a regional jet for an airline while CFI Academy also replied that he or she knows many pilots who are actually shorter than Justin.

Finally, flight instructor Earl Kessler pointed out that he is an inch taller than Justin and to look at the bright side of things:

…we well never get the “diamond headache” that people a few inches taller than us get running into the back of side of the Cessna wings. I have always seen my height as an advantage in aviation and you should too. Being smaller, we can carry more fuel, fit in older Mooney’s and generally never worry about a head strike in moderate turbulence.

He finished by writing that Justin will be fine with the airlines and commercial carriers who will look at a pilot’s qualifications rather than height.

In other words and if you are “vertically challenged,” it should not be a challenge for you to become a commercial pilot!

Is traditional stall training a waste of time?

Air Facts magazine has recently posted an interesting question for readers regarding stall training that has already attracted nearly 60 comments. Specifically, Air Facts magazine asked:

Question: Most inadvertent stalls that result in serious accidents occur at an altitude too low for a recovery. Do you think this means that practicing stalls at altitude is a waste of time?

Student pilot Joseph Chambers responded by writing that he thinks stall training is worth it because it gets future pilots out of their comfort zone and lets them know whether they can calmly react when a flight goes outside of the normal flight parameters. He also added that you do not know how you will react the first time in a stall as it will be “quite a ride” if you were not “raised on airplanes.”

ConcernedPilot posted that if a student pilot is learning how to fly an aircraft but is never taught the full capabilities of an aircraft, he or she is being set up for failure because flying will never be an ideal situation every time. Moreover, ConcernedPilot noted that in more advanced flying situations such as bush flying, a pilot will often need to fly right at stall speed.

However, CFIChuck was one reader who disagreed with much of the prevailing wisdom that other commenters had posted. Specifically, he wrote that he thought that stall training is a hold-over from the World War II mindset and it isn’t worth practicing. CFIChuck pointed out that:

We don’t practice crash landing, after all–we simply learn not to do it. Same for stalls–there is no reason to ever stall, period, and practicing it is just checking the box. If you ever stall for real, it’s too late, you won’t recover.

He did add that its also important to learn what types of flying scenarios will make you more susceptible to a stall and how to avoid them but he feels it’s a bad investment to go up to 3,000 feet for “feeling the break.”

Hence, we want to ask you our readers what you think: Is stall training a waste of time? Moreover, are stalls something that every pilot needs to experience in the cockpit rather than just learn about in the classroom?

Will general aviation in the UK go the way of fox hunting?

Flight Global recently had an extensive article about how general aviation is also taking a big hit in Europe and in the UK in particular. Moreover, general aviation has been declining in both Europe and the UK for some time now with the UK being hit particularly hard.

In fact and as the following chart shows, the total of new private and commercial pilots licenses that have been issued by the Civil Aviation Authority has steadily fallen since 2003 with the decline being particularly rapid for the past four years. And while the UK did introduce a more localized plus less rigorous and much cheaper license in 2002 and this did attract new pilots, the total number of new pilots has still continued to decline since 2003.

Martin Robinson, the chief executive of the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association (AOPA) UK and regional vice-president of IAOPA Europe, was quoted as saying that the financial meltdown has hit general aviation particularly hard. In fact, Martin estimates that since 2007, the total number of pilot training recruits in the UK has fallen by 30% as would-be pilots spend their money on other leisure activities or more important commitments. Moreover, Martin noted that it will typically cost about £8,000 (or US$12,900) for a would-be pilot to obtain a private pilot’s license and roughly £65,000 to obtain a commercial pilot’s license.

Martin also pointed out that flying is just simply not a young person’s activity. In fact, the 40 to 60 year old age bracket sees the most licenses issued as this demographic group will typically have more disposable income to spend on flying.

Finally, Martin observed that general aviation itself faces some hostility at the local and national level in the UK thanks to the image that light aircraft is noisy, intrusive and environmentally unfriendly. Hence, general aviation is not seen as a politically correct leisure activity.

Hence, we want to ask you our readers what you think of the state of general aviation in the UK. In other words, will general aviation in the UK slowly go the way of fox hunting?