Flight School Inquiry

[berserkbishop]

Ok, this is kind of off the wall, but with the diversity of our board I figure that I may get an answer. I am going to be graduating with my Associate of Arts from a local community college in May, and I have to figure out where I want to go. I dabbled in several fields that I was interested in and decided that none of them were for me, so I am back where I started. I have always wanted to be a pilot, helicopters especially. I have looked at several places in the U.S. and none of them really interest me. I would really like to study abroad, especially in Scotland or any of the British Isles. My first question would be, does anyone know of flight schools specifically I could apply to in the UK, and what does that sort of thing take? (Visa's? legal mumbo jumbo) I have done some looking on the internet and have come up rather empty without a starting point. Also, anyone with info on U.S., Australian, or Canadian schools that they could vouch for would be great as well. I am not really attached to any geographic location. Before someone suggests military, my eyesight does not make me a candidate for highly the competitive flight programs of the U.S. military but I can get civilian training. Thanks for any info in advance.

BB

[cessna152towser]

There are several good professional flying schools in England, of which the best known is probably Oxford Air Training. You could probably get a study visa as they do take many international students. Though I should warn you that flight training is more expensive in Europe than it is in the USA, partly due to fuel costs and partly due to the uncertain weather, which is why many European pilots previously trained in Florida USA, until the USA tightened up on issuing visas to foreign student pilots in the wake of the incident a few years ago when terrorists flew two passenger jet into a New York tower block.

[Arlen]

Thanks for any info in advance.

BB

I don't fly myself, but as far as learning and everyday details here Alex ( cessna152towser ) would be the one to ask.
As far as study visas go, they are easy enough to get as long as you have been offered a place in a course.
Thereafter the difficulty is just the general admin stuff.

[McGurk]

There are flying clubs and/or flight schools at nearly every airport in the UK, bare in mind however, the cost. 3 years ago I was getting a good deal when I could fly for £100 per hour lesson, and I can only imagine prices rising since then. (Flying was my most joyous hobbie, alas, I had to give it up because I couldnt afford flying AND a mortgage.)

Depending on how intensivly you want to train, you could do it on a holiday over here, but for just your private pilots licence (not a commercial licence) you would have at least £4,500 and another minimum of £500 pound for study materials, medicals, equipment.

I;ve only got experience of one flying club, that being the Teesside flying club at Teesside airport (now Durham Tees Valley Airport). They where very professional and had a wide range of experience between their instructors, (ie, those who had just qualified and where building up hours to get into airlines and where full of enthusiasm, and those who where retired, and already had a wealth of experience.) The instruction was mainly in the air, any groud studies where left to the student to do themselves, however, the staff where always willing to help and would give you classroom time as well if you wanted it.

You could always try to get a work visa, get a job over here and use that to fund flying at a slower pace, but as far as I know, work visas are hard toget if you dont already have a job arranged.

Cost is the biggest problem if you want to learn to fly here. There is big buisness in the UK to fly people to the US, get them an FAA licence and then convert it to a CAA licence back in the UK. That whole process, including a holiday in the US costs less then learning to fly here.

I dont mean to shoot down your ambitions, but thats the reality of flying in the UK.

[berserkbishop]

I dont mean to shoot down your ambitions, but thats the reality of flying in the UK.

Geez, didnt realize how bad the cost would be. Thanks for the info guys, maybe living in Scotland will have to wait. You didnt shoot down my ambitions, I was wanting straight facts and thats what I got. Appreciate it!

bb

[KiltedPilot]

I can give you some info on Canadian helicopter schools on the west coast (just PM me). You'll be talking about C$45,000 for a commercial license here.

Bizarrely, per hour, commercial training for helicopters in the UK is a little cheaper -- I am at a loss to explain why helicopter training is cheaper in UK, when fixed wing is more expensive there (I've done both).

That said, the number of flying hours required in the UK for a commercial helicopter license is higher than Canada, so it'll end up costing you more regardless.

Private flying licenses in UK, or US or Canada, can be exchanged with a simple bit of paperwork for private licenses in other countries. Commercial licenses require, I believe, flight and written tests in the new country, but all the training in the prior country qualifies (though I believe there is slow progress towards making them fully exchangeable also).

KP

[O'Neille]

Training in U.S. is half the price, but still expensive. A lot of military pilots never transition to civilian flight either. If you are serious about flight school then get your license and become an instructor, it's the only way to get time with reduced costs. I'd recommend fixed wing first to learn to fly, radio work, written exams etc...then get your helicopter rating. Not a heck of a lot of helicopter jobs for low hour pilots. If you want to make a living in aviation it's commercial balloon flights or airline work.

If you look on the net you'll find that a foreign commercial license is very similar to a U.S. private (in terms of hours) and it's easier to transition from FAA to ICAO than the other way around. http://www.flyoft.com/license_conversion.php
The good news is All flight training is done in English wherever you go.

Here's where I went to learned to fly. http://www.cochise.edu/deptsdirs/aviation/index.asp
We had a ton of foreign students there also. One girl from Germany finished her commercial in a month. They have dormitory housing and you can finish up college degree work too.

Finally, there are a lot of UAV (unmanned arieal vehicles) jobs in the military and government that are quite lucrative in the private sector. We've got a lot of it down here by the border. Fly UAVs in the military and get your G.I. Bill for flight school when you get out.

[bikeolounger]

There is a fairly decent helicopter program at an airport just north of Louisville KY. I've known a couple of people who learned there. I don't know the name offhand, but if you are interested I'll find it.

[berserkbishop]

I can give you some info on Canadian helicopter schools on the west coast (just PM me). You'll be talking about C$45,000 for a commercial license here.

Bizarrely, per hour, commercial training for helicopters in the UK is a little cheaper -- I am at a loss to explain why helicopter training is cheaper in UK, when fixed wing is more expensive there (I've done both).

That said, the number of flying hours required in the UK for a commercial helicopter license is higher than Canada, so it'll end up costing you more regardless.

Private flying licenses in UK, or US or Canada, can be exchanged with a simple bit of paperwork for private licenses in other countries. Commercial licenses require, I believe, flight and written tests in the new country, but all the training in the prior country qualifies (though I believe there is slow progress towards making them fully exchangeable also).

KP

Give me some names if you dont mind. I am just trying to do a bunch of research before I make any real decisions. I am hoping to get the heck outa Missouri, and I would like to see another country. I am getting info on a school in New Zealand as well!

BB

[McGurk]

Geez, didnt realize how bad the cost would be. Thanks for the info guys, maybe living in Scotland will have to wait. You didnt shoot down my ambitions, I was wanting straight facts and thats what I got. Appreciate it!

bb

I must add, however, that there is no finer ambition then the ambition to get your wings.

Also, if you do come to the UK for a holiday or visit, then that single £100, one hour flight around a city and its surrounding areas is well worth it. I'm hoping to go flying around edinburgh and falkirk