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Learning to Fly |
WHAT DOES IT INVOLVE?THERE are two different licences for the Private Pilot. The JAR licence is recognised by over 30 mostly European states, is valid for flying abroad and can have further ratings added to it. The NPPL (National Private Pilots Licence) is valid for daytime flying, generally in the UK only. The NPPL requires fewer hours to attain so is cheaper. It also has significantly relaxed medical requirements. |
THE JAR LICENCE
You have to complete at least 45 hours flying instruction of which at least
25 hours are dual and 10 hours are solo. This solo time includes at least 5
hours cross-country with at least one flight of 150nm during which you land at
two other airfields. Finally you take a General Skill Test (GST).
There are exams to be passed covering Air Law, Human Performance, Meteorology, Navigation and Aeroplane Technical Subjects. Over the whole course you will receive at least 25 hours ground school; add to that some home study, particularly on the questions and answers which we will give you and you will pass the exams.
THE NPPLYou have to complete at least 32 hours flying instruction of which at least 22 hours are dual and 10 hours are solo. Finally you take a Navigation Flight Test and a General Flying Test (GFT). You can't add a night qualification or an IMC rating to this as flying and medical are carefully designed to be much simpler and a bit less expensive than the JAR Licence.
Ground School and exams, however, are the same as for the JAR Licence.
THE IMC RATING
This can be added to a JAR Licence and gives you the ability to fly out of sight
of the surface and enables you to fly in poor (though not bad) weather. It applies
specifically to the UK and can't be used abroad though the skills you learn in coping
with poor visibility and in the use of instrument navigation aids are invaluable.
Flying training is a minimum of 15 hours plus a flight test at the end; ground school also is followed by an exam. You'll certainly end up with skills to be proud of.
THE NIGHT QUALIFICATIONOne of the most fascinating and enjoyable experiences you can have is seeing the glittering lights of the night-time world from half a mile high. The course is five hours flight at night of which 2 hours are dual circuit work and one is cross country. Solo you fly a minimum of 5 take-offs and full stop landings together with a departure and return to the airfield. Ground school is included.
Designed specifically for training, most of our aircraft are two seat AT-3s, one of the newest generations of light
aircraft. An aluminium airframe combined with the lightweight ultra-reliable 100hp Rotax
912S engine results in a sparkling performance. Easy to operate from small airfields, they climb at
800 feet per minute or more and will cruise at up to 120 kts. We also have a comprehensively equipped C172 Skyhawk,
with all the kit required for IMC training.
There is no maximum age; 16 stone/220 lbs/100 kg is the practical maximum for the AT-3s; the C172 is a 3/4 seat tourer with much more generous limits.
If training for a JAR licence you must pass a medical exam to fly solo. For the NPPL your doctor must sign a declaration of medical fitness for you to fly solo and no medical examination is normally required.
You will have the option to have the same instructor to look after you (circumstances permitting) who will take time to brief you before your flight and debrief you afterwards. When the weather is good they will take you flying and when it isn't they will take you for ground school usually as one to one tutorials or in small groups of three or four.
You can start with a trial lesson so that you can see if you'll enjoy it. We bet you will as we'll give you control and you will fly the aircraft. This flight is exercise 3 in the licence syllabus and it will count towards your licence.
That's easy. Just phone 01604 496600. We'll arrange a time and date and all you will have to do is report to the clubhouse on time. If your friends or family have bought you a trial flight, bring them along with you to watch.