Originally posted by wannabe pilot
How much did everything (including flying hours and licenses etc) cost for your PPL? Also, how much time did you have to dedicate?
I would really like to get my PPL as soon as I can, preferably when I’m 17 or 18. But I’m quite short on cash, and the nearest local flying clubs are Stapleford and Andrewsfield which are both around an hour away in the car. I’m just wondering how the best way to go about it might be……
Hmmm, well, its hard to put a figure on it.
Ground Exams – £155
Maps – £30
Headsets x2 – £440
Flight Case – £80
CRP-1 – £45
Pooley’s FLight guides x2 – £60
Thom series – £140
PPL Confuser – £15
Rulers, pens pencils etc £30
40hrs Duel instruction – £4800
16hrs Solo – £1600
CAA Examiner fees £300
Licence issue £147
Total = £7842
I was a tad unlucky with mine as I had 3 tries at the skills test (only failed nav once though)
1st time wx reported VMC up to 10k, when I took off I turned towards Gloucester from Cirencester and could not see a thing so I aborted my skills test, second attempt I did the nav first but it was an awefully bumpy day and I couldnt align the DI with the compass very well as it wouldnt keep still, I couldnt climb out of it due to cloud base and ended up penetrating Boscombe Down MATZ by ½ a mile DOH :rolleyes: (my flightplan took me close to it anyway) and as its sparsly populated down there it was hard to get a fix from the ground, so I failed nav part but breezed through the GH, 3rd attempt (2nd proper attempt) I passed with flying colours, twas a lovely day with vis for miles etc.
I only work a 3 day week so time is on my hands but again sods law states when I was at work the sun shone, when I was at home it rained, this went on for ages and in the 2 years it took me to get my licence I lost about a year of this due to weather, example – ready for skills test at 35hrs but cant take it til 45hrs, reached 45 hrs in Oct 2002, didnt fly again until Jan 3rd 2003 due to weather, and then because of the lengthy lay-off I had to have some refreshers etc as I didnt want to jump into skills test.
Basically there is no telling how long it will take someone, I was ready and felt ready for skills test after 35 hrs but ended up passing with 56hrs, someone else may get theirs dead on 45hrs, someone else may take 90 hrs (I know a pilot who took 110hrs)
I would always say do your budget for 60 hrs, this way there is contingency.
Timewise wasnt a problem for me, but what I did find hard was to fit all the study in for the exam, I was doing Open University at the time too so I got behind with my PPL exams but managed to get them all passed within a 12 month period.
My advice to you if money is tight etc is to go to the States and do your PPL, you can do CAA PPLs over there, i would advise you to undertake all the exams over here first as the 4 weeks course would be pretty intense if doing the exams too, and at least you wont/shouldnt encounter the problems I had with weather etc and I reckon you could get the PPL for about ½ the price I paid, as for headsets etc and study books just keep an eye on Ebay, they do appear every now and again.
Just buying a copy of a GA magazine will reveal a multitude of flying schools in the USA but it may be wise to post here or on Pprune (am I allowed to say that here? lol) about what one is recommended etc
Good luck in whatever you decide
Dean
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