Solo

This is a few weeks old now, but attached is my solo flight.

Spin Training

After I finished up my PPL I had a chance to do some spin training in the Champ Taildragger.  Video below.

Day 1

For an FAA private pilot license you need to sit an online theory exam.  At my flight school you need to sit and pass this test on day 1.

I passed the theory exam and my first flight was for a lunch trip to a neighbouring airport Bartow Municipal (KBOW).

We flew up in one of the Schools classic planes, a Fairchild PT-23.  There are only a handful in the Country.  Had lunch then back to Winter Haven for more theory.

Learning to Fly - Tailwheels Etc. Florida

I arrived in Orlando on Friday the 13th Jan to start flight training for my private pilot license. The flight school I am training at is called Tailwheels Etc.

The schools at Winter Haven, about a 50 minute drive from Orlando.  You can rent a houses along the lake front within walking distance to the airport.

My house is called, 'Piper House.'

How Much Does it Cost to Learn to Fly in the USA?

So the next option I considered for learning to fly was the USA.  I googled "Accelerated Flight Training"  and started looking for options where you could take a 2-3 weeks trip to the US and complete the entire PPL over a short but intensive training period.

I narrowed my options in the US down to a school called Tail Wheels Etc.  based on good references and reviews.

Their pricing is the least complicated of any flight school I have ever seen, as their pricing is all in.

Private Pilot Packages (all in)

Cessna 150                                              Total: $7995

Piper Warrior, Cessna 172M                    Total: $9395

Cessna 172SP                                         Total: $10,495

Cessna 172 G1000 Glass Panel             Total: $11,195

*Includes all Flight Time, Flight Instructor, Written Test, Flight Test, and books.

Looking back at my earlier posts reviewing costs of learning to fly in Australia, Singapore or Malaysia this started looking like a good option.

How Much Does it Cost to Learn to Fly in Johor Baru (JB) Malaysia? (FRAS Flying Club)

	RMB	SGD	USD
Initial Membership Fee	$3,800	$1,556	$1,184
First Year Subscriptionn	$1,200	$491	$374
Ground School	$2,950	$1,208	$919
Flight Training Kit	$1,100	$450	$343
DCA Exam / Flight Test	$1,390	$569	$433
Flight Training (40 hours)	$28,470	$11,659	$8,868
TOTAL	$38,910	$15,935	$12,120

About a 1 hour drive from Singapore is Senai International Airport.  This is the nearest airport to Singapore accessible by road and is a popular alternative to learning to fly in Singapore due to a much lower cost.

The most active flight school at Senai is FRAS Flying Club.  It is run by a husband & wife team Captain Singh and his wife Julie.  They are passionate about aviation and appear to run a professional operation.  I visited their club house and met several enthusiastic pilots and students.

I saw their two AT4 LSA's and an older Piper PA28.  I went on a trial flight in an AT4 with one of their instructors.  It was different flying out of such a big airport as there were Air Asia A330's doing circuit practice and go arounds.  So at that time getting a slot to land and take off took a while.

My key concern in terms of the flight school was the inability to pick an instructor.  Their method is that during any given lesson you will be allocated any of their CFI's.  I am sure this has its benefits but my goal was to find a CFI that would take me all the way through the course.


View Larger Map

Aeronautical Information Publication (AIP) Singapore

The AIP is the bible of Singapore aviation, including approach charts for all airports.

Below is the area chart from the full file.

You can download the PDF directly from HERE.