Sport Pilot Talk

N918KT

It's likely that I'll be doing sport pilot training at Royal Karina Air Service, a non-Cessna Pilot Center in Trenton Airport. I haven't decided if I'm gonna be training over there temporarily or permanently.

Aero Safety Training, a Cessna Pilot Center in Lincoln Park Airport, hasn't gotten their Skycatcher yet but maybe they will have it sometime in 2011. As much as I wanted to learn to fly over at Aero Safety, I was wondering if they would have any knowledge or experience about training sport pilots once they get their C162. Like would they even know about the endorsements and restrictions. (Would they even know about the new endorsements and restrictions that were enacted back in Winter or Spring 2010 such as the new max height restriction, the elimination of the sets of aircraft, and the new speed endorsements?) I'm not so sure if they have those knowledge or experience since Aero Safety Training only trains private pilots and above so far.

In my opinion so far, I think that Royal Karina Air Service has more experience training sport pilots since they have been doing it since August 2010. The flight school president emailed me that they have 3 CFIs who are also SP-CFIs and they have access to the only SPE in the area. They have a Storm Century LSA for flight training.

In the end I just have to see which flight school is the best for me.

Jack Tyler · Posted: Thu Dec 23, 2010 8:30 pm Post subject:

Kevin, let me offer a few initial thoughts for you to mull over...

1. The most important single ingredient in your flight training will be your instructor. In your shoes, I'd work your contacts to focus on getting the best comprehensive picture of each of the CFI's available at both places, meet with at least the 'top two' to get a feel for them, and then make a final decision on which FBO you work with only after knowing which CFI(s) you want to fly with.

2. The SP and S-LSA rules & regs are available to you on-line, from various commercial sources, and also in print from the FAA, the EAA, AOPA's Flight Training pubs, and so on. While ignorance of them from any training source would be both surprising and disappointing, that's not - IMO anyway - one of the major issues on which you should be focusing.

3. I don't think it's a bad idea to also consider the aircraft you will be flying. In your shoes, that would be among my top criteria when deciding where to train. Perhaps a sleek low-wing trainer looks more appealing than a 'conventional' high-wing...but perhaps a plane tested to Part 23 standards (including atrocious cross-control full-power spin-tempting tests) might seem more important than something that's Italian & sexy. My point isn't to praise one aircraft over the other, but rather to encourage you to research the planes and check them out for yourself (they both have unconventional controls when compared with conventional training aircraft of the past). You'll a) be spending a lot of (expensive) time in one or the other, and b) you'll want to be comfortable. If part of your shopping process involves taking a day to visit an out-of-area FBO that does have a Skycatcher you could look at, that wouldn't be so bad, would it? <s> (FYI, some time ago Cessna reported that 60% of their first 1,000 Skycatcher orders were from flight schools, with 40% going to private buyers. The Cessna center should know which hull number they have purchased, and have a fair idea by now of when that will be delivered, since the Chinese production line is up and running. Explain that your business with them depends on knowing what to expect; they should understand that).

Good luck on the research, and on the flight training. If you choose to let it, learning to fly will change the rest of your life.

drseti · Joined: 28 Nov 2009 Posts: 1387 Location: Lock Haven PA

N918KT wrote: I think that Royal Karina Air Service has more experience training sport pilots since they have been doing it since August 2010.

That's a really interesting perspective on "experience," Kevin. I've been doing LSA training for a whole year now, and I still consider myself new at this!

N918KT · Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 4:58 pm Post subject:

I didn't say that Royal Karina is very experienced at training sport pilots per se. I just think that it's possible that they might be MORE experienced (don't know how MORE experienced they are) than Aero Safety because they have been doing this for a while now.

drseti · Joined: 28 Nov 2009 Posts: 1387 Location: Lock Haven PA

OK, Kevin, here are the kinds of questions you need to ask them (or, in fact, any flight school) to determine not just the level of their experience, but also the quality of their training:

1. How many students have completed their Sport Pilot licenses there?
2. What is their FAA Practical Test pass rate?
3. How many of their students have taken the Knowledge Test?
4. How many of those passed on the first try?
5. What is their students' average score on the Knowledge Test?
6. What is their students' average flight time to solo? To flight test?

This will allow you to compare the efficiency of different schools, which will in turn help you to determine that your money is well spent.

Most successful flight schools will be happy to discuss these matters with you. In fact, some will even put you in touch with some of their graduates, so you can ask them questions about their experiences. If a candidate flight school has social events (for example, monthly Hangar Flying days), you can get a chance to meet a number of other students and ascertain their level of satisfaction.

Just for comparison, my own school's next event is a New Years party at Piper Memorial Airport next Sunday, 2 January, at 10 AM. If you feel like a road trip, come out to Lock Haven PA for the day, meet the students and graduates, and see what kind of social and learning environment a small flight school can offer. (For that matter, anyone reading this post is welcome to join us then, to "Wing In The New Year".)

N918KT · Posted: Sun Dec 26, 2010 5:33 pm Post subject:

I see. Thanks for the advice drseti!