For anyone interested in flying training, here are some options:
If you're interested in joining the navy, army or airforce you should check the entry requirements with the relevant online careers information office or drop into your nearest CIO.
The services stipulate age limits on entry into training and flying's no exception. For trainee pilots and navigators the upper age limit is usually 23 1/2 years although you should check it out. You need to be physically fit. Colour blindness, asthma, diabetes etc may exclude you. As far as I know the RAF now wants trainee flightcrew to turn up on application with 2 A-levels. The army academic quals are less stringent - check them out. If the airforce offer you an interview it may lead to 4 days aircrew selection at Cranwell. By the end of the week the bus-full of hopefuls will probably have reduced to a handful of maybe's as, one by one, those deemed medically unfit, dim, or plainly lacking in obvious aptitude will have been weeded out and sent home. If you're in the running you'll find yourself by day 4 in front of a selection board whose sole purpose is to see whether you can convince them to invest a couple of million of taxpayer's money in putting you forward for training.
If you're lucky enough to get into basic training be prepared to do a lot of square-bashing, bed making, seemingly pointless activities, and saying 'Yes sir, three bags full, Sir..'
If you're ace of aces you should be able to steam through basic training, complete initial flying training and in a year or two you should find yourself at some place like Valley learning to fly Hawks in basic jet training. Throughout the courses you'll be assessed. If you're not up to scratch the airforce will either give you the boot or put you in charge of the cookhouse. Be prepared...
The army selection's not quite the same - they don't encourage direct-entry pilot training. Their logic is simple - they don't want some nancyboy from civvy street blundering around the battlefield in an Apache if he's ignorant of basic fieldcraft and tactics. Their route to flightcrew is more circuitous - you'll be expected to go through infantry training etc before becoming eligible to apply for flightcrew. In short, unless you're a member of the royal family you're gonna have to be a grunt first. If you don't fancy winding up in Baghdad into the bargain this may not be too good a move. Check it out though...
Civvy Pilot's Licences
The private pilot's licence is the first step up the civil aviation ladder. Most people flying commercial jets are either ex-military aircrew and/or started this way. The ex-mils have made a career out of free rides (literally). Civilians, on the other hand, are usually forced to do it the hard way because in most cases they have to pay their own way and work harder to get anywhere. Unless they have a rich daddy, they're a NATS air traffic control trainee, their old man's the Sultan of Brunei etc. The plus side of civvy licences is that they don't depend on nepotism/who-you-know or any of that BS. If you're interested in flight training you simply turn up and take lessons within whatever budget you can afford.
Costs
Cheapest training option is the as-and-when option. An hour here and there. Some people string their courses out over years. Others steam through in months. Typical training rates for a basic licence to fly single engined Group A aircraft in the UK are around £130/hr. A good student could complete the course within the hours ie. a 45 flying hour course in 45 flight hours for issue of a JAR European Private Pilot's Licence. The books will cost circa £140 for the seven that are required - Flight Training, Navigation, Aircraft Technical, Human Factors, Air Law/Meteorology, Radio Nav and Instruments, Radio Telephony. Expect to pay upwards of £7000 to complete your course in the UK.
A cheaper option - Go buy the books one at a time (they're usually about £20 a piece from your nearest flying club). Kick off with Aircraft Technical or Air Law/Met first as they're fairly interesting and a quick read. Get granny to buy you one for christmas even. If you get bored all is not lost - you can scrub the course and use the book as a beermat. If you work through all or most of the books and learn the subjects to a reasonable level there's always another option - check out the cheapo JAR PPL intensive courses in sunny Florida on a training visa. In some cases with accommodation thrown in. If you've pre-studied all the exam topics in advance there'll be more time for the flight course plus more time to bum around on the beach...
If you're interested in joining the navy, army or airforce you should check the entry requirements with the relevant online careers information office or drop into your nearest CIO.
The services stipulate age limits on entry into training and flying's no exception. For trainee pilots and navigators the upper age limit is usually 23 1/2 years although you should check it out. You need to be physically fit. Colour blindness, asthma, diabetes etc may exclude you. As far as I know the RAF now wants trainee flightcrew to turn up on application with 2 A-levels. The army academic quals are less stringent - check them out. If the airforce offer you an interview it may lead to 4 days aircrew selection at Cranwell. By the end of the week the bus-full of hopefuls will probably have reduced to a handful of maybe's as, one by one, those deemed medically unfit, dim, or plainly lacking in obvious aptitude will have been weeded out and sent home. If you're in the running you'll find yourself by day 4 in front of a selection board whose sole purpose is to see whether you can convince them to invest a couple of million of taxpayer's money in putting you forward for training.
If you're lucky enough to get into basic training be prepared to do a lot of square-bashing, bed making, seemingly pointless activities, and saying 'Yes sir, three bags full, Sir..'
If you're ace of aces you should be able to steam through basic training, complete initial flying training and in a year or two you should find yourself at some place like Valley learning to fly Hawks in basic jet training. Throughout the courses you'll be assessed. If you're not up to scratch the airforce will either give you the boot or put you in charge of the cookhouse. Be prepared...
The army selection's not quite the same - they don't encourage direct-entry pilot training. Their logic is simple - they don't want some nancyboy from civvy street blundering around the battlefield in an Apache if he's ignorant of basic fieldcraft and tactics. Their route to flightcrew is more circuitous - you'll be expected to go through infantry training etc before becoming eligible to apply for flightcrew. In short, unless you're a member of the royal family you're gonna have to be a grunt first. If you don't fancy winding up in Baghdad into the bargain this may not be too good a move. Check it out though...
Civvy Pilot's Licences
The private pilot's licence is the first step up the civil aviation ladder. Most people flying commercial jets are either ex-military aircrew and/or started this way. The ex-mils have made a career out of free rides (literally). Civilians, on the other hand, are usually forced to do it the hard way because in most cases they have to pay their own way and work harder to get anywhere. Unless they have a rich daddy, they're a NATS air traffic control trainee, their old man's the Sultan of Brunei etc. The plus side of civvy licences is that they don't depend on nepotism/who-you-know or any of that BS. If you're interested in flight training you simply turn up and take lessons within whatever budget you can afford.
Costs
Cheapest training option is the as-and-when option. An hour here and there. Some people string their courses out over years. Others steam through in months. Typical training rates for a basic licence to fly single engined Group A aircraft in the UK are around £130/hr. A good student could complete the course within the hours ie. a 45 flying hour course in 45 flight hours for issue of a JAR European Private Pilot's Licence. The books will cost circa £140 for the seven that are required - Flight Training, Navigation, Aircraft Technical, Human Factors, Air Law/Meteorology, Radio Nav and Instruments, Radio Telephony. Expect to pay upwards of £7000 to complete your course in the UK.
A cheaper option - Go buy the books one at a time (they're usually about £20 a piece from your nearest flying club). Kick off with Aircraft Technical or Air Law/Met first as they're fairly interesting and a quick read. Get granny to buy you one for christmas even. If you get bored all is not lost - you can scrub the course and use the book as a beermat. If you work through all or most of the books and learn the subjects to a reasonable level there's always another option - check out the cheapo JAR PPL intensive courses in sunny Florida on a training visa. In some cases with accommodation thrown in. If you've pre-studied all the exam topics in advance there'll be more time for the flight course plus more time to bum around on the beach...
