A few years back, when I was in my late forties, I wondered if I could learn to fly a plane. Well, I could, I did and now I am a qualified private pilot enjoying the freedom of being in the air.
You can learn to fly a plane from the age of 16 years and there is no upper age limit. You will need to pass a medical or be certified by your doctor before you will be allowed to fly solo.
To acquire a pilots license you will need to receive flying training from a certified flying instructor, pass several ground school exams on different subjects and complete a flying skills test with a examiner.
Learning to fly is really a great personal achievement and one you will take great pride in. You will become one of the few people who can boast they have flown on airplane entirely on their own. There are a few steps and important things know about before you embark on this amazing journey. Many Flying Schools Offer an Experience flight to see how you will get on.
When Learning To Fly a Plane and There Are a Number of Steps To Go Through
So let’s start with the steps and processes you will go through when learning to fly and getting a pilot’s license. I am amusing you have selected a flying instructor or a flying school, which I will talk more about later.
Most, schools start with a trial or introductory lesson, which consists of an hours fight where the rudiments if the flight controls will be explained and demonstrated. You will be allowed to get your hands on the basic controls and perhaps for the first time in your life, actually fly a plane.
This flight will usually last about an hour, which can be added to your flying logbook and count towards the total hour you need, to get a pilot’s license for the first time.
Well, you have actual flown a plane and you could end it here. They will most likely give you a little certificate and you have had a great day out.
If you want to go on a get your private pilot’s license PPL then the process now falls basically into two halves. Pilot training in the air and training to help pass those written questions otherwise referred to as ground school.
Ground school and those written exams can be done at the flying school you have chosen or there and many online options available for you to use. There are approximately nine subjects you will need to pass in. The questions in the exam paper offer a multiple-choice answer, so that’s not so bad.
The training of flying the actual aeroplane, air-work as they call it or practical, can go on the same time as the ground school, but you won’t be allowed to fly the aeroplane on your own, solo until you have passed your air law exam. The flying training breaks down into several sections which are basically the controls, taxiing the aircraft on the ground, level fight, taking off and landing, safety procedures and radio communication.
Amazingly, you can get all this done in seven days if you are in a hurry, but people take about one to two years. In my opinion, it is better to take your time and enjoy the process of getting a private pilots licence. Your brand new hobby.
How much will it cost me to learn to fly a plane
How much it will cost you to learn to fly a plane will depend on a few factors. Firstly, your aptitude to learn how to do it. If it takes you six hours longer than the normal complete course then that directly translates into hours you are flying the aircraft, which comes at a cost. When I learned to fly it cost me extra as it took me a while in learning how to land the thing.
Whether you do your ground school at the flying organisation and take a course online is another cost factor. Also, where you are in the world will make a difference.
At the time of writing, the complete course will cost you approximately $10,000 or £7000
What Are The Groundschool Exams When Learning To Fly?
Once you have passed any of the ground school flying exams you have two years to go on and pass the rest including the flying skills test.
- Operational Procedures — PPL(A)
- Flight Performance & Planning
- Navigation
- Meteorology
- Human Performance & Limitations
- Communications
- Air Law
- Aircraft General Knowledge
- Principles Of Flight
This list varies a little depending on the country you are in.
What does the flight training in the air entail?
- Preflight preparation
- Taxiing and surface operations, including run-ups (power checks)
- Takeoffs and landings, including normal and cross-wind
- Straight and level flight, and turns in both directions
- Climbs and climbing turns
- Airport traffic patterns (in the UK called the circuit), including arrival and departure procedures
- Collision avoidance, wind-shear avoidance, and wake turbulence.
- Descents, with and without turns, using high and low drag configurations
- Flight at various airspeeds from cruise to slow flight
- Stall entries from various flight attitudes and power combinations with recovery initiated at the first indication of a stall, and recovery from a full stall
- Emergency procedures and equipment malfunctions
- Ground reference manoeuvres
- Approaches to a landing area with simulated engine failure
- Slips to a landing
- Go-arounds
Space left for my own You Tube video
What Special Equipment Will I Need When Learning To Fly?
In the first instance, most flying schools will be able to lend you what you need – but you will need some bits and pieces as you go along. Many of the pilot shops offer a complete kit including all the books etc.
My recommendation would be to get yourself your own aviation headphones. They are nice to have, even if only for hygiene reasons.
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