How much is your PPL Licence worth to you?

We have recently been providing retrospective training as directed by the CAA to at least 3 pilots who have had their PPL Licence SUSPENDED by the CAA as a result of Controlled Airspace Infringements. So we think it might be time to offer some PROACTIVE Infringement Avoidance Training!

There is a lot of concern from all parts of the aviation industry over the number of controlled airspace infringements that are taking place in general within the UK especially.

There is also what appears to be some inconsistencies over the action that the CAA take over pilots who do infringe! Not least of which is a growing direction of actually suspending licences until corrective training has taken place to the satisfaction of the CAA.

In addition to this, commercial aviation operators are now also considering taking private legal action against infringers where they cause additional expense and inconvenience to the airline concerned. Typically, fuel for missed approaches, additional hold times, diversion costs (in terms of both fuel, time and expenses), not to mention recovery of transport costs for all passengers that subsequently land at a different airport to that planned. For example, did you know that for a single infringement, it could affect up to 30 airlines, delay 5,000 passengers, and cost the airlines up to £50,000 in additional fuel burn?

The answer: Don't Infringe in the first place.

So, rather than spend time, stress and effort in dealing with the aftermath of infringing, we have developed a very short training programme to be PROACTIVE to help you NOT to Infringe Controlled Airspace - BEFORE IT HAPPENS.

You'll find the short period of training both enlightening and entertaining (see the syllabus below), and we guarantee you will come away much more aware, and with some excellent practices and techniques to put you in a really good place for your future flying.

The programme we have developed is unique. It's actually lead by you, by performing some tasks that we ask of you, which we assess. As we go through the programme together, we'll highlight areas of concern, and also provide you with alternative and better ways of doing things.

Sounds convoluted? Not at all. The whole process we can usually complete in the space of about 3 hours!

See below for further information.

The Syllabus

Our syllabus is unique to us. We don't know of any other organisation that teaches this course!

• Quick Knowledge Questionnaire
  • We start by giving you a short questionnaire to "test" your aviation knowledge in areas that relate and can lead to infringements. We'll discuss your answers with you and update you on operational and procedural changes that you may (or may not!) be aware of.
• Flight Planning Assessment
  • We ask you to plan a short flight (by whatever method you currently employ) that we will use for an assessment of your flight planning prowess, paying particular attention to areas regarding infringement avoidance.
• Navigational Flight Assessment
  • Putting your plan into action, we see how you execute your flight planning in the air, including how you keep your flight log updated.
• Unexpected Situations
  • Things never go according to plan! We'll throw some things your way to see how you handle them, and provide you with both feedback and show you techniques that can help in situations such as these (which often could lead to controlled airspace infringement).
• R/T
  • As part of the programme, we'll not just assess, but help you improve your R/T to sound much more professional and up-to-date.
• Navigation Aids
  • We'll discuss the use of navigation aids (GPS included) and show how they are not infallible, but can also be helpful if the limitations are understood!
• Airspace Transits
  • If you avoid talking to controllers, and avoid controlled airspace, we'll show you how accommodating controllers can be, and how easy it is to request a transit, rather than always planning on avoiding airspace! There are benefits to both pilots and controllers here!
• Summary
  • Finally, we'll have a de-brief and summarise the key points you should take away with you; perhaps highlighting some bad habits you've picked up along the way previously, but also telling you what you do well. Oh, and don't forget, we'll also remind you about some of those techniques and best practices we've shown you.

Prices

Remember that you are being instructed by an instructor with an enviable reputation for delivering results to you. Our personal objective is to make sure you land with a smile on your face. If you don’t – we haven’t done our job properly.

Because we think this course is so important, we offer a flat rate of just £99 for our time we will spend with you (about 3 hours). Additional to this will be the cost of an aircraft for a flight of about 1 hour.

If you want us to come to you, just add our travelling and accommodation (at cost).

The aircraft costs are extra; you can use your own aircraft, hire from a training organisation local to you, or hire from a training organisation local to us.

Where can I do this course?

We are more than happy to come to you wherever you are! However, we normally operate in Essex, with relatively easy access to the airfields in the area. We teach (and examine) regularly (either as part of a club or freelance) at Earls Colne, Andrewsfield, North Weald, Duxford, Crowfield and Cambridge. There are numerous smaller airfields available such as Elmsett, Clacton, Rougham and Great Oakley within easy reach. Southend and Stapleford are also possible.

Which Aircraft can I use?

You can use your own or syndicate aircraft, which in some ways, is better since you'll become really familiar with it as part of the course!

If you belong to a flying club already, most organisations are happy for us to instruct in their aircraft if that's an option you'd like to pursue.

If you need to hire an aircraft locally to us, we have access to a variety of aircraft types and training organisations. Please feel free to contact us for more detailed information.