So you're certain you would like to be taught to fly, you've acquired the finances for your flight training.
So now you're all set to find a school.
There are a number of choices out there for flight school.
Even within a hundred or so miles of your home (depending on where you live), you're likely to find maybe a half a dozen different instructors or schools.
It may seem like a hassle trying to narrow it down.
You should equip yourself with a basic list of requirements for selecting your flight school...
o Reputation o Facilities o Price o Experience of the instructor(s) The list is in rough order of least to most important.
One of these qualifications may be more significant to you than it is to the next beginner, so this is simply a rough estimation of how important each qualification will be to the average pilot-to-be.
REPUTATION With any respectable flight school, you should almost certainly be able to discover some information online either on the school's official website, or on chat forums related to learning to fly.
A bunch of negative reviews should be a red flag, of course, and a bunch of positive reviews should, at the least, mean "give these guys a chance", but it all comes down to your judgment.
You're the one putting up the money and you're the one learning to fly, so your opinion is the most important.
Still, we recommend doing some quick online research.
If you're getting nothing but consistently negative reviews for a specific school or instructor, it may be best not to waste your time with them.
FACILITIES Okay, you don't need a great deal in the way of facilities when it comes to a flight school.
Most will have a room for testing and studying, as well as a suitable runway and some aircraft to train in.
What you ought to look for is a flight school with reasonably up-to-date equipment and well maintained aircraft.
This is mostly a safety concern.
Take a look at the birds you'll be flying before signing up.
PRICE This may be a deal breaker depending on what you have in the way of funding.
Of course you don't want to pay too much, but please, don't sacrifice your peace of mind for the sake of a better deal.
It is essential to have a safe aircraft and an experienced instructor, more than you need to save an extra hundred to a thousand dollars.
Again, price is important, but your health and your education as a pilot are even more important.
INSTRUCTOR EXPERIENCE This is maybe the most crucial part of deciding on a flight school.
Ideally, your instructor should have quite a few years of experience behind them.
If they haven't been flying for a decade or longer, there should probably be someone a little senior at the school with a little more experience.
When you talk to your potential instructor-to-be, ask to see qualifications, ask about their history in piloting, inquire about their training methods, etc.
Identify as much as you can about the school and the instructor before signing up.
You want someone who has been flying for several years, who has already trained dozens of students, and who you can get along with.
IT'S YOUR CHOICE The above list should help you to narrow down your options to a few that you'd feel comfortable training with, but it really comes down to your personal preference and choice.
So now you're all set to find a school.
There are a number of choices out there for flight school.
Even within a hundred or so miles of your home (depending on where you live), you're likely to find maybe a half a dozen different instructors or schools.
It may seem like a hassle trying to narrow it down.
You should equip yourself with a basic list of requirements for selecting your flight school...
o Reputation o Facilities o Price o Experience of the instructor(s) The list is in rough order of least to most important.
One of these qualifications may be more significant to you than it is to the next beginner, so this is simply a rough estimation of how important each qualification will be to the average pilot-to-be.
REPUTATION With any respectable flight school, you should almost certainly be able to discover some information online either on the school's official website, or on chat forums related to learning to fly.
A bunch of negative reviews should be a red flag, of course, and a bunch of positive reviews should, at the least, mean "give these guys a chance", but it all comes down to your judgment.
You're the one putting up the money and you're the one learning to fly, so your opinion is the most important.
Still, we recommend doing some quick online research.
If you're getting nothing but consistently negative reviews for a specific school or instructor, it may be best not to waste your time with them.
FACILITIES Okay, you don't need a great deal in the way of facilities when it comes to a flight school.
Most will have a room for testing and studying, as well as a suitable runway and some aircraft to train in.
What you ought to look for is a flight school with reasonably up-to-date equipment and well maintained aircraft.
This is mostly a safety concern.
Take a look at the birds you'll be flying before signing up.
PRICE This may be a deal breaker depending on what you have in the way of funding.
Of course you don't want to pay too much, but please, don't sacrifice your peace of mind for the sake of a better deal.
It is essential to have a safe aircraft and an experienced instructor, more than you need to save an extra hundred to a thousand dollars.
Again, price is important, but your health and your education as a pilot are even more important.
INSTRUCTOR EXPERIENCE This is maybe the most crucial part of deciding on a flight school.
Ideally, your instructor should have quite a few years of experience behind them.
If they haven't been flying for a decade or longer, there should probably be someone a little senior at the school with a little more experience.
When you talk to your potential instructor-to-be, ask to see qualifications, ask about their history in piloting, inquire about their training methods, etc.
Identify as much as you can about the school and the instructor before signing up.
You want someone who has been flying for several years, who has already trained dozens of students, and who you can get along with.
IT'S YOUR CHOICE The above list should help you to narrow down your options to a few that you'd feel comfortable training with, but it really comes down to your personal preference and choice.
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