Introduction
So you have pinpointed a flying school and the reviews on google are great. Their website seems legitimate and the schools initial interaction with you is good as well. But still there are a few questions you need to ask the flying school before you pay the initial fee and join. Let’s look at a few of them.
Hidden charges
So I’m assuming that you are aware of the schools fee structure as you pinpointed it. But let me tell you, all flying schools have hidden charges. So you should ask about a few charges like:.
- Enrolment fee: This fee is charged during the time of joining. Ask them how much they charge and what do they give in return for it.
- Joining kit fee: This is a kit filled with stuff like books and other accessories that are generally overpriced. Ask in advance what is included in the kit and remove things that you don’t need like T-shirts with the school logo on it.
- Ground training/ pre post flight briefing: So schools charge a lot in ground training , don’t forget to ask the per hour charges. And in many cases they charge for a briefing done pre and post flight, be aware of these charges too.
Before you join make sure you are aware of what you are getting into. Enquire and research well.
Number of aircrafts instructOrs students
Ask your flying school the number of aircraft’s they presently have and the instructors they have. If the ratio of the aircraft to instructor or vice versa is less, it means your training might take more time. Because if there are more aircraft’s and less number of instructors to train you what’s the point??. Also ask the total number of students presently flying in school, if the number is way too high, you must rethink about it. A crowded flying school with respect to the aircraft’s and instructors they have will mean delay in training.
Training standards
First of all ask your fellow trainees about how good the instructors are and how cooperative the management is. The best source to know about how good or bad the training is, are the students of the flying school. So enquire and research well before you jump in.
MAINTENANCE
When it comes to maintenance you can google about the school and look for any news articles that shows any accidents or incidents related to the school. Also ask the best source, the students, about the serviceability of the aircraft. Also ask, about the maintenance schedule of the aircraft and availability. Maintenance standards of a school will decide how long will your flying training take.
Deposits/fee
Generally a deposit of 4-5 lakhs is charged to the student and is used towards flying training. In many schools they ask 1/4th of the training fee as a deposit and obviously tell the students to pay the total fee in 4 parts. So before you join, ask the school about how many parts you need to pay the total fee in. And also ask if you can pay per hour so that you can pay in multiple parts.
Conclusion
So the conclusion of this whole article is to ask. Enquire about the smallest doubts you have in detail because every mistake will prove to be expensive. And research well before you take any step. Happy landings cheers. To know about flying training in India you can also visit www.dgca.gov.in.