We provide full training for the JAA PPL and NPPL and are registered by the CAA.

The PPL takes a minimum of 45 hours to complete, and the medical has to be done by a CAA examiner. But when you have completed it it will allow you to fly in visual conditions anywhere in the UK and Europe, and it can also be used to fly in America.

In order to obtain this licence, you need to start basic training during which you will be taught to actually fly the aircraft. You then come onto the circuit where you learn to take off and land. When you can successfully do this then you go off on your first solo which could be around 8 to 12 hours total flying depending on your ability and how frequently you have been flying.

After you have done about 5 hours solo on the circuit, in which you practice different kinds of take offs and landings, it is time to venture away from the airfield and learn to navigate, and also what to do in the event of an emergency such as an engine failure or bad weather forcing you down.

The final part of your training consists of cross country flying culminating in your Qualifying Cross Country which is a flight to 2 different airfields and has to be at least 120 nautical miles long. This is followed by a Skills test with an examiner to show him your ability to navigate, deal with emergencies and land the aircraft in different configurations.

The skills test can only be taken once you have completed all your ground written exams. Read about those here.

It does not matter how long you take to cover all the exercises and take your test, but it is generally better if you can afford to do lessons fairly close together especially in the early stages so you learn the basics much faster.

The most expensive times are when you are learning take offs and landings as we are charged for each landing, and have to pass that cost on to you. This is currently about £8 per landing. The other expensive time is when you do your qualifying cross country and you have a long flight to do, and pay landing fees at each place you land as well.

The NPPL on the other hand is slightly restrictive in that you can only use it in the UK although it will be possible to use it in some parts of France soon. It only requires 32 hours flying, and then a test which brings it up to 35 hours. The medical can be done by any doctor approved to do HGV medicals, and so it is much cheaper to obtain.

When you have the necessary hours, and additional training on Basic Instrument Flying and Radio Aids, you can take a flying test and upgrade to a full PPL if you wish to. You have to upgrade your medical as well and sometimes this is not possible.

Click on this link to download a PDF file of the full PPL training syllabus.