flying lesson questions

legendaire

hi there. I am 14 and need glasses for computer, reading etc. bvut not full time. I wish to persue a career in flying when i leave school, would I pass a ppl medical and can I start lessons at 14?
thanks

pclancy

Take a look at the sticky on how to start in aviation, has some good links and info on flying clubs, give them a buz and see will they give you lessons but I think you cant sit your actual exams until you're 18...could be wrong tho :cool:

Vision requirements are here. A lot of pilots wear glasses, the question is what your acuity is and any optician will give you the basic results to see if you make the grades. If you're serious you'll have to do a proper JAA medical in one of the centres like the Mater hospital.

ch252

thanks, I live only 1 or 2 minutes from Carnmore(Galway) airport so ill head over tommorow and see what the story is!

pclancy

No worries. You should take an introductory flight and see do you like it!

Good luck

ch252

......and my age wont be a problem?? i have their number, the website is gone now but ill give them a ring tommorow!

pclancy

darragh-k wrote:

......and my age wont be a problem??

Dont know dude, you've nothing to lose by phoning them and find out! :cool:

PhoenixRising

14 is a bit too young. You could take a lesson or two to test your interest in it but leave it at that for the time being.

You need to be at least 16 years old to get your Student Pilot Licence, 17 years to hold a Private Pilots Licence, 18 for the Commercial Pilots Licence, and 21 for an Airline Transport Pilots Licence....so you've got time on your side.

If you're serious about it, start taking lessons towards getting the PPL just before you turn 16, so that you can get your SPL to go solo at 16, then keep going towards the PPL. Once you get that far, reassess, because to go onwards towards the CPL/ATPL and a career is going to take serious money and commitment.

ch252

the advice I got was to read into it and study for the theory part, so i might take your advice and try one or two tests over the summer with money from the summer job and see how I get on!

Thanks for all the advice!!!

Steyr

Dude its going to be expensive of course if you like it then go for it and go get your PPL and then pass your LC with honours and go fly a PC9M!!! Go Air Corps!:)

damo

14 may be a little too young, no harm in having a lesson or two now to see if you enjoy it, but i would suggest you concentrate now on the theory side of things, work at physics in school definately, also biology and maths - just try and get as educated you can about the subjects you will encounter when you go for your ppl and your cpl/atpl.

I'd hold off learning how to fly properly for a couple of years, get microsoft flight simulator for now!

Best of luck!

P.S

Dont worry about your eyesight, i have a -3 prescription and i hold a class 1 aviation medical.

I think the limit is -8.

Steyr

Come on Damo bring us up for a Flip!:D OP when you go up see if you can go up in EI-BIB ( its not your say but you will be lucky to go up in BIB ) thats a Cessna 152 a bit more responsive than a 172, although cramped! I like BIB! Also see if you can fly out past spiddal to the Wind Turbines!

electric69

You must be 15 before you can log hours and you must be 17 before you can do your exams (thats for FAA anway) and your eyesight is not a problem.You can wear glasses,contacts,laser correction if you need it.

Hope you enjoy flying and we have another Irish pilot out there

electric69

damo wrote:

I'd hold off learning how to fly properly for a couple of years, get microsoft flight simulator for now!

Dont know if i would recommend that too strongly.If he is going to spend his money he should be spending it on books for his ppl, not some computer game that isnt going to benefit him much at all.

Jakey

electric69 wrote:

Dont know if i would recommend that too strongly.If he is going to spend his money he should be spending it on books for his ppl, not some computer game that isnt going to benefit him much at all.

My experience differs to that I used flight simulator for a while and when I flew a 'real' plane for the first time the controls and gauges were familiar to me this speeded things up quite nicely.

I also know an airline pilot who uses it regularly to practice various failures ect.

I seen a documentary some time ago which showed US Navy pilots practicing maneuvers on FS too

Owen

electric69 wrote:

Dont know if i would recommend that too strongly.If he is going to spend his money he should be spending it on books for his ppl, not some computer game that isnt going to benefit him much at all.

Computer game? It's a simulator! I have a sim setup at home, with a yoke, and pedals, and a head tracker, so it's the closest thing you can quite possibly get to flying the real thing. I had desparate problems landing smoothly in the circuit , spent a few nights on flight sim in the circuit with other traffic on EICK, and now I can land smoothly in real life. Game my arse.

pclancy

Yeah its a bit unfair to call it just a game considering the wealth of detail and realism 15 years of development has given it. For theory and practice of procedures/failures etc its fantastic, if you want to you can simulate pretty much everything that happens in real life. Its no substitute for real lessons/experience etc but its a great start and sitting into a real cessna 172 its nice to be able to know your way around the cockpit without ever having been there in real life before!

Those simmers that dream of answering the call of "is there a pilot onboard" from a panicing stewardess whose pilots ate the bad fish will be dissapointed if they think they can manually land a 744 in thick fog in LAX though....:D

electric69

ok maybe its different for fixed winged my bad

damo

electric69 wrote:

Dont know if i would recommend that too strongly.If he is going to spend his money he should be spending it on books for his ppl, not some computer game that isnt going to benefit him much at all.

hah!

try it before you write it off as a 'computer game'....its amazingly detailed and realistic if you get a good joystick/rudder thingy.

if youre going for a type rating at any point in the future, id certainly reccommend you spend alot of time on wahtever type youre going for, using microsoft flight simulator - will help you out alot when you go for the real thing.

Owen

pclancy wrote:

Those simmers that dream of answering the call of "is there a pilot onboard" from a panicing stewardess whose pilots ate the bad fish will be dissapointed if they think they can manually land a 744 in thick fog in LAX though....:D

Bastard. Can I have a ban please for pclancy for shattering my dreams?

ch252

pclancy wrote:

be dissapointed if they think they can manually land a 744 in thick fog in LAX though....:D

LAX:eek: ?! thats easy! I landed one in Galway about two minutes ago!!:cool:....on the simulator obviously!!!

ch252

do I need a medical for a trial lesson/ppl? and is eyesight a major issue for ppl?

Thanks,
Darragh

damo

You certainly don't need a medical for a trial lesson, for a ppl im not sure the exact requirements, pretty sure you dont need a class 1 medical for a ppl, but if youre planning on flying for a living, the first step is always get a class 1 medical - no good spending thousands on training then failing a medical!

Eyesight is an issue, but its reasonably relaxed ie. i think -8 is the max perscription allowed with glasses. Also you can get laser surgery.

Jakey

You need a class 2 medical for PPL, You shouldnt have any issues with eyesight for class 2 unless your color blind or serious eyesight problems

http://www.iaa.ie/safe_reg/med_aersec.asp

ch252

I dont have any major eyesight issues, a problem which prevents me from seeing digital 3D or something like that! Reading the letters on the wall are too a little below standard but not enough to fail me.

Thanks,

Darragh Kirwan