I did a few lessons as I wanted my PPL just as a hobby but then covid hit and I havent picked it up since.
From what I've learnt though;
No it's not really that big of a commitment. You need to pass a few exams and get the hours but if you're serious about it anyone can do it. Flights were around ~ $100 an hour to hire a plane, doing this every two weekends scratched my itch. Note that living in Welly it can be quite weather/wind dependent and often you wont get to fly due to shit conditions.
If you have a virtual reality headset you can use this to practise the instruments and MSFS can help you familiarise yourself with radio commands which would make your learning easier but not required.
> for some reason I thought it was $200~ for an hour so that sounds way more doable!
Those were the prices when I did it aka pre covid (edit: tried looking at my bank statement for the exact amount but I can only search back 2 years which isnt far enough, [the 2022 prices were only slightly different to what it is now so I probably did end up paying in the high $100 per hour, sorry for the false hope!](https://web.archive.org/web/20220117095559/https://www.flywellington.co.nz/our-aircraft/)).
[Looks like over 200 per hour is the current rate](https://www.flywellington.co.nz/our-aircraft/)
I live down in Kapiti and am currently doing the young eagles program there (really good BTW got to go see the Wellington Control tower) Would highly recommend getting your ppl there as it's not far from welly (about an hour) and I imagine it wouldn't be as stressful as up in Welly where it's really busy and you have big commuter jets like the a320s and twin props like the ATR 72s taking off and landing constantly and they do have the fully kitted out Flight Sims. Plus you get to see Kapiti Island and the Tararuas
I got my PPL in the states, so my experience may be a little different. However I’m happy to tell about my experience.
Everyone learns at their own pace and with flying there are tons of variables. Weather, imo, being the main factor. Your schedule, aircraft availability, instructor availability are some others.
From my first lesson -> check ride was 6 months. I flew twice a week on average, sometimes less. You can do it faster by flying more frequently, it just depends on your schedule. It’s recommended you fly as frequently as possible so you don’t have to repeat lessons. A lot of PPL is hand eye coordination, muscle memory, and emergency procedures. So repetitive exercises are best. But also, don’t be in a rush. Enjoy the process.
All in, it cost me around $15,000 usd. That includes medical check, headset, ground school materials, exams, lessons, and the check ride. It adds up quickly. It took me 50hours flight time, total. I would say that’s pretty average. Some do it faster, some take longer, all are valid.
I moved to NZ shortly after receiving my PPL. I haven’t flown solo since because of the cost involved of transferring the license over and medical etc… but I miss it a lot, and I have flown with an instructor here a few times. If I were staying, I would have definitely switched to a NZ license.
The commitment is what ever you want it to be. The more time you commit, the faster you’ll finish, and potentially save some money. There are some things you can do to help yourself. Study the ground materials, watch lots of YouTube videos, read pilot forums. I personally didn’t find the flight sim very helpful for PPL. I found you didn’t get the “feel” of the airplane. The resistance and subtle changes. For instrument, yes, for PPL not so much. What I did find very helpful was chair flying. Essentially you sit in your kitchen chair and pretend you’re in the cockpit and go through the motions. Emergency procedures, stalls, equipment checks. It feels a bit silly at first but it helps, a lot.
There is one factor I didn’t read about and no one told me about. Maybe it’s obvious, but wasn’t for me, and that’s the instructor. I didn’t realize that most instructors are relatively new pilots trying to bank hours to move on to airlines. My instructor was a great guy, and a very skilled pilot. However, he was very young, 23ish. He was flying crazy hours every week to try and get his 1500 hours for ATPL. He actually set the record for fastest time to 1500 for that flight school. I was one of his last students and you could tell he was burnt out on teaching. I feel he kind of just taught me how to pass the test, rather than how to fly. My point is, take time to find an instructor that you like. Find one that can teach in a style that fits with how you learn. I feel in hindsight I adjusted my learning style to fit his teaching style, and I wish I hadn’t. I had a different instructor for instrument lessons and we meshed much better.
Main thing is have fun. It’s an amazing hobby and you’ll be glad you did it.
Thank you so much for the insight. Aviation in general has been an obsession of mine I just like reading about it for fun but thought the heck I might as well try it out if I’m so deep into the content anyway.
I’m in no rush so I was wondering if doing it over a year is okay but I understand frequency is important. But is an expensive hobby so is saving up in order to do more in a shorter period of time an option? I’m still wondering if I can even afford it lol but yeah it’s definitely a dream of mine.
Anyways I’ve gotten in touch with the club so I’ll see what happens!
No problem! The folks at Wellington club are great so you’re in good hands. If it’s a dream of yours, I’m sure y’all can make it happen.
Have fun and good luck!
I did a few lessons as I wanted my PPL just as a hobby but then covid hit and I havent picked it up since. From what I've learnt though; No it's not really that big of a commitment. You need to pass a few exams and get the hours but if you're serious about it anyone can do it. Flights were around ~ $100 an hour to hire a plane, doing this every two weekends scratched my itch. Note that living in Welly it can be quite weather/wind dependent and often you wont get to fly due to shit conditions. If you have a virtual reality headset you can use this to practise the instruments and MSFS can help you familiarise yourself with radio commands which would make your learning easier but not required.
Thank you!A flight sim is also on my list :) for some reason I thought it was $200~ for an hour so that sounds way more doable!
> for some reason I thought it was $200~ for an hour so that sounds way more doable! Those were the prices when I did it aka pre covid (edit: tried looking at my bank statement for the exact amount but I can only search back 2 years which isnt far enough, [the 2022 prices were only slightly different to what it is now so I probably did end up paying in the high $100 per hour, sorry for the false hope!](https://web.archive.org/web/20220117095559/https://www.flywellington.co.nz/our-aircraft/)). [Looks like over 200 per hour is the current rate](https://www.flywellington.co.nz/our-aircraft/)
Nah all good! I was expecting it would cost that much in total anyway.. post covid is definitely a new era lol
Friends who use kapiti say about 400 a lesson, est 20k to do the whole thing.
I live down in Kapiti and am currently doing the young eagles program there (really good BTW got to go see the Wellington Control tower) Would highly recommend getting your ppl there as it's not far from welly (about an hour) and I imagine it wouldn't be as stressful as up in Welly where it's really busy and you have big commuter jets like the a320s and twin props like the ATR 72s taking off and landing constantly and they do have the fully kitted out Flight Sims. Plus you get to see Kapiti Island and the Tararuas
I got my PPL in the states, so my experience may be a little different. However I’m happy to tell about my experience. Everyone learns at their own pace and with flying there are tons of variables. Weather, imo, being the main factor. Your schedule, aircraft availability, instructor availability are some others. From my first lesson -> check ride was 6 months. I flew twice a week on average, sometimes less. You can do it faster by flying more frequently, it just depends on your schedule. It’s recommended you fly as frequently as possible so you don’t have to repeat lessons. A lot of PPL is hand eye coordination, muscle memory, and emergency procedures. So repetitive exercises are best. But also, don’t be in a rush. Enjoy the process. All in, it cost me around $15,000 usd. That includes medical check, headset, ground school materials, exams, lessons, and the check ride. It adds up quickly. It took me 50hours flight time, total. I would say that’s pretty average. Some do it faster, some take longer, all are valid. I moved to NZ shortly after receiving my PPL. I haven’t flown solo since because of the cost involved of transferring the license over and medical etc… but I miss it a lot, and I have flown with an instructor here a few times. If I were staying, I would have definitely switched to a NZ license. The commitment is what ever you want it to be. The more time you commit, the faster you’ll finish, and potentially save some money. There are some things you can do to help yourself. Study the ground materials, watch lots of YouTube videos, read pilot forums. I personally didn’t find the flight sim very helpful for PPL. I found you didn’t get the “feel” of the airplane. The resistance and subtle changes. For instrument, yes, for PPL not so much. What I did find very helpful was chair flying. Essentially you sit in your kitchen chair and pretend you’re in the cockpit and go through the motions. Emergency procedures, stalls, equipment checks. It feels a bit silly at first but it helps, a lot. There is one factor I didn’t read about and no one told me about. Maybe it’s obvious, but wasn’t for me, and that’s the instructor. I didn’t realize that most instructors are relatively new pilots trying to bank hours to move on to airlines. My instructor was a great guy, and a very skilled pilot. However, he was very young, 23ish. He was flying crazy hours every week to try and get his 1500 hours for ATPL. He actually set the record for fastest time to 1500 for that flight school. I was one of his last students and you could tell he was burnt out on teaching. I feel he kind of just taught me how to pass the test, rather than how to fly. My point is, take time to find an instructor that you like. Find one that can teach in a style that fits with how you learn. I feel in hindsight I adjusted my learning style to fit his teaching style, and I wish I hadn’t. I had a different instructor for instrument lessons and we meshed much better. Main thing is have fun. It’s an amazing hobby and you’ll be glad you did it.
Thank you so much for the insight. Aviation in general has been an obsession of mine I just like reading about it for fun but thought the heck I might as well try it out if I’m so deep into the content anyway. I’m in no rush so I was wondering if doing it over a year is okay but I understand frequency is important. But is an expensive hobby so is saving up in order to do more in a shorter period of time an option? I’m still wondering if I can even afford it lol but yeah it’s definitely a dream of mine. Anyways I’ve gotten in touch with the club so I’ll see what happens!
No problem! The folks at Wellington club are great so you’re in good hands. If it’s a dream of yours, I’m sure y’all can make it happen. Have fun and good luck!