Pilot Training

In conjunction with our aviation partner Great Dane Helicopters:

• The Private Licence – PPL(H)
• The Commercial Pilot Licence – CPL(H)
• Financing Your Training

Details of these programs are listed below:

The Private Pilot License (Helicopter)

Choosing the best school at which to undertake your Private Pilot License (Helicopter) can be a daunting prospect. There are many schools in the UK operating various helicopter types, some located in areas of Busy Airspace, some large organisations and some small. Prospective helicopter pilots will have differing priorities with regard to which operation is most suited to their Personal Requirements.

We train all our pilots at The HeliCharter Wales Training facility at Haverfordwest Airport. In association with our Partner - Great Dane Helicopters also based at the Flight Training Organisation based in West Wales. Your Flight Instructor will be Capt Colin W Larner, Chief Flight Instructor & Examiner.  Great Dane Helicopters was established at Haverfordwest Aerodrome for the sole purpose of PPL(H) Training and Self Fly Hire Rental. We operate Hughes / Schweitzer 300C helicopters and each course is tailored to the individual requirements of the client. Choose our office cleaning in Manhattan

We also operate the Enstrom F28A helicopter, which again has an Excellent Safety Record, and is also Fuel-Injected. This aircraft is also an excellent training helicopter and is classed as the same type as the 300C for license revalidation purposes. It is possible to have both aircraft on your license at the end of your training for a small additional cost. The Robinson R22, Bell JetRanger, and Hughes 500 are all available with prior notice.

Before you start learning to fly, you should Consider The Following...

Q: Which Helicopter To Train In?

There are Three Main Piston Helicopters typically used for training in the UK - The Hughes / Schweizer 300 series, Robinson R22 / R44 and the Enstrom series machines.  Great Dane Helicopters operate the Hughes 300C helicopter as the primary trainer for a number of reasons.

Firstly this type has one of the Best Safety Records throughout the world. The Hughes 300 was Purpose Designed as a training helicopter for the United States Military. The helicopter control systems are conventional. The engine is Fuel Injected and does not suffer from potentially hazardous carburettor icing problems. The rotor system is of a 3 bladed Fully Articulated design and is not prone to the equally dangerous "mast bumping" effect under certain manoeuvres. I found a sample essay, possibly better buy essay, writing about reading.

It is also a consideration that the number of hours taken to obtain your license may well be Considerably Less with the Hughes 300C compared to other piston types.

Q: Will You Receive Individual Attention?

It is quite common for students to be passed around between different Instructors, mainly due to scheduling problems at the larger schools and especially at busy times of the year. Naturally not all Instructors have the same ability or experience and although every effort is made within the industry to standardise the training, individual Instructors naturally develop their own techniques and receiving instruction from many different Instructors may be detrimental to the student-learning environment. Excellent arrest records site

With Great Dane Helicopters, our clients receive Individual Attention from one designated experienced Instructor who is also a Commercial Pilot and Examiner. Every Customer has their course arranged to meet their Personal Needs and requirements, not the business needs of the organisation alone.

Q: What Is The Schools Average First Time Pass Rate And Time Taken To Complete?

This may vary considerably from school to school and is due to many factors, not least of all the ability of past students, however Great Dane Helicopters has a 100% First Time Pass Rate with most achieving the PPL (H) license from scratch within 50 hours. The National Average is in excess of 70 hours.

Q: What Areas Are Best Suited To The Learning Environment?

For some students the school they choose will be dictated primarily by business constraints, in which case the organisation closest to home or work will be the most likely choice. For those fortunate enough to be able to schedule their training in blocks, it may well be beneficial to travel and get away from Day To Day Distractions.

Naturally to learn to fly in an area of congested airspace is much like jumping in at the deep end to learn to swim, and whilst the student is exposed to a high level of radio work and concentration from an early stage, this may not be the ideal situation for everyone. In Pembrokeshire we are fortunate to have Very Little Controlled Airspace so that the initial training is carried out in a Relaxed Environment. As the course progresses, students are introduced to busier areas such as Cardiff and Gloucester. We also benefit from having coastal scenery and mountains close by which provides for an Excellent Training Environment.

Q: How Much Will It Cost?

This will depend on a number of factors, Not primarily the cost per hour of the helicopter and Instructor i.e. look for the hidden expenses! Some helicopters are cheaper to hire than others but will it take you longer to obtain your license i.e. more flying hours in the cheaper machine? Do the quoted costs include Landing Fees and Airport Charges? Are there additional costs for Ground School Tuition? At Great Dane Helicopters, what we quote for is exactly what you get. All landing fees are included and there is No Charge for ground school tuition provided that the student is on a PPL (H) course with Great Dane Helicopters.

Self-Study is a pre-requisite for all PPL (H) training but we understand that ground school tuition is a necessity, especially with regard to Navigation Techniques and various other subjects.

To Summarise:

With Great Dane Helicopters, you will receive your tuition in one of the Safest and Well-Trusted training helicopters in the world. You will be given Individual attention from the company, your course will be tailored to Your Needs and your Instructor will be an Experienced Professional Pilot.

The training environment will be Non-Congested and the airfield is ideally suited to helicopter training. Our costs are probably the most Competitive in the UK and we aim to provide the most efficient training possible, with our primary goal being Safety.

Course Compliance Minima:

The applicant shall have completed a minimum of 45 Hours of Flight Instruction on one type of helicopter, having a Certificate Of Airworthiness issued or accepted by a JAA Member State, and to include the following criteria:

• At least 25 hours of dual instruction, to include:
• At least 5 hours of dual simulated instrument flying.
• At least 10 hours of supervised solo flight time, to include:
• At least 5 hours of solo cross country flight time with at least one cross country flight of at least 100 nautical miles during which full stop landings at two aerodromes, each different from the aerodrome of departure, shall be made.

PPL (Helicopter) Course Syllabus:

Currently the syllabus requirements for obtaining a JAA Private Pilot License (H) are as follows:

Written Examinations:

There are 6 Written Examinations:

• Aviation Law & Operational Procedures
• Navigation & Radio Aids
• Meteorology
• Flight Performance & Planning
• Aircraft General & The Principals of Flight
• Human Performance & Limitations

Additionally, it is necessary to obtain a Radio Telephony Licence, which entails one further Written Examination and an Oral Practical Test.

Finally there is a General Flight Test with a Qualified Examiner, which will include an Oral Test on the type of helicopter to be flown. Study for the Written Exams is a combination of Self-Study (i.e. reading the books!) and Ground Training. All Ground Training is on a One To One basis and is totally informal. There is No Additional Cost for this service provided the student is undertaking his or her PPL (H) Flight Training with Great Dane Helicopters.

With regard to prices, our current standard rates are as follows:

PPL (H) Training Excluding VAT

Additional materials include Books and Charts etc. at approx £175. Written Exam fees £30 per exam. Flight Examiner fee approx £150. Medical fee approx £100, and the CAA charge of approx £150 for the license itself.

Please note that there are no hidden charges for Ground School Training or Landing Fees at the base airfield ie: Haverfordwest Aerodrome. At other establishments these hidden costs can Exceed £1000 and significantly add to the overall expense of obtaining your license.

The Commercial Pilot License (Helicopter)

The route to CPL (H) is not an easy one and you have to Be Realistic about the costs involved.

As you are probably aware, you now require the CPL (H) Written Qualifications prior to instructing for remuneration, therefore the CPL (H) is very much your first priority. Do you have your PPL (H) yet and if so, in which helicopter types are you rated?

The costs are provided as a Rough Guide only. Rates are normally discounted depending upon methods of payment and intended timescales etc. Regarding job availability, this really depends upon the supply and demand for helicopter pilots at any given time.

HeliCharter Wales has been told recently that there is a Shortage of pilots for the North Sea Rigs, although I would not guarantee this to be the case. (There are many rumours put about within the industry!) When this happens, however, the required experience and hours generally reduces dramatically.

There will be a Shortage Of Instructors within the next few years due to the CPL (H) requirement, so this is one way that you may gain experience whilst being paid for it. You may even enjoy training and consider it as a career. Again job Opportunities depend upon demand at the time. Instructors tend to be self-employed in the main and in some cases work for more than one training organisation.

Should you consider training with us, we would certainly come up with a financial package to help you, so Don't Pay Too Much attention to the prices quoted.

There is a lot involved in obtaining a CPL (H) and it can be very frustrating at times, especially from the financial point of view, but it is also Very Rewarding. We wish you all the best with your plans. If we can be of any help at all we will. Please feel free to contact us at Anytime

Financing Your Training:

A Major Problem For Most Prospective Professional Helicopter Pilots Is How To Finance The Cost Of Training & Hour Building.

Unfortunately Sponsorship Deals are very rare indeed and most banks are reluctant to provide loans for this purpose.

One way in which some funding may be obtained is by means of a Career Development Loan. With this scheme, up to £8000 may be obtained for the Purpose Of Training, the loan being repayable upon completion of your course with up to 5 year repayment schedules available.

For the period of your training, No Repayments are necessary for Up To 2 Years or course completion, whichever comes first.

This is a Government-Backed Scheme to encourage people to re-train for jobs within most sections of industry and is by no means unique to aviation.

The Great Dane Helicopter Facility is a Registered Training Provider for the purpose of obtaining a Career Development Loan and information packs are obtainable upon request.

Many Great Dane Helicopters students have taken advantage of this scheme in the past, not least of all Our Certified Flight Instructor, who would recommend it to any prospective pilot intent upon a Career In Aviation.