Private Pilots Licence

The Helicopter Private Pilots Licence otherwise know as the PPL H is the basic licence thatallows a person to fly helicopters for his or her own pleasure without receiving pay or reward. Itis also the first step to becoming a commercial helicopter pilot if this is your long term goal andhave a career in aviation. We have compiled these notes to give you some informal guidanceabout the PPL (H).

The Course

The PPL course is set out by the CAA (Civil Aviation Authority) as a minimum training course towhich all training schools must adhere. This is now becoming the same licence throughoutEurope so you may use it equally in other countries. The requirements are:

Minimum age of 17 to log hours

45 hours flight instruction of which :-o 10 must be soloo 5 must be instrument flyingo a navigation of 100 nautical miles with

two landings 7 written examination all multiple

choice A class 2 medical A flight test with a CAA examiner

We’ll go into more detail and break the list up but basically what we are trying to achieve in thecourse is that during the course you will receive training and help, to enable you to pass all theexams and tests to gain your licence, and provide you with the basic skills and knowledge to allowyou to develop as a safe and competent helicopter pilot. We’re not looking in the PPL to make youthe best pilot in the world but to make you safe for your follow on flying.

Learning to fly helicopters will be one of the most rewarding and satisfying things you do. It willbecome addictive, rewarding, challenging and fun. It is not difficult, but it does take some gettingused to as you will be learning a new skill like learning to ride a bike. You will probably feelfrustrated at some point in the course. At other times you will be on cloud nine with what youhave achieved. You will almost certainly enjoy the flying most, but do not neglect the groundschool which is there to give you essential knowledge.

Consider the PPL(H) licence as the starting point of your flying - the best pilots continue to learnthroughout their flying career.

The CAA specifies what must be included in a course of training and the standards which must beachieved to gain your licence. There are two main parts:

The Flying Training Course The Ground School

Our lessons are normally offered in two hour sessions,which includes one hour of flying and one hour pre- and post- flight briefing. The aim of the pre-flight briefing is to ensurethat you know in detail the flying exercise before it is flownso that there is a greater understanding of the flight to beconducted. The post-flight briefing gives you the opportunityto discuss in detail with your instructor the exercises youhave just performed and are very important. Many schoolswill just fly a student as this is the income part of the lessonbut equally important is the ground work before and after.At Phoenix we try to arrange for you to train with oneinstructor and will not change that unless agreed with you oryou don’t mind training with others. This is to ensureregularity of your training. All of our instructors are closelysupervised by our Chief Flight Instructor (CFI) and we haveproduced what we hope will be one of the best PPL trainingsyllabuses available. This way you form a bond with yourinstructor and tend to progress through the course in a morerelaxed atmosphere.

We have also produced a unique training plan based on our experience with lesson hand outs priorto your lesson which build to cover most aspects of your flying and hopefully will give you a thoroughknowledge and understanding of your course. These are available free of our web site in the studentarea. The student are of our web site is designed to give you all the information you need. We aretrying to make it as interactive as possible with weather and information for your flying. We arehoping in late 2010 to introduce an on line booking system to. The lessons are down loadable asPDF or available from your instructor. At Phoenix we divide your training into three parts with stagechecks at the end of each section. The checks are to insure that you have received a high quality oftraining by your instructor and are conducted by our CFI.

Flying Training

The Civil Aviation Authority stipulates that the flying training course must include at least 45hours of flying training, all of which is supervised by a helicopter flying instructor. Of the totalhours, at least:

25 must be dual instruction given by a helicopter flying instructor 10 hours must be supervised solo flying (pilot in command). 5 hours instrument flying

All the above have to be completed on one aircraft type. This does allow if you are managing to do itby the numbers the option to do a few hours on a different type. This is at your discretion and canbe discussed with your instructor. The 45 hours have been divided into 26 air exercises which arelisted below.

Of the solo time, there must be at least five hours cross-country, including a cross country flightwhere you land at two separate airfields with the whole trip being at least 100 nautical miles.

Most people take more than the basic 45 hours to complete their course and although most do, it isnot a good idea to set this as a target as you then tend to feel you are getting behind. You willprogress best if you can fly regularly, particularly at certain stages in the course. At Phoenix wehave divided your training into 3 stages. First is the basic, where you will learn to fly the aircraft. Inthis part of the course you learn to control the helicopter in forward flight, the turn, the climb,descents, the hover and most importantly to take off and land. You will also learn to fly the helicopterwithout engine power, known as Autorotation. As important as these flying skills are you will alsogain experience in making radio calls and the way that aircraft fly in and around an airfield. At theend of this state a check is carried out on your ability and progress by our CFI and then you will doyour first solo - a big mile stone in your training.

From here we will revise on skills learned and continue to the second stage, the more advancedexercises and navigation. Navigation is better done as intensively as possible as this ends in yourCross County Qualifier. In this section you will also accredit most of your solo flying.

The final section or stage three will build on your skills andwe will teach you to carry out advanced techniques suchas those which you would need to land safely in areaswhich are confined and in circumstances where you havelimited power available. Autorotation skills will develop sothat you can safely land the helicopter if an engine were tofail. A very large part of your training is devoted to safetyand hopefully when complete we shall have instilled notonly the skills but also the knowledge to keep you safeand continue your flying in a manner to both give youmaximum enjoyment and safety.

Flying Test

Once all the ground exams and flying is completed you will take a Flight Test with a qualifiedexaminer. The test is divided into two main halves; navigation and skill or air exercises. In the testthe examiner will look to see that you demonstrate that you can fly competently and safely. Hedoesn’t expect you to be the best pilot in the world, just a safe one after which we will then apply foryou licence for you.

The PPL Air Exercise Syllabus

1. Familiarisation with the helicopter.2. Preparation for flight - starting and stopping the engine and rotor.3. Air experience - an introduction to helicopter flight.4. Effects of controls - what the controls do in forward flight.5. Attitude and power changes - power, altitude and thus speed change.6. Level flight, climbing, descending and turning.7. Basic Autorotation - "gliding" a helicopter.8. Hovering.9. Take off and landing.10. Transitions - leaving the hover to achieve forward flight and returning to the hover from

forward flight.11. Circuits - an exercise to practice accuracy within a circuit at an aerodrome.12. First solo - the first of 10 hours pilot in command.13. Sideways and backward manoeuvres.14. Turns on the spot - turning through 360 degrees in the hover.15. Vortex ring - the nearest event to a stall in a helicopter.16. Engine off landing - how to "glide" a helicopter and land safely without the engine

running.17. Advanced Autorotation - "advanced gliding".18. Forced landings - an autorotation to a selected landing area.19. Steep turns - turning the aircraft at more extreme angles of bank than normal.20. Transitions from the hover to the hover at low altitude.21. Quick stops - coming to the hover rapidly but safely from cruise speed at low altitude.22. Pilot navigation - navigating a helicopter away from an aerodrome including all radio

instruction for complying with Air Traffic Control.23. Advanced take offs, landings and transitions.24. Advanced take-offs and landings on sloping ground.25. Limited power operations - operating a helicopter with limited power.26. Confined area - how to approach, enter, manoeuvre and depart from confined area safely,

i.e. a clearing, small field or helicopter landings site.

Many of these exercises can be down loaded off of our web site in the student area. Other morecomplicated exercises will be covered in a full pre flight briefing.

Ground School

You will need to learn some technicalities of helicopter flying in order to be a safe and competentpilot. The CAA also require that the following topics be studied and an exam to be taken in eachsubject.

Aviation Law Human Performance and Limitations. Navigation Meteorology Aircraft (General and Type) Aircraft Performance Radio Communication

This is not as daunting as it may sound as really aviation is one subject simply divided into severaltopics. The exams are multiple choice so they give you the questions and 4 answers to choosefrom. The pass mark is 75% and the papers are done in-house and will be given to you by yourinstructor when you are ready. You may attempt each subject 3 times with a fourth go at the CAAbut to be honest if your are having difficulty your instructor should pick up on this and give additionalground studies to you. It is important to maintain a momentum with these as you may not do a flighttest unless they are all complete and you may find yourself in a situation where you are ready to takethe test and held back. For PPL we tend to tackle the subjects one at a time moving onto the nextonce one is done. You must have passed Air Law before going solo and should have passed bothMeteorology and Navigation before you Cross Country qualifier. In most cases the subjects aredirectly relevant to your flying so most students find them of interest.

In addition you will take a Radio Telephony Practical test which gives you a licence entitling you totalk on the aviation air waves to Air Traffic Control Services.

Don’t be too put off by the learning. Remember this is going to become your hobby and we will helpyou through a programme of guided study recommending which books to buy and discuss the topicswith you. The syllabus is generally fairly straightforward.

Medical Certificate

You must have a medical certificate before you undertake your first solo flight. It is recommendedthat you get the certificate very early in the course, or preferably before you start the course. Thecertificate must be a CAA Class 2 for PPL and a class 1 for CPL. If you intend to go to full CPL werecommend you get a Class 1 as you don’t want to spend money only to find later you a colour blindin one spectrum. The medical is similar to a life insurance medical. They are really only interested inanything that may incapacitate you suddenly affecting your ability to fly. The certificate is obtainedfrom specially appointed Aviation Medical Examiners - they are located throughout the country andwe can give you the addresses of AME's convenient to you or if you look up the web link below youshould find one close to you. You will need to be subsequently re-examined at intervals determinedby your age.

http://www.caa.co.uk/application.aspx?catid=49&pagetype=65&appid=21

this is available as a quick link in our student section of our web site

About Us

Phoenix Helicopter Academy is a relatively new contender recently set up at Goodwood. Althoughthe school is new the instructors are not. The company is owned and run my instructors whobetween us have been in the industry for a long time and have taken the best of our experiences toapproach training in a new way. Unlike many training environments, Phoenix is a dedicated trainingfacility and not just an add on to a commercial operation. Our instructors are very experienced anddedicated to instructing. We try to instil a very personal service where our students are not treatedas a number but on a more personal basis. Flying helicopters either for a hobby or as a career isone of the best things you can do and we believe the training you receive should be of the highestquality and something you will remember forever.

All though we are a small company this gives us the ability to treat youindividually. We are attempting to operate more as a club than aschool in the sense that once students qualify it doesn’t end there withtrips, meetings and events. All student lessons are based on a twohour slot with an hours flying. Although the school income is onlygenerated from the flying hours it is crucial that students get thebenefit of a full lesson. In my time I have seen too many students fromother schools with close to 100 hours and still have a poorunderstanding of the basics as they have never been taught correctly.As an Instructor I am proud to say that I have a 100% first time passrate and I have never had a student leave me to finish at a differentschool.

Take the time to have a look though our web site in the student area,and feel free to come down to see us for a coffee and a chat.Deciding on a school or helicopters as a career is a big step.

GOODWOOD

Well what you can say about petrol headheaven. Goodwood is one of those, anostalgic place that’s very well kept. Its agrass strip aerodrome with a racing circuitround the outside. It is a wonderfultraining environment for helicopters withlarge hover training areas, no fees forhelicopter circuits and in uncontrolledairspace so you are training the minuteyou get in the air. What’s more, there aresmall landing fees, only one per lesson,and you will be training in the beautifulsouth coast with no restriction onairspace. Because of its location we don’t

tend to have the poor weather that other fields can get although it can be windy as we are close tothe sea and relatively flat. Take a look in our link section to see for yourself. You won’t bedisappointed.

Cost and Prices

The main cost of completing your course will be the flying training. Our rates include all the costs ofrunning the helicopter. Helicopters are by no means cheap to operate and the pilot instructors arehighly qualified and experienced people. This is obviously reflected in the hourly rates quoted;however remember that the flying training costs shown do include all the briefing time and theground school tuition. We do our best to stay competitive but feel our costs are a true reflection ofthe service we provide. We offer a variety of packages to suit your individual needs

Hourly 45 HoursPay as you fly £245.00 £11025.00Bulk Hours in Advance 10 Hours £240.00 £10800.00

Club Scheme £231.49 £10417.05* Free Written Exams

Bulk Hours in advance 45 Hours £222.20 £ 9999.00 Free Written Exams

Self Fly Hire £195.00

Self Fly Hire CLUB £181.49*

PAY AS YOU FLYThe benefit of cash flow and you don’t have to worry about a large lay out.

BULK HOURS 10 IN ADVANCENaturally this aids our cash flow so we can pass a saving on to yourself. It also guarantees the priceof your next ten hours.

FULL FLYING COURSE IN ADVANCEThis includes all the aircraft, fuel and instructors fees

CLUB SCHEMEWe think this is unique to us at Phoenix, but it is common in fixed wing. Basically you become a clubmember and buy into an aircraft. The price includes maintenance and depreciation. There is anannual club fee of £50 and members get additional discounts on books and supplies at 5% off andwe also include any written exams for free. After passing you can stay as a member and purchaseadditional aircraft hours in advance, ideal for reducing the price of Self Fly Hire.

Pay for aircraft in advance 45 Hours at £90 per hour £4500Additionally at the end of each lesson pay on an hourly basisInstructors rate £50.00Aircraft insurance rate £11.00Fuel rate 33 lts @ £1.53 £50.49*Admin £30.00Estimated total for each lesson £231.49 45 hours £10417.05

* The price quoted for fuel is an estimate and is changed dependant on the price we will pay.

Whichever scheme you decide on, should there be the need for additional hours then these hour prices will be based onthe scheme chosen. We reserve the right to increase prices but will guarantee to hold the prices of courses paid for inadvance. All prices are subject to normal V.A.T requirements. In the event of extraordinary fuel price increases wereserve the right to apply a surcharge no greater than the increase to all courses paid on a per hour basis. Onceentering a scheme the price quoted shall be for the entire scheme. Should the scheme be ended by yourself we reservethe right to back date invoices to the Standard Training Rate. We shall try in all cases to operate as fair an invoicingsystem as possible relating to our direct costs. For a full list please see our price page. A full price list is available on ourweb site as a separate PDF.

Finding Us

We are Here

Aeroclub Café

Once entering Goodwood Aerodrome/Racing circuit go directly ahead. You will see a tunnel. Gostraight through and after the tunnel follow the road round to the left. About 200 yards on the righthand side you will see us. We are the last building before the aero Club. For your Sat Nav ourpostcode is PO18 0PH

PhoenixHelicopter.co.uk