Avoid These Flight

Training
Nightmares
21 Mistakes To Avoid When Studying to
Become a Pilot

by: FLYBYSCHOOL

Learn More at FLYBYSCHOOL.com

Becoming a commercial airline pilot is the dream of many people of all ages, whether coming out of
school or looking for a career change. The ability to travel around the world, the great scenery in your
office above the clouds, and the valuable skill that is seemingly always in demand as our world
becomes more connected are all reasons that people look to become a pilot.

However, dreams can become nightmares if one follows the wrong path. The sort of nightmare that
might even discourage someone from fulfilling their lifelong dream and ending up living with regrets.
Don't let this happen to you.

To help you avoid these common pitfalls, we have created this guide to outline the biggest 21 mistakes
we see aspiring pilots make and tips on how to avoid them.

Mistake #1: Enrolling at a flight school where you are treated more like a number than an actual
human being.

You have no doubt experienced the typical corporate customer support model that large companies
provide, particularly if trying to contact someone to explain a sudden increase in your telephone bill or
getting software support while talking to a software support agent that barely speaks your native
language halfway across the world. I think we instinctively know that it is much harder for companies
that start out quite customer responsive to keep that culture as they grow rapidly. This can also happen
to large flight schools.

Just because you are attending a flight school that costs a huge premium due to a “big name” does not
mean that you are going to get the service or training that you need. Don't just take our word for it.
You can find complaints similar to this all over Pprune.org where a student notes “my previous flight
school was just horrible, even with its big name” after paying a hefty sum of 80,000 Euros:

And this is not the only flight school where people had such problems:

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You want to know that the instructors are there focused on you and what is best for you. It is not
uncommon that instructors at some schools are there instructing not because they enjoy it, but to log
hours to advance their own flight career. Such people will likely be impatient with you and a disaster
to work with.

A flight school with an arrogant attitude can also be a huge stumbling block for people. Some of the
more prestigious schools might have the idea that “you are just lucky to be here” and treat you as such.
What you really want is an institution that embodies high instruction standards, but does not take itself
too seriously with a down to earth demeanour.

Company culture in any institution is important, especially a flight school. You want a flight school
where students come first. This attitude needs to flow down from management to every employee, or it
can be a miserable experience, so much that some people desire to switch schools even after forking
over a lot of money.

Tip #1: Make sure to do your due diligence before attending any flight school.

This should include:

a) Initially look at reviews at only review sites such as Google and Yelp, as well as industry specific
forums such as https://www.pprune.org. Make sure in particular to pay attention to the negative
reviews. Now, it is unrealistic to expect any flight school to have perfect feedback. Any business is
going to have unsatisfied customers if they have been in the business a long time. But good quality
schools should have much more positive feedback than negative feedback. You also want to make sure
the recent reviews also are more heavily weighted towards positive feedback since the state of a school
can change over time, especially if there is a change in management.

What you want to look for are common complaints, how recent those complaints are, and the number
of people making those complaints. Obviously, the more consistent the picture, the more you should be
worried. More importantly, the online feedback will provide questions you can use to ask
administrators and current students through your due diligence.

b) Make every effort to make a due diligence trip to the school in person before you make a
commitment. Most flight schools will host “Open Days” where students are brought in to learn more
about the school. Even if one of these are not available, you should be able to arrange a trip to visit
where your questions can be answered.

This will allow you to get a better sense of the school culture and interact with current students. If
there are any concerns you have based on the feedback, this is the perfect time to ask one or more
people about their personal experience. Also endeavour to speak with students outside of earshot of
instructors and management to get their unfiltered opinions. Let's be honest, most current students are
not going to say anything negative if an instructor is in attendance at a meeting. But if you are on
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campus you should be able to find a couple of moments to interact with people in a more informal
setting.

Mistake #2: Starting your flight career and training in the United States.

The United States is a good nation to pursue many careers, but as of 2013, aviation is not one of them if
you are starting out. It is great for experienced pilots because it is creating a pilot shortage, but at the
expense of those most likely to be reading this, aspiring pilots. The Airline Safety Act passed in 2010
mandated a significant change to FAA pilot standards that were eventually rolled out in 2013.

Now pilots who want to fly commercial jets in the United States will have to acquire 1,500 hours of
flight experience to get their ATP license. Those who have flown in the military or attended a
bachelor's degree aviation program can get by with only 1,000 hours.

Either way it is a tremendous number of hours to acquire. Many aspiring pilots have to waste time
being flight instructors trying to accumulate hours for them to achieve the daunting 1,500 hours. It is
enough to complete drive the motivation right out of you and dramatically reduce your lifetime
earnings by postponing your top earning years and spending gobs of extra money to acquire the extra
800-1200 hours to become a pilot.

Tip #2: Pursue an ATP license outside the United States. Europe in an ideal place to start your career
as a pilot.

An ATP certificate in Europe requires only 200 hours of flight time. That is over six times less than the
1,500 most people in the United States have to dedicate to getting their licenses! You can get your
ATPL in Europe by enrolling onto an ATP Integrated course that takes you from Zero to Airline
Pilot in 14 months.

By studying in Europe you can get your license for less of an investment in a lot less time and start
making more substantial money immediately. This is without giving up anything in terms of standard
of living as there are many first world nations in Europe like Spain, France, the UK, and Switzerland.
You can even gain the experience of living in a new, more diverse culture and perhaps even learn a new
language.

After obtaining a job in Europe, you can accumulate the 1,500 hours of flight time while getting paid
good money for doing so. At that point you could decide to relocate to the United States or elsewhere
around the world.

Mistake #3: Attending a flight school with instructors who speak poor English.

A lot of people can say they speak English. Not everyone can honestly say they speak it well.

If you are in a classroom learning brand new material, you should not have to struggle to understand
the professor. This can make for a very poor learning experience and is quite discouraging. If English
is not your native language, it can be even harder to understand someone who is not speaking English
correctly.

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Tip #3: While on your due diligence trip (see Tip #1) make sure to ask about the quality of spoken
English and the ability to understand instructors.

If existing students find it difficult to understand one or more lectures, then you might experience
similar problems as well.

Mistake #4: Not being proficient in English yourself.

Even if the professors speak absolutely perfect English, you might struggle to understand lectures if
your own comprehension skills are somewhat lacking.

This can be perfectly understandable if you live in a country where English is rarely spoken. However,
since aviation is all English and most flight training catering to an international student body takes
place in English, you owe it to yourself to improve your own English proficiency prior to beginning
classes.

Tip #4: Practice your English communication skills.

There are several resources you can use for this.

a) One of the best is brand new paid app that just came out of beta (at the time of this was written)
called “Fluent Forever.” It utilizes the latest in spaced repetition (used in the famous Pimsleur method)
combined with visual learning (used in Rosetta Stone) to provide one of the most optimized pieces of
software for learning a language. It is also one of the few tools that provides extensive training on
pronunciation.

They currently offer a two week free trial at https://fluent-forever.app/.

b) Once you have achieved some basic understanding of the grammar and vocabulary using an
application like Fluent Forever or similar program, you can take your comprehension to the next level
by buying an English ebook and reading along with an audio book of the same title. Doing this allows
you to begin to unconsciously associate the sounds with the words, while forcing you to read along
without looking up every word (a very bad habit for language learning if you want to approach
fluency).

c) There is no substitute for conversational practice when learning a language. You can join a language
exchange in your own home country, or visit one of the many online language exchange sites such as
Italki. Italki offers both a language exchange as well as experienced native language teachers all over
the world for one on one Skype lessons at a very reasonable price. You can learn more at:

https://www.italki.com/

Mistake #5: Not being prepared with a basic knowledge of math and physics.

This is one of the few mistakes that will usually cost you before entering flight school since most
schools require an entrance exam prior to enrollment so no one's time is wasted. Luckily, you do not
need to be Albert Einstein to fly a plane. You just need some basic computational knowledge. This is
well within the grasp of what most people are able to learn. And, the better you learn it, the better you
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will be prepared to be successful in the classroom and in the skies when you enroll.

Tip #5: Practice your math and physics using one or more of the resources listed below:

a) Padpilot (https://padpilot.co.uk/) is a great resource for students looking to become commercial

pilots. They have one product “Math and Physics for Pilots” that helps one master the basic math and
physics you need for the ATPL course. It is a completely FREE resource, so if you struggle in math
and physics it is a great place to hone your computation skills. You can download the resource from
Padpilot's home page listed above or just go to the following link:

https://itunes.apple.com/gb/book/maths-and-physics-for-pilots/id592113679

b) Another great resource to practice your math skills is the FREE Quick Brain – Math riddles app.
This can be useful if you struggle to do computative tasks in a high pressure test environment:

https://itunes.apple.com/us/app/quick-brain-math-riddles/id1147801802?mt=8

c) For those with a little bit of money to invest in math training (a small amount in comparison to
tuition at any flight school) you can buy CAE Oxford Interactive Learning's Essential Math and
Physics Bundle multimedia lessons for only 38.98 British pounds. It is designed specifically for
student pilots and pre-course skills assessment tests. You can find it at the link below:

http://www.caeoxfordinteractive.com/index.php?route=product/product&product_id=198

Mistake #6: Investing a lot of money in a flight school, only to find out there are a lot of hidden
fees you never thought about.

The tuition of any quality flight school that will prepare you to be a commercial airline pilot will be
quite substantial. However, given the rise in university expenses globally, even getting a trophy degree
that will not serve you in the real world will cost as much money or more; and, banks can provide low
interest financing these days for student loans.

That being said, the last thing you want is to invest all this money and then realize there are these extra
fees you did not budget for when you saved up for or applied for a loan to finance your investment in
your future. And when it comes to flight schools this can be quite substantial, and often makes
comparing the “headline price” a quality flight school might quote you difficult.
In addition to the flight school tuition itself, there is always food and housing. These expenses are not
going to be trivial, particularly if you are living in a large European city. Some have to pay for
scheduling flights out of your pocket and landing fees if they are not included in the upfront cost. There
can also be exam fees as well as the ever so significant value added taxes in Europe which some
schools might not quote in the price. Some schools even charge for a cup of tea!:

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Note above the comments about slots being too tight (see Mistake #20) and not focusing on enjoyment
(see Mistake #1).

Also don't forget all the little fees that might add up such as taking ground transportation to and from
the airport. Everything should be accounted for when budgeting your education and applying for
financing for your flight school education.

Tip #6: Choose a flight school that gives you a 100% all included quote with no hidden fees.

Experienced flight schools should know every major expense a student is likely to incur. Make sure to
inquire about any “extras” that are not included in any quote you are given. The best schools will be
able to offer you an “all inclusive” no-hidden fees cost. This will give you the peace of mind that you
will not be missing anything when budgeting your education.

Bonus Tip: As long as we are talking about budget, also consider avoiding studying in countries like the
United Kingdom and Switzerland with expensive currencies and thus a high cost of living.

Mistake #7: Going to a school with low admission and graduation standards.

If you do happen to be bad at math, physics, or English and do not put in the work to remedy that
situation you might be tempted to go to a school that will accept you anyway. After all, whatever it
takes to get the license, right?

Schools have a short term financial incentive to accept and graduate as many students as possible. But
students are better off attending schools that are “long term greedy,” protecting their reputation. The
problem is that all the potential employers will know the schools that both accept and graduate students
who are not prepared to be pilots based on a consistent interview history with candidates from that
school. And, that very history might cause them to prejudge you before even inviting you in for an
interview. And your pilot's license does not do you any good if you have a hard time getting a job.

Tip #7: Research any school's reputation to make sure they are not handing out admissions and
graduation certificates to anyone who shows up.

Ask questions such as “what percent of your graduates are hired after graduation?” and “how long does
it take for your students on average to get placed with an airline if that is their goal?” If they are truly
involved in helping their students get jobs (see Mistake #8) then they should know these statistics.
Also be sure to ask students when you visit what they hear in terms of feedback from friends who just
graduated. Ask them how demanding the coursework is. If students can just cruise by with little to no
work, then that is not a good thing. At the same time you want to ask them what percent of students do
graduate and get some color as to what happened when someone fails. This is a judgement call. You
do want a school with a high graduation rate because it is an indication of good instruction and a
commitment to getting students to succeed. So balance all the information you receive to make a sound
judgement. A high graduation rate should ideally be paired with a high job placement rate.

Finally, know your own skill set. If you are accepted and you know you probably should not be
because you have not honed your skills appropriately, you have to ask yourself if you are doing
yourself any good by accepting such a school. Consider hitting the books and convincing yourself you
are qualified and applying to a more discerning school.
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Bonus Tip: Ask what criteria students will be judged on and understand your own abilities. This is a
good thing to have in hand for your own purposes so you know exactly what you need to achieve.
More importantly inquire as to how it differs from the criteria the airlines use to choose pilots. Major
airlines are much more likely to have higher standards given the legal liability they face if a major
passenger plane goes down. You want these standards to differ as little as possible to ensure you are
well prepared for employment after graduation.

Some of these standards can even be more qualitative rather than quantitative, such as the ability to get
along with others and work as a team. Again, the better your own self assessment of your own
strengths as weaknesses, the more you can judge your own likelihood at succeeding in becoming a
pilot. This is also a reason you might want to seek professional advice from an experienced pilot prior
to making the commitment to flight school.

If you want to speak directly to an Aviation Expert or a Pilot click here.

Mistake #8: Choosing a school that does little to help students after graduation.

Obtaining your flight certification is just one step along the road to becoming a pilot. Ultimately you
are going to need to get hired. And, if you took out a large loan to fund your education, you might need
to get hired in a rather expeditious manner.

A flight school should be career councillors as well as flight instructors. They should help you to
understand the interview and application process and prepare you to do well in it, knowing what certain
airlines are looking for and knowing the advantages and disadvantages of working for each carrier.
They should know what employers are looking for on a resume, and should help you to be able to craft
one. Most ideally, they will have pre-existing relationships with a carrier who understand the
robustness of the education they provide. After you have left school they should still be with you,
letting you know of job opening and being a resource for if you are struggling to find work after
graduation. The last thing you want your school to cut you loose after you have paid them for your
education.

Tip #8: Ask about the detailed employment resources any school you speak to have after you graduate.

As with Tip #7, inquire as to employment rates after graduation and anecdotal stories from friends of
current students as to the support they received after graduation.

Mistake #9: Failing to fully fund your flight training before beginning.

The number one reason that students drop out of flight school is running out of money. The last thing
you want to have happen is being in the middle of your flight training and dropping out. It can be
demoralizing and take away from the momentum you need to complete your studies.

Tip #9: Make sure you have all the funding secured before you start your flight school.

While we are not a big fan of waiting to realize your dream (see Mistake #21), this is one case where
you want to save up as much money and secure as much financing as necessary prior to entering into a
flight school. Also take into account your financial liquidity during the time that might be spent after
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graduation looking for a job based on your conversations with other students (see Tips #7 and #8). Just
to be sure, you will probably want to budget $5,000 - $10,000 more than expected as a buffer “just in
case” there are fees your school is not disclosing to you. It certainly does not hurt to have the extra
piece of mind.

Bonus Tip: See Tip #6, it is much easier to be confident on funding when you know there are no hidden
fees you will need to come up with.

Mistake #10: Attending a flight school that goes bankrupt.

Believe it or not, it is not that uncommon for flight schools to go bankrupt. Flight education is a very
high fixed cost business that can dip into the red very quickly if things go south. If your flight school
goes under before you get your license, your substantial investment in your education can go up in
smoke very rapidly. Not only is this discouraging, it is financially devastating as this story of a flight
school closure in the New York Times notes:

The students’ experience also sheds light on the risks of borrowing large sums to pursue an
education in one part of the trade school world: institutions that operate outside of federal loan
programs. If a school — say, a small, privately operated beauty school, a computer training school
or a flight school — is not in those programs and collapses, students who took out loans to pay
tuition may be left with poor job prospects and big debts.

Source: https://www.nytimes.com/2009/07/05/business/05loan.html

This is incredibly vital to consider in your search for the best flight education you can. You do not
want to end up like the man with $122,000 in student loans and no license to show for it who was
featured in this news story above.

Tip #10: Always inquire as to the financial health of any institution you attend and what happens if the
unexpected happens.

Bonus Tip: Prevention is the best measure here since you do not want to be dealing with any legal or
insurance claims after a bankruptcy, let alone having to then find another flight school. Since flight
schools are high fixed cost businesses, most fail due to lack of overhead coverage as student numbers
contract as their reputation wanes for a variety of reasons. Many of these aspects can be spotted in the
course of your normal due diligence. Schools that are growing at a sustainable rate are less likely to
have overhead coverage issues than those with a static to shrinking student population. Look for
schools investing in their future rather than just trying to stay afloat.

Mistake #11: If you are a foreign student, failing to secure the proper visa to attend your desired
flight school.

Oftentimes the best flight instruction option will be in a country that is not your native land. Plus, it is
just a good experience to live outside your home country, particularly if you want to be a pilot that flies
all over the world.

For those who are fortunate enough to live in the EU common area, you have plenty of good options
available to you. But if you live outside the EU, you might need to secure a student visa to attend a
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flight school. Immigration is a hot topic these days, particularly in Europe and the United States. As a
result, visas might not always going to be a given for any student looking to study to be a commercial
pilot abroad. There could especially be problems if you are from certain countries such as those in the
Middle East. You have to know how to navigate through the paperwork to make sure the visa gets
approved in an expedited fashion.

Tip #11: Choose a flight school that helps facilitate visas for foreign students.

Ask them about their success rate in securing visas for their students. Ideally, you want a school with
as close to a 100% success rate as possible.

Mistake #12: Attending a flight school with outdated equipment and resources.

Make sure to choose a flying school with a modern fleet. Likewise you do not want to be flying in a
plane that you feel is being held together with duck tape. Safety is always your most important
concern when attending a flight school or even choosing a flying assignment when you graduate.
In many respects this should be the most important factor you look when doing due diligence on
a flight school since your life could be on the line due to any preventable mechanical failure.

Although learning to fly older planes with analogue gages can be helpful in your initial training, most
of your ATP course should ideally be done in modern planes with full glass cockpits. Commercial
planes today have state of the art cockpits and you want to make sure that the hardware you are training
in during your course is somewhat similar to that what you will be flying commercially.

Most schools have basic simulators that simulate regional turbo props, however, training in an
organization that also offers their students the opportunity to train in more complex wide bodied jets
like the Boeing 737 or the Airbus A320 is a huge plus. Do not underestimate the importance of very
robust simulators on preparing you for real world flying conditions. You can safely simulate very
dangerous weather conditions, crowded skies, and unusual approaches preparing you for events you
might never experience in a real plane prior to being licensed to fly with a commercial carrier.

Tip #12: Ask any flight school what equipment they use in terms of both simulators and aircraft.

Dig deep as to the average age of the equipment and the degree to which the flight school pours
resources into equipment maintenance. Inquire about how often flight equipment is inspected and, if
there is an issue, how long does it usually take to get it resolved.

Mistake #13: Not having a structured environment in your flight curriculum.

You want any flight school you attend to be able to supply a definite series of goals and tasks that you
need to accomplish before achieving your ultimate goal of becoming a commercial pilot. At some
schools you might show up for a flight and have to tell your instructor what you need to accomplish
that day because they have no plan for you. That should be the instructor's and school's responsibility
ideally not yours.

Tip #13: When doing your due diligence trip (see Tip #1) make sure to ask students how structured the
learning environment is.

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Are they led through a step by step progression, or does the school put the onus on them to make sure
they get everything done?

Bonus Tip: If your true goal is to become a commercial pilot, the best course to pursue is an Integrated
Curriculum (see Mistake #14). This takes you from knowing nothing all the way to being ready to
apply to become a commercial pilot when done correctly. The problem with modular programs is
they generally take longer to complete and again, leave you to fill in the missing pieces along the way
even if the instructors within each module are providing you structure.

Mistake #14: Choosing a modular flight course over an integrated one.

ATP Modular training is on a slow decline in Europe and this point of view is now widely shared by
experts in all fields of aviation, except of course, by flying schools that can only teach the ATP Modular
course. It is important to note that only a small percentage of flying schools in Europe are allowed to
teach the ATP Integrated course as the level of training required is very high to be granted certification
by the European Aviation Authority, EASA.

Many experts in the field along with a growing number of airline recruitment managers consider ATP
Integrated training to be largely superior to Modular training. We will refer to the words of Margie
Burns who in her book "Becoming an Airline Pilot" states the following:

If you have access to finances that allow you to complete your pilot training on a full-time bases
over the shortest period of time, ATP integrated training is the best option for you. It is worth noting
that airlines tend to have a preference to select candidates who have completed an integrated course
rather than a modular course. The reason for this is that the integrated course provides consistency
whereby you do all your training in one go at the same school. The style of instruction tends to be
more regimental and structured.

Flying students who have completed an ATP Integrated graduate with a much higher level of training
and airlines are beginning to favor them over ATP Modular graduates. This is mainly due to the fact
that ATP Integrated students train under a much more controlled environment and are proving to have
much better technical and non technical skills in simulator evaluation during airline recruitment
process.

The ATP integrated route usually involves a full-time course of study, generally lasting between 14 to
18 months and takes a student from being a complete beginner to a position where he or she is fully
trained to work as a First Officer for an airline.
The main advantage of ATP Integrated training is that a student enters an intensive course of study
within a dedicated and well-equipped training facility, surrounded by like-minded students. What’s
more, if your goal is to take your first flying role with a flagship company like British Airways, they
will only employ low-hour graduates who have come through the ATP Integrated route.

Being a full-time student means your progress can be monitored at each stage of training, giving you
every opportunity to make the most of your investment. Ground exams and flight tests cannot be failed
during your training, and while the chance does exist to retake them, airlines do look more favourably
on graduates who have passed first time and with top marks. So it really is worth getting your head
down, working hard and accepting all and whatever help and advice is available. Only an ATP
Integrated course can guarantee this.
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If you can keep up with the fast paced training and very steep learning curve associated with integrated
training then the airline can be fairly confident that you will not have any problems with the subsequent
type rating and line training.

What’s more, Modular ATP courses usually take more than 24 months and after each module (PPL,
Instrument Rating, Multi-Engine, etc) students a required to complete a flight test and a series of
theoretical exams. This off course delays progress so flying schools promising completion of an ATP
Modular course in less time than that is unrealistic unrealistic. This is especially enhanced if the flying
school is on the northern side of Europe where flying is reduced practically to nil in winter due to
weather conditions.

Tip #14: Try and choose a recognized EASA European training center specialized in ATP Integrated
training at a competitive price.

An organization that has all its resources focused on that one course will help create the economies of
scale to guarantee the required high level of ATP training at the best possible price. Integrated training
with strict SOPs and geared up to prepare you for a job as a commercial airline pilot from day one
where students are taught to operate an aircraft in a similar manner (as far as practicable) to that of a
commercial airliner.

Mistake #15: Lack of proper motivation and goals to propel you through your experience.

It is important to remember that just because you sign up for flight school, does not mean that you get
your pilot's license handed to you on a silver platter. Pilot training even when done properly is hard
work. You have to put in the hours of study and training to master your craft just like you would in any
profession; however, in this case it is even more important because you will be having the lives of
thousands upon thousands of people in your career in your hands. So grading on a curve and slacking
by in class are not options as it would be if you were studying for a degree in “East Mediterranean
Studies” or something like that.

This is also why it is important that any flight school has a staff that is not there just to collect a check
and knows how to make learning fun and interesting to stoke the flames of motivation (see Mistake
#1). But ultimately, if you do not have some good reason for wanting to be a pilot and a strong
motivation to continue, you could struggle to complete your studies when the going gets tough.

Tip #15: Know exactly WHY you want to be a pilot, and remind yourself why you want to achieve that
each day until you have crossed the finish line.

Engage in creative visualization in imagining the life you want for 10 minutes per day, and when things
get tough re-focus on the end goal to propel you forward. If you cannot get excited about becoming a
pilot, then perhaps you are pursuing the wrong profession. It is better to know it now, rather than
before you spend a lot of time and money training for your license.

Mistake #16: Not spending enough time on planes before pursuing a career in flying.

If you have never flown before, it might not be a good idea to get into a plane with an instructor the
first time to learn that you either have a fear of heights or are susceptible to motion sickness. Why this
might sound like an obvious point, you do have students who have not spent much time in planes who
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find they have serious motion sickness only after they have started training.

Now, these problems can be overcome. Someone should not give up just because they needed to hurl
after their first few attempts at flying. However, your training will be much more enjoyable if you
learn to deal with these problems or are at least cognizant of them prior to getting in the cockpit for the
first time.

Tip #16: Spend some time flying as a passenger prior to committing to flight school.

Ideally fly a few times in a smaller commuter twin prop or single engine piston and experience what it
is like to be thrown around in less than ideal weather. If you find you have a problem, seek an
experience flight or medical professional to deal with the issue to help you overcome it. If you find
you can absolutely not take flying, it is better you learned ahead of time before you committed to flight
school.

Mistake #17: Not being persistent enough if you fail to get the medical exemption to fly.

Medical exams are important to make sure that pilots are physically able to fly a plane while not
putting another's life at risk. And, there are many people who are held back from a career as a pilot due
to not being able to pass the exam.

However, sometimes persistence pays off. Do you think a person with no arms would ever be
approved to fly an airplane? Well, would you be surprised to learn that one has been?:

https://www.jessicacox.com/

Tip #17: Set up a meeting with an Aviation Medical Examiner and see if they can help you get an
exemption.

Most people do not even try.

Bonus Tip: If you have severe chronic health problems, consider changing your diet. The medical
community has learned a lot about the etiology of disease and epigenetics the last decade. Things like
gut dysbiosis and chronic inflammation caused by poor dietary choices have been tied to many chronic
diseases that are plaguing the modern world; meanwhile, most doctors do not even take a single course
in nutrition in medical school. Consider adopting a more natural processed food free diet and get
plenty of sleep and moderate exercise in addition to seeking about the proper medical attention. Rarely
will a long term medical solution just come in a pill, even though it would be nice if such were possible
while still eating a half kilo of ice cream while sitting at a desk all day!

Mistake #18: Flight instruction in an area with a poor or miserable climate.

In order to get a pilot's license, you need a minimum number of flight hours. These need to be
scheduled at the local airport, and occasionally flights are cancelled due to poor or inclement weather.
If you are unlucky enough to have scheduled within one of these windows, you will have to reschedule,
which is a bit of a nuisance.

If you happen to live in an area with very rainy weather, then you might have to reschedule quite often.
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Even if an area is not particularly rainy, cloudy weather might not be the best for flying either. One of
the joys of flying is being able to take in the scenery below. Quite frankly, that is hard to do if a mass
of clouds is obscuring your view. The clouds can also make flying prohibitive for the students.

Aside from making it easier to complete your scheduled flight hours, it is also much more encouraging
not having to deal with depressing weather all the time.

Tip #18: Choose a flying school situated in an exceptional sunny weather climate.

An airport in a hotter region where de-icing is not much of a concern is ideal, such as south of the
Pyrenees in Europe and the Southwestern United States.

Mistake #19: Flight instruction at a large international airport.

Being able to fly out of a large airport might at first glance feel appealing. This is where the action is,
right? The reality is that you don't want to be anywhere near such an airport.

If you are a frequent air traveller you know the frustrating feeling of sitting on a runway, waiting,
waiting, and waiting in a long taxi line to take off. If the weather was particularly bad, you might have
even waited so long on the taxiway that you had to return to the gate before even taking off because
there are regulations about how long the flight crew can be on the plane.

Chances are, if you remember one of these experiences, it was most likely at a large international
airport. Things are just busier there. And if you are flying at an airport with significant weather delays
(see Mistake #18), this makes things even worse.

These experiences might be tolerable if you are flying occasionally on business trips or family
vacations. But if you are having to fly continuously at the same airport to accumulate flight hours, it
can just be completely unbearable.

And it is not just the inconvenience, this can cost you more money if you are attending certain schools
where you are picking up flight expenses as an extra (see Mistake #6). You see, if your plane is just
sitting there on the runway, that can cost money in terms of fuel and flight rental time. Over the course
of your entire flight school education, this can end up either resulting in receiving less real training
hours or paying extra money you never budgeted for.

In case you are wondering which areas are the worst offenders, you can probably guess some of the
names. As you might expect, the lower the population density around an airport the lower the delay
times assuming the weather is similar between two locations.

Tip #19: Choose a flight school using an airport that is relatively uncrowded to save money and
frustrating waiting times.

Even better is to choose one where the air traffic space in the area is relatively clear so your flying is
relatively unencumbered.

Mistake #20: Signing up to an overcrowded flight school.

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International airports are not the only facilities that can be overwhelmed in backlog. Pilot schools
themselves can be overwhelmed with too many students for the number of resources they have. While
a packed classroom will not be a problem for most colleges, things are a little different when it comes
to flight schools.

You will have to schedule time in their simulators, and there will be a limited number of them. Most
importantly you will also have to be able to schedule time in planes with instructors – both need to be
readily available. And this does not always happen as you can see from the first two comments below:

Also note the comments on overcharging for the use of the aircraft and charging ground school time in
this one (see again Mistake #6 on hidden fees).

Trading quality for quantity seems to be a common complaint:

Amazingly some flight schools even overpack their classes!!!:

Tip #20: You should ask students on your visit to the flight school (see Tip #1) how easy it is for them to
book time in simulators and in-air time with instructors.

Ask detailed questions about how many students are in the class and how many flight hours are
available each week with instructors. Remember there can be mechanical failures or problems with
equipment so you want to make sure there is a good margin of error and the school is not trying to fill
too many slots in any given class. Look for a high fleet to student ratio and instructor to student ratio.
Also try and find out a bit more about about maintenance. A school that has its own mechanics and
maintains its own fleet will definitely guarantee a higher fleet uptime and reduced delays.

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Mistake #21: Accepting a slot on waiting list; procrastination can be painful.

If you are applying to a flight school that has a big demand for students, then they might tell you that
you will have to be put on a waiting list. Such waits can even exceed 12 months.

Now perhaps it was your dream to go to that one school. Maybe your parents or best friend went there,
or maybe there is a certain name that has caché to it. But you have to ask yourself, is it worth waiting
for up to a year to get in?

The first thing you have to realize is that no one is going to really care 10 or 15 years from now where
you went to school. What matters is that you went to a school that adequately prepared you to earn
your ATPL and that first job. Many times the best schools for that purpose will be the ones that are not
overcrowded with students where students receive a more individualized, personal touch (see Mistakes
#1 and #19). And there are plenty of these without a waiting list if you are willing to do your due
diligence to find them.

And for people living in the United States this applies especially to you given the new 1,500 hour
minimum prospective pilots are saddled with there (see Mistake #2). How many extra years are you
going to have to put off your flight career at a major airline accumulating those hours if you chose to
attend a flight school in the US?

Remember the world today might not resemble the world 12 months from now. Things change. Is
there going to be as much demand for entry level pilots 2 years from now? What will the cost of
financing your education be a year from now? We all know that interest rates are at significant
generational lows now in Europe (at the time this guide is being written), with some governments of
some countries borrowing at negative interest rates. It has never been a better time to finance anything,
let alone something as valuable as an education to become a commercial airline pilot.

Will you even be able to finance an education a year from now? We all know that Europe financially is
in trouble. Governments like Italy and financial institutions such as Deutsch Bank seem to be
constantly the source of speculation in terms of fiscal solvency. All it takes is one more financial crisis
like in 2008 and many European banks could fall like dominos and be unwilling to lend out capital. So
it is best to finance your educate today while the capital is still available and interest rates are still very
low.

And just think, who would you rather hire 2 years from now? A person who just graduated because
they spent a year waiting around to get into the school they want, or a person who graduated a year
earlier and already has a year's worth of commercial flight experience? Since pay in the airline
industry tends to be based on seniority, you are only cheating yourself out of cold hard cash if you wait
around.

Tip #21: He who hesitates is lost. Avoid wait lists and get enrolled at a recognised flight school ready
to enroll you as a student right now.

Bonus Tip: If you have found a school you want, do not delay. Make sure you get in before the class is
filled or tuition prices are raised.

Hesitation for even a few weeks could cost you that spot in the perfect flight school you just identified.
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Conclusion

Those are the 21 mistakes that we wanted to highlight to make sure that you have the best chance of
success in achieving your dream of becoming a pilot.

If you have any questions about any of these do not hesitate to give us a call or Whatsapp us at +35 645
058323. In the United States you can call or text us at 1-646-759-0721. You can also send an email to
[email protected].

Whether you are interested in training at our flight school or not, we love assisting people to achieve
their dreams. We can even arrange to schedule a call with you and a pilot if you will find that helpful.

You can learn more about our flight school here:

https://flybyschool.com

If you can make it to León Spain, we invite can give you a full tour and let you meet many of the
current students.

Call us today at +35 645 058323 (1-646-759-0721 in the United States) for more information to help
pilot you in the right direction for your career in commercial aviation.

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