More About Part 141 and Choosing Your Helicopter School

At the beginning of your flight school search, it helps if you have a general idea of what you want from aviation. Why do you want to learn to fly? What is your ultimate, long-term aviation goal? Do you want to fly for fun, or are you seeking a flying career? Will your flying be local, or do you want to use general aviation aircraft to travel? Do you want to own an airplane or will you rent? These are questions you should answer before you start considering flight schools. And you should consider whether you'll train full time or part time; that can make a big difference in your flight school selection criteria. Here at North Andover Flight Academy, we are a full service flight school and Robinson maintenance center. We are the choice for recreational and professional career pilots.

Types of Helicopter Flight Schools--Part 61 and Part 141 Schools, Flight Time, and Earning a Pilot Certificate

Flight schools come in two flavors, Part 61 and Part 141, which refer to the parts of the Federal Aviation Regulations (FARs) under which they operate. The most common and least important distinction between them is the minimum flight time required for the private pilot certificate (sometimes called a pilot license)--40 hours under Part 61, and 35 hours under Part 141.

What differentiates Part 61 and Part 141 is structure and accountability. Part 141 schools are periodically audited by the FAA and must have detailed, FAA-approved course outlines and meet student pilot performance rates. Part 61 schools don't have the same paperwork and accountability requirements. Our school is kept to a higher standard than most, and we retain the necessary learning environment that will put all of our students at ease. You are not a number here at North Andover Flight Academy. You're part of our team!

Learning under Part 61 rules can often give students the flexibility to rearrange flying lesson content and sequence to meet their needs, which can be of benefit to part-time students. Although we are a Part 141 school, we also train some students under Part 61 rules.

Which type of flight school is best for you depends on your needs, available time, and other factors, such as veteran's benefit eligibility (only Part 141 schools can qualify for VA-reimbursed training) and location. When it comes to the FAA checkride, which is the same for all, it doesn't matter where you learned to fly, only how well--including your understanding of aviation academic material.

Compile a List of Helicopter Flight Schools

Once you've given some thought to what you want, start putting together a list of possible flight schools. Then request all available literature from each. Ask them to send an outline or curriculum for each pilot training program in which you're interested, and a copy of the school's regulations and flight operations procedures.

Don't base your decision on the literature alone! You're looking for informative substance, and this can be found as well in photocopied sheets as it can in full-color catalogs. While scrutinizing the material, take notes for use during the flight school visit, when you'll check the veracity of its claims. Some things to look for:

• The school's philosophy, goals, and objectives, and how they match your needs.
• Are there such benefits as housing, financial aid, and additional pilot training that will broaden your experience?
• Can the school save you money on your training? Are they creative in ways they can save you money or are they only interested in getting as much from the students as possible?
• How important is flight training to the organization?
• What about the school's instructional staff, its enrollment numbers, and credentials?
• How many and what types of aircraft are used in the school's flight instruction program?
• What are the school's classrooms like?
• What services are available at its airport (instrument approaches and control towers)? Our airport has ILS and GPS approaches
• What is the school's reputation on flight regulations and safety policies?

Take a Firsthand Look--It's Your Money

If you do nothing else in your flight school search--visit the school!

Your first contact will likely be an admissions officer or the chief flight instructor. Listen closely and ask questions about everything. Don't be shy. If you don't understand something, ask! During your tour, ensure that no area is left unvisited, from administrative offices to the maintenance area.

Interview the school's chief flight instructor or his or her assistant.

Some questions to ask:

• Are progressive flight-checks given? (These checks evaluate your progress during the pilot training program.)
• What's the instructor-to-student ratio? (Generally speaking, an instructor can adequately educate four of five full-time students, or 10 or more part-timers, depending on their schedules.)
• What are the insurance requirements of the school, and how do its liability and collision policies work? Will you be responsible for a deductible, and how much is that deductible in the event of a loss? What is your coverage as a student pilot?
• Who keeps your records? (This is important because poor documentation can cause you to repeat training.)
• What happens when weather or maintenance problems cancel a flying lesson? Who's responsible for rescheduling lessons and reporting maintenance problems?

After the official tour, get away by yourself and talk to other students in flight training. Ask them to rate the training's quality and explain what problems they've had, if any, and how they were dealt with.

Other important flight training information resources can be the local FAA Flight Standards District Office, the Better Business Bureau, and the Chamber of Commerce. They may offer important insights on such topics as a school's safety record and business practices. Don't forget such applicable sources as the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association, National Air Transportation Association, Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology, if so accredited, and the Immigration and Naturalization Service, if you are an international student.

Don't Overlook Aviation Ground School

Learning to fly requires that you obtain the ability to manipulate the controls of the helicopter and make it perform certain maneuvers. However, there is another aspect of learning to fly, and that is the academic knowledge required to understand how, where, and when to fly safely. This is accomplished in aviation ground school.

Ground school takes two basic forms: an instructor teaching a scheduled class or a self-paced, home-study program using video or audio tapes and/or a computer-based program.

Which is better depends on you. If you're a self-disciplined self-starter, the self-paced video programs can't be beat. You can "attend" ground school on your schedule and review the tapes as needed. If you need the discipline of the classroom, well, the choice is obvious. Perhaps the best option is a combination of the two. Many flight schools have a traditional classroom ground school and a resource room that contains self-paced materials for additional study.

After aviation ground school and before you can take your FAA checkride with a designated pilot examiner, you must take and pass (70 percent or better) an FAA airman knowledge test at an approved computer testing site. A growing number of flight schools offer FAA-approved computer testing as part of their services.

The Training Helicopter

The training helicopter is where you practice in the air what you've learned on the ground. The type of training helicopter you choose is important. If you are a career student, it's an even more important choice. Are you going to choose a helicopter which is not widely used, such as the Schweizer? Or will you learn in the helicopter which will most likely be the helicopter for your first job? Robinson produces 800 helicopters a year - Schweizer produces 12. You make the choice.

Flight School Instructors

A good flight instructor is important because your life will depend on what he or she teaches you. Don't hesitate to ask questions about the training and experience of the flight instructors. You might ask what the average flight time is and what the pass/fail rate is among the instructors. (A pass rate of 100 percent doesn't indicate good instruction.) You might also talk to some of the other students at the school to ask about their flight instructors.

A good way to get acquainted with your flight instructor is to take an introductory flying lesson (not just a demonstration ride). During your lesson, assess your instructor's attitude. Only you can determine what personality best fits yours, but you want an instructor who expects perfection, who will work with you until it's achieved, and who cares about you as a person as well as a student.

Check out the recent history of the instructors at the flight school? Does the flight school hire their own graduates, or do they hire from somewhere else on a regular basis? Do their instructors stay at the school, or do they leave within a few months? Some school have instructors that do not stay more than a few months. This is disruptive to your learning.

Cost

Does your school care only about the bottom line? Do they offer creative ways to reduce the costs of your training without comprimising training? Do they charge for pre/post flight breifings as a fixed extra charge?

North Andover Flight Academy has many ways to help reduce costs, call us for more information.

The Final Flight Training Decision

What flight school you ultimately choose depends on the quality flight training you desire in a method convenient to your schedule. In earning your private pilot's certificate, you will have achieved a "license" to learn. Aviation is an ever-changing activity, and good pilots are always learning.