PPL - Thinking of doing the accelerated version in Florida vs. Canada

[Romeo11]

Hello everyone, I have been thinking of getting my pilot's license for about a year now. I am currently in Toronto, 21 year old, and am done my university. I have a little bit saved up, and I want to pursue flying as a hobby. I have been looking at some flight schools in Canada such as Brampton Flight School that is really close by my home, but I found out that you get much more bang for the buck when you do it in the states!

So, many flight schools in Florida offer 2 week accelerated programs for around 9000 USD, with 98% pass rate, which I take with a grain of salt, and am sure is a marketing ploy. What is interesting is that I get my night rating included in the US license, which would otherwise cost me 3k in Canada. Also, you get to fly a plane in a sunshine State rather than the Ontario's landscape. I don't know if you need to pay taxes on the PPL in the US, as none of the schools I visited mentioned it like the Canadian ones do, maybe it's included in the price?

2 weeks of sweet weather, flying over beautiful beaches, overall cheaper price, night rating, I think it is all a plus plus. Am I missing anything? Are there any drawbacks, or risks of doing it this way? I just want some insight into all this from some of you who may have some idea before I pack my bag and leave.

[final28]

A few weeks in Florida sure sounds nice after this last winter, but I'd check a few things before deciding.
Two weeks is very short, air cadets in Canada I think do their PPL in 6-7 weeks.
How much studying do they expect you to do before?
Reality check: assuming 45 hours flying (the minimum for a PPL in Canada) in 14 days = 3.2 hours/day.
Add to that pre- and post-flight briefings, studying, flight planning, etc. Do most people finish in two weeks?
Does the price include accommodation, transportation, books, etc? What is NOT included?
If it all checks out, awesome, but make sure you get as much information as possible about all the details.
Good luck!

[Romeo11]

I am looking at these guys right now:
https://www.srqaero.com/accelerated-flight-training

They say:
"Course Costs:
$8,995.00 includdes all study materials, books, written exam, flight hours, instructor fees, and FAA Checkride"

They also mention:

"With this in mind, we cannot absolutely guarantee you will earn your certificate in just two weeks, the student skill level and weather are things we cannot control, and in rare cases, may require some additional time to complete training. We will continue to work with you for as long as it takes for you to achieve your goal of becoming a private pilot (within reason) as long as the student is willing and shows the desire to work hard, study, and is motivated to complete the course in the allotted time. All of this is included in the cost of your flight training package."

It seems like a really sweet deal! I am doing it around August, so I am gonna finish the written portion of the test as early as I can.

[mdh]

If you want to do this as an adventure then go for it. If you're doing it to save money I would be careful. Unless you're sitting on a pile of US cash, the exchange pushes the total up to over 11K CAD. Plus you need to pay for living expenses/accommodations etc in US dollars -- which can add up quickly. Some parts of the training are taxable in Florida and some aren't, and the tax rate is 6.5%. Check the web for Florida tax rates and flight training. Also the FTU describes itself as a "club" which means you have to pay to join. The night rating stuff isn't really relevant because there is no such thing as a night rating in the US so it's not "included" they just provide about three hours dual night training IIRC; you will still have to get your night rating in Canada if you want to fly at night. Keep in mind that US airspace in Florida can be very busy which means you might be sitting on the ground waiting for clearances for extended periods of time. Finally you will need to convert your license from FAA to TC.

[Romeo11]

I was doing this to save money and some time tbh. Doing it in Brampton Flight Centre over 12 month time frame is not only going to take time, but will probably cost me more than $15k as well, easily. I was reading from others in the forum that when they transferred their from FAA to TC, the restriction was was not placed on their license. Also, these people were mentioning that it is really easy to convert the license from FAA to TC. In Florida, a lot of these schools have accelerated program, so I am guessing that they have a way to work around the congested airspace, but I will ask them this specific question before I commit myself fully to it.

I am guessing that for me, it is going to cost around $12,500 for the license in total, and with food, lodging and all the rest of the expenses, I am hoping to come out with my PPL in under $15,000.

[photofly]

Re: the night rating. You can get a Canadian PPL with Night Rating only if you meet the following additional flight time requirements, which are similar to what you require in Canada and significantly beyond what you need for an FAA PPL:

https://www.tc.gc.ca/eng/civilaviation/ ... .htm#toc66

(i) TCCA will not issue a TCCA night rating unless the FAA applicant holds a FAA airman certificate with the airplane category and class rating(s) that includes airplane instrument privileges or the applicant meets the "Conditions for Conversion – Night Rating – PPL -Aeroplane" section 6.6.


.
.
.
6.6
,
,

(4) Experience: The applicant:
(i) Must have 10 hours of night experience (dual, solo or PIC) in airplanes.
and
(ii) Must have 10 hours of instrument flight time (dual or PIC) in airplanes.
(A) A maximum of 5 hours instrument time may be credited using an approved FSTD.

[Romeo11]

LMAO, here I was thinking I found a way to game the system . So, you cant just get the night rating restriction removed with the PPL from the US alone?

[Tips Up]

Agree with other posters- do it for an adventure but not to save money nor time. It won’t. You can get it done in Canada and not have to bother with another exam and money for the conversion. Easily 5 weeks. Online for the ground school part that you can do from home at your leisure or get a jump start on before flying. And for less than $15k all in. Plus if you want to upgrade to night, instrument, multi etc. you will hopefully found a school you like to continue with them.

[Romeo11]

Yeah, I might just get it here at Brampton Flight Centre. I might ask them to fully dedicate me a flight instructor for my duration so that I can do it in like 2-3 weeks. Many people have positive reviews about this flight centre and its pretty close to me, so I might as well get it here. I am still gonna keep my options open tho. I got my uncle in Kentucky, so if I find a decent school down there, I might get it there in about a month.

At the end of the day, the cost is pretty much the same. Doing it in the US saves me taxes, and about 30 bucks per hour on the Cessna 152s, as the US ones typically have $80/hr wet rates compared to around $125+/hr in Canada + taxes. So, with the accelerated program, I do about 3 hrs each day, so that's around $90/day in savings. But, rent, transport and food is gonna make that pretty much 0.

I was surprised that the schools in the US do not have taxes on the flight school, as none of the flight schools mention it like in Canada, where they say like add $2000 for taxes. So, you save a bit on taxes too!

[photofly]

LMAO, here I was thinking I found a way to game the system . So, you cant just get the night rating restriction removed with the PPL from the US alone?

The night rating is not a restriction. (You may be thinking of the no-night-flight restriction that can appear on a CPL.) The night rating is an additional rating required for flight at night in Canada. There is no US equivalent.

[Romeo11]

Yup! At the end of the day, it's better to take it slow and enjoy it rather than force it in for the long haul. I am now leaning more towards doing it locally than internationally. I am gonna book a discovery flight, get my medical, do my written portion, take my time and get my PPL by next summer.
People recommended that I not pay for the courses all at once, even though discounts are offered. I am gonna listen to them, and sign myself up for the Brampton Flight Center starting next month. I will see some of you there if you guys are instructing/getting your license down there!

[PilotDAR]

Am I missing anything? Are there any drawbacks, or risks of doing it this way?

Do you own a plane? Is so, you probably are not considering out of country training. If you don't own a plane, you would probably like to rent one. You would like the flying schools and clubs in Canada to be in business, to provide you a rental plane after you earn a PPL. 'Best way is to contribute to their business success by giving them your PPL business sooner, as long as they are at least competitive. If you want to enjoy the beaches in Florida (and I really recommend the Pensecola area), do it up right, and holiday there, right to the sand! Canada will offer much less busy airspace, and save you the travel cost for your training.

[EuroFlyer]

If you want to do this as an adventure then go for it. If you're doing it to save money I would be careful. Unless you're sitting on a pile of US cash, the exchange pushes the total up to over 11K CAD. Plus you need to pay for living expenses/accommodations etc in US dollars -- which can add up quickly. Some parts of the training are taxable in Florida and some aren't, and the tax rate is 6.5%. Check the web for Florida tax rates and flight training. Also the FTU describes itself as a "club" which means you have to pay to join. The night rating stuff isn't really relevant because there is no such thing as a night rating in the US so it's not "included" they just provide about three hours dual night training IIRC; you will still have to get your night rating in Canada if you want to fly at night. Keep in mind that US airspace in Florida can be very busy which means you might be sitting on the ground waiting for clearances for extended periods of time. Finally you will need to convert your license from FAA to TC.

These are good points, and Romeo11 has already decided to train near Toronto anyway. But about the busy airspace thing, in an area like Venice, FL do you still suspect that may be an issue mdh? I'm actually from FL (though I live in Europe) and was considering heading to my home state for my PPL training. So the conversion to TC isn't a factor that I care about plus it would be cheaper than training here and lastly, I could visit family while I'm in the state for training (even if training is in a completely different part of the state - such as would be the case if I were to train at the school that Romeo11 found/was talking about). But also, I visit Canada very regularly for work (which is a major reason why I joined this forum - would be open to training there as well, as Canada still would be cheaper than Europe and I'm in Canada more frequently than I'm in the states), so these comparisons are very interesting to me.

[flyingjerry]

Florida would be an awesome adventure but between flight/drive down, accomodations and license transfer (FAA MEDICAL & TC MEDICAL, extra exams, etc) you won't save money.

I got my PPL in ~4 weeks last year (felt extremely fast paced) and here are some thoughts about my experience:
- 3.2hr's a day is hard and extremely fatiguing in the beginning
- Even 2 flights a day was a lot between learning the new concepts and trying to maximize value in the air.
- It becomes more of a task and less fun when feeling pressured to fly (flying in overcast or turbulent days)

You're pursuing flying as a hobby, what is the rush. If you have the time, flying in the nice air every morning around sunrise would be way more enjoyable than pounding out the hours and spending the rest of the time in the books. You can always fly in Florida after you're licensed.

[EuroFlyer]

If the primary goal isn’t to save money but instead use it as an opportunity to do in in a short time span, do you (flyingjerrry) and others still feel that it’s not worth aiming to do an accelerated program?

Unlike Romeo11’s situation, it is not as practical for me to this training gradually over time where I live. Cost considerations aside, the written tests here are given in a language that I don’t speak well enough to do something like that.

Meanwhile, if I can set aside time and get days off from work, doing an accelerated program either in the U.S. or Canada would make a lot of sense if the primary goal is getting my flight training in during a short span as to be able to then convert my license in Europe (where I primarily live) and fly here (I have already inquired about converting a foreign license where I live - there are costs involved, but it’s doable).