Hey fellow aviators. Reaching out cuz I really need help and some solid advice. I am looking to grind it out this summer and get my CPL over with. I'm kinda stuck between choosing St Catherine's flying club and Aeolus Flight school in London Ontario. Where would be a better and faster place to train taking into consideration the airspace and most importantly the weather, Slight concern with St Catherine's is I'm assuming the weather would be worse/windy cuz of being too close to the lakes? Please let me know and any advice and leads would be greatly appreciated.
Thank you
Flight school CPL
Moderators: sky's the limit, sepia, Sulako, Right Seat Captain, lilfssister, North Shore
Re: Flight school CPL
I'm not super familiar with the area, google AI suggests St Catherines may be a better pick from a weather point of view.
I'd suggest prioritizing total cost of training and aircraft availability in your decision making. Coupled with this ensure you show up prepared so that you get the most value.
I'd suggest prioritizing total cost of training and aircraft availability in your decision making. Coupled with this ensure you show up prepared so that you get the most value.
Re: Flight school CPL
If you plan to dedicate time and prioritize this, then I would definitely choose a school that can accomodate that. Instructor and aircraft availability would be the most important balanced with cost.
I wouldn't put too much thought into the weather. All places in southern Ontario are going to have crap weather days.
I wouldn't put too much thought into the weather. All places in southern Ontario are going to have crap weather days.
Re: Flight school CPL
Holy crap, google AI is now going to make these kind of decisions for people? (Old man rant over 
)
Anyway, I’d suggest you go to whoever has the resources to accommodate what your actual time and money can support. Be realistic with yourself as to what your skill and abilities can manage. If anything, the place with slightly worse weather could very well be the place you should choose. There’s nothing worse than a fair-weather CPL MIFR graduate that can’t do a satisfactory ME hold or approach and landing in somewhat gusty, convective weather. Also, if you train in less than perfect conditions, you’ll likely be able to schedule easier and get done sooner.
)Anyway, I’d suggest you go to whoever has the resources to accommodate what your actual time and money can support. Be realistic with yourself as to what your skill and abilities can manage. If anything, the place with slightly worse weather could very well be the place you should choose. There’s nothing worse than a fair-weather CPL MIFR graduate that can’t do a satisfactory ME hold or approach and landing in somewhat gusty, convective weather. Also, if you train in less than perfect conditions, you’ll likely be able to schedule easier and get done sooner.
Being stupid around airplanes is a capital offence and nature is a hanging judge!
“It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.”
Mark Twain
“It ain't what you don't know that gets you into trouble. It's what you know for sure that just ain't so.”
Mark Twain
Re: Flight school CPL
I'm also looking for CPL training and I'm working on a spreadsheet with information on all FTUs in the country. Overall it looks like St Catharines might be a better bet for you. Weather is better - Higher ceilings, less precipitation, but slightly higher average winds according to METAR data from the last 3 years. But it also looks like they have a bigger fleet, based on what's posted online.
Hope it helps
Hope it helps
Re: Flight school CPL
I found doing some ifr pilot training alongside my CPL stuff made a huge difference, especially on days when the weather didn’t match the forecast. It gave me a bit more breathing room and made the whole workload feel smoother. Even if you’re mainly flying VFR, that extra confidence in the soup can take a lot of stress out of the learning curve.
