Thread: Structured Hour Building

This is really for Mcgoo and Hotdog . I am going to Florida shortly for some hour building (I am not even getting involved in that debate!) I will be doing some lenghty x/c flights anyway so will be covered for the 300nm with two stops flight but is there anything else I should consider? Thanks

Well mainly have fun but use the opportunity well, print off standards document 3 off the CAA website and make sure you always aim to fly within the tolerances of that, develop your nav skill using recognised dead reckoning techniques.

challenge yourself starting off with simple flights then work up to longer flights as your confidence grows crossing busier airspace and landing at the busy airports such as Orlando, Sanford, Jacksonville etc.

Use some of your hours practising handling skills, get the stalls nailed and second nature as well as slow flight, steep turns, E.F.A.T.O, P.F.L's, NDB/VOR tracking etc, I assume as you stated structured hour building, you are going onto CPL?

I definately would advise a trip down to Key West, they give you the option of the VFR route over the swamps or below 1000ft down the coastline which is great fun but very busy as there a lot of airfields down the east coast of Florida but it's great fun and you will be lower than a lot of the hotels next to you, then follow the keys all the way down to Key West, great views (tip, refuel at Marathon, lots cheaper than Key West).

Theres also some great airfields west coast of Florida and going North into Georgia, North and South Carolina etc, it will depend on the arrangment you have for the rental how you deal with the fuel.

obviously you wont need a visa for hour building but make sure if you don't have a standalone FAA license, that you apply for the 61.75 "piggy back" license in plenty of time as if you don't you can't fly PIC

Any questions feel free to ask

PS, also make use of the fact there are no landing fees and practice away, shorts, softs, glide approaches etc, spot landing contests, and if you have a night qual, do some night flying too

Thanks Mcgoo this is very very helpfull. I have just printed off doc 3 which looks like it covers it all. I had completley over-looked the time it takes to get the faa license (90 days) so am thinking it might be easier to just sit the faa test but then I probably need to get a visa that covers training! So now I am looking for faa school here to get my license before I go or I could always just delay it. No rush really I am just keen to go over there. Anyway thanks mate. Big help

I've never heard of it taking anyone 90 days, i've heard it done in as little as 10 days, you can speed up things considerably if you fax the forms rather than post them and as usual its the CAA who drag their feet and charge you for it, circa £40, the FAA are very quick and charge nothing.

Having said that, its a good idea to sit the FAA standalone test as you can then add ratings to it and its not reliant on your JAA licence, just make sure you read the FAR/AIM and have all the requirements, for example in FAA land a x-country flight is defined as 50nm or more straight line distance from your departure airfield with a landing, whereas JAA pretty much leaving the circuit is x-country and also the FAA PPL includes night priviledges, the written exams for all the FAA certificates are pretty easy and you can sit them at Farnborough or pay less and sit them over there, but prepare well for the oral exam, if you fail this you won't even make it into the aircraft for your checkride, get the oral exam guide to help you.

It may be worth doing your FAA PPL then go straight into your hourbuilding, the visa's not that big a deal to sort out and you will go from learning all the FAA PPL manoevres and then develop them with your hour building, maybe even tag on an FAA IR if you have time

Needless to say that the United States, being the birth of flight so many times over, embrace flight wherever possible.