[Milty]

solo in circa 10-12 hours

Then you start learning to land...



My guess is that you should never stop learning to land…

[Paul_Sengupta]

My guess is that you should never stop learning to land…

It's a gradual process. After 25 years I haven't had anyone complaining of back problems after flying with me for some time now.

Except Irv...



(but that was more about my B&Q garden seat backs than my landings!)

[YorkshireMatt]

I had the same idea. For my NPPL, I did all my exams up front over the winter before I started flying for the most part.

Then COVID hit, grounded me for most of 2020 due to location, and I then had an almighty rush to get my GST done before the exams lapsed. That’s even with with CAA extension.

[scd975]

Loads of good ideas for reading and study in the posts above. I also think that getting a Class 2 medical sooner rather than later would be a good plan.

Exams: try to do the exams alongside your flight training, as the theory will support the practical and vice versa. A top tip - do 8 out of the 9 exams, leaving one (COM perhaps) in your back pocket. That keeps the 18 month period (for exams) ticking along, so that you don't need to start the 2 year period (from 9th exam pass to licence issue) until you need to. Start with Principles of Flight and Aircraft General Knowledge, and then have a go at Air Law after that.

Questions are always good - there is no such thing as a silly question!

[Milty]

Start with Principles of Flight and Aircraft General Knowledge, and then have a go at Air Law after that.
!

I like the idea of more practical topics first, but I've certainly been encouraged to do air law and operational procedures first. I think it may be a flight school requirement before going solo. There certainly seems to be a lot of guidance on that basis. Certainly no reason why not to do all 4 before going solo but it's a lot of info to take on board.

I wouldn't say I'm struggling with the theory side of things, but it's certainly been an eye-opener for me how much study is required and how much information there is to absorb.

I also concur re mixing theory and practice. I've just been studying airspace restrictions (my Achilles heel so far but getting through it now) and found that referring to MATZ and CTR's etc on Skydemon Light (I don't have charts yet) helped me understand it more.

[scd975]

Have a look at www.easypplgroundschool.com - it's up to date with the latest style of questions in the e-Exams, and currently the first three days of Air Law are free.

Where I teach, students are supposed to have passed Air Law before flying solo, but quite often the exam is done after solo. Do check with your flight school as to their rules. Some face-to-face or Zoom tuition can often be quite helpful in ironing out the apparent complexities in the material. Generally, the intellectual level of PPL exams is about the same as GCSE, and there is no mathematics, only arithmetic (numbers).

[T6Harvard]

@scd975 , yes, I totally agree. I'm finding Easy PPL Groundschool excellent, have been using it most of today , and also agree the level of knowledge is GCSE, but.... there is a LOT to absorb. All do-able though and more important, it is valuable information.

My school don't require any exam passes before solo but a friend based elsewhere has to pass Air Law and Ops before solo. Perhaps to indicate serious intention to study?