Self study PPL

[mcflyer1900]

This question is in regard to self study for the PPL written. What I'm wondering is what book(s) would you recommend for this method? I would like to complete my PPL as fast as possible, and the major component holding me back is the ground school because I would like to study more than once or twice a week. Does anyone have any ideas? Whats the best way to complete those 40hrs, and whats a reasonable time frame? I've read up on some online ground schools, but my internet access is limited, so books would be best.


http://www.cyberpilotshop.com/item6.htm + http://www.cyberpilotshop.com/item7.htm

OR

From the ground up + Study guide.

OR

Pultz Private manual Private course.

Thank you,

MCFLY

[wxguy]

Private Written Study Guide:
http://www.tc.gc.ca/civilaviation/gener ... 0/Menu.htm

Private Written Sample Test
http://www.tc.gc.ca/civilaviation/gener ... 4/menu.htm

Make sure you know everything in the study guide!!

[mcflyer1900]

Thanks for your help wxguy, but what books/study material would you/anyone on avcanada recommend? I also want to know whats required me to attempt to sit the exam if I self study 40hrs of ground school, and have already taken part in 10hrs of training?


MCFLY

[Tango01]

To write the exam, you need a Letter of Recommendation from an instructor and 10 hrs.

For books/publications/materials:

FTGU
Flight Training Manual
CFS
VNC/VTA
The Canadian Private Pilot Answer Guide

I also recommend this manual:
http://www.flighttrainingmanuals.com/pilot.htm


Good luck!

[jump154]

I went with the online groundschool at pilottraining.ca

same cost as a regular one - but you can go at your own pace. (Fast or slow!)
Good amount of materials - video classes for each subject, and plently of example questions.

Also, they give you a letter of recommendation once you have completed, and a letter to confirm that you have done 40+hrs of study. Well worth it.

I did a lot of study at lunchtimes at work, and while travelling.

[viennatech]

Also work with your school/CFI as some are reluctant to sign off on your "self study" hours unless you attended their in house ground school. Regardless of how much you can prove you know, you simply won't have those little boxes filled in your PTR that show you came to every class. Without that list, and a signature all the self study in the world won't matter to TC. (Although it could mean a lot to you).

I personally went this route, self studied for probably over 100 hours when I finally had all my ducks lined up to take the exam. The CFI was hesitant to sign off. I had to jump thru some hoops.

I believe that if you go the online route, they have meters to determine how much time and what you studied, as well as quizzes to self check. This will have a better paper trail than just flying solo.

That said what books will you NEED?

Bare Minimum:
From the Ground Up
Transport Canada's flight training manual
TC's Human Factors for aviation
plenty of TC documents from their website (Self study guide, flight test guide etc etc all free)
Whatever E6B you decide to use, you'll need the manual for it.
"CARS for the private pilot" from VIP pilot shop was useful to condense what you need to know
VNC chart, study the legend then spend hours learning the nuanaces of all the code..

Stuff that they don't offer you but might save your butt someday:
Stick and Rudder - Wolfgang Langswieche
Weather flying - Robert Buck
Stalls, Spins and Safety - I can't recall...

This forum is an excellent resource, I also gained much insight into what I did not know by using the free exams over at http://www.aerotraining.com

Lastly I ended up buying Dauntless software's PPL exam prep. That software was worth it's weight in gold.

Hardest topic to self learn? MET! At least for me. Now I can't go outside without analyzing the clouds and coming up with theories. Maybe I should go and take that in the classroom after all... Then again, I'm done that test!

Shiny side up

[FlyIsland]

I have to attest for the online ground school at Pilottraining.ca as well; lots of great stuff there, including full videos of all of the actual classroom sessions, so you can pretend to be in class

[MichaelP]

A word of caution with respect to Online Groundschool.

TC will not accept a PPL application with the online certificate stating that you have '....completed at least 40 hours self study groundschool in the following subjects....'.

The CFI has to write a letter accompanying your application to state that you have completed online groundschool and this has been found to comply with both Transport Canada and the school's own requirements.

The online letter of recommendation for the written test is also not acceptable.

I wrote such a letter for one student who had done online G/S in Norway... Now I have to write the same letter for some applicants who have done Canadian Online Groundschool.

Of course you should budget for your flying school's time assessing your groundschool

[jump154]

The online letter of recommendation for the written test is also not acceptable.

Mine worked fine

However, thanks for the heads up on the 40 hour letter - I'll bring this up with my CFI.

[MichaelP]

Mine worked fine

This might be a regional thing depending on your local TC office.

[mathias_now]

Where are you located jump154?

Thanks.

MN

[jump154]

Mine worked fine

This might be a regional thing depending on your local TC office.

That's my guess. I went to Hamilton.

[trampbike]

Stuff that they don't offer you but might save your butt someday:
Stick and Rudder - Wolfgang Langswieche
Weather flying - Robert Buck
Stalls, Spins and Safety - I can't recall...

Did you mean Emergency Maneuver Training and Stall/Spin Awareness by Rich Stowell?

http://www.richstowell.com/shop.htm

[justwanttofly]

As far as online ground schools go what would you reccomend, http://www.pilottraining.ca or http://www.canadianflightinstitute.ca/about.htm ?

Thanks

[MichaelP]

I discussed this with our instructors yesterday...
We prefer now to do supervised self study in the manner in which we believe Transport Canada will approve.
There are no online groundschools approved by TC Pacific Region, if there were I would not have to write a letter supporting these online schools when the licence is applied for.

Each school has its own character.
Frankly there's an awful lot being missed by many of the schools... People know what is required for the exams but a lot of airmanship has been forgotten...
Simple things perhaps such as no brakes and no control locks when an aeroplane is in a hangar... How you look after your aeroplane, and a more complete knowledge of the aeroplane itself....

Supervised self study means the student logs his/her time in self study and this time should be well in excess of the forty hour requirement for the PPL.
When you consider there should be homework and self study associated with the 40 hour groundschool a student should have more than the minimum self study time even when he/she attends the formal classes.

PGIs count as groundschool and should be included in the PTR. A student feels he/she gets more value out of a ground brief when that time is put in the PTR, and since the student is paying for it we are obliged to do so.

So here is what we do:
1. The study is in accordance with the TC syllabus.
2. The instructor spends and hour or so reviewing what the student has studied in the recent past to ensure a proper level of knowledge has been achieved.
3. Stage 'exams' are given to verify the level of knowledge.
4. A mock exam before the student take's the TC exam.

The reputation of a school relies on the instruction it gives. If the student's groundschool comes from elsewhere then that reputation is someone elses and might not be as good as the school's might be.

[justwanttofly]

Thanks MichaelP, I just don't know where to start. It would be nice to be able to attend a formal ground school, but seeing as the school only holds ground school once a week, it makes meeting my deadline difficult. I figured I would be able to watch the lectures online through one of these websites, then receive the recommend from the instructor @ Canadian flight institute or pilottraining.ca. The instructor from the Canadian Flight institute I believe is from the Edmonton Flying Club, and instructor from pilottraining.ca is from Harv's if I'm not mistaken. I'm from Alberta and as far as I know online ground school is approved. I will also be working with my flight instructor on a daily basis, but mostly on the flying side of things. He did mention that he would give me some practice material should I need it.

[MichaelP]

I will also be working with my flight instructor on a daily basis, but mostly on the flying side of things.

If an instructor only does the flying side of things this is a 'half baked' job!
Work with your instructor and encourage him/her to both expand your knowledge as well as his/her's.

I was at another school in another part of Canada last week.
The weather was overcast but it was good for circuits. It got better during the day...
An instructor was sitting there quietly with nothing to do, everyone had cancelled... "Did they cancel or did you cancel them?" I asked... He cancelled them, and sadly I was not surprised.

There's a lot to learn in this game, student's spare the time to come in for a flying lesson so that time is available...
Even if the instructor gives the student a 'deal' on ground briefing, say two for one, both people are better off.

The PPL is far more involved than it was thirty years ago, this means we need to know more, and a lot of the old aviation lore should not be forgotten.

[loopa]

I'm personally against self studying towards a license.

When you learn something new by yourself, your comprehension of it is much smaller. Why? Because you're learning about the unknowns. There are subject matters and practicalities out there that you don't even know exists. Many of those you will experience by flying; however, you need to be as prepared as possible with as much knowledge because having sufficient knowledge is ESSENTIAL in your ability to be ready to fly an aircraft and make associated decisions. Therefore, by self studying you might take a subject matter that is very important for granted. That's a big NO NO and typically leads to false decision making and ultimately, unsafe flying.

A good pilot is not the one who knows how to grease a landing; rather the one who makes the right decision at the right time. The decision making is a combination of knowledge and experience. But if you lack knowledge, you're more susceptible to experiencing more dangerous scenarios that have a 50/50 token on your life.

This is why I believe that solely self studying, especially in the initial pilot course is a wrong move. I know we're going to get the old farts come here and say how instructors suck these days and can't teach ground school for shit. I agree, but this is why you research and find the "right" flight training unit.

Also, in a ground school "class," you will have many more brains, comprehending and viewing the subject matter with different perspectives. With different perspectives you get different questions; questions that you never even thought of which are actually kind of important to know ! You get this in a class because you have people from various backgrounds, engineers, doctors, construction workers, businessmen, etc, etc, etc and etc.

What I do suggest is that if you have the funds for it, do the pilottraining.ca along with a regular 2 day / week ground school at your flight training unit.


I will most likely have people going against what I said, but I stand by what i believe. If flying is something that you can't take serious, but rather do some "online" class to receive the privilege., then it really isn't for you. You're cheating yourself and not making the most out of your training.

Do both together; you're only going to train for a very little portion of your flying activity/career. Pump the most out of it. I'm so against the north american attitude of "you learn in the flight deck." As much as experience is invaluable, there are far too many pilot's in our industry that don't even know the basics of being in a flight deck. Many of these kind of people I've encountered were from online study groups. Take that with a grain of salt but that's what I've experienced. I am sure most instructors on these boards will agree.


Let's not get into a war about which method is better.



Good Luck with your flying endeavors.

[Shiny Side Up]

I will also be working with my flight instructor on a daily basis, but mostly on the flying side of things.

If an instructor only does the flying side of things this is a 'half baked' job!
Work with your instructor and encourage him/her to both expand your knowledge as well as his/her's.

I'll start by saying I fully agree with Michael on this one, but I will also say that its an uphill job for the instructor. Justwanttofly's name and method they have been going about their flight training from what I've read on this forum is very typical of your average student out there. Many see only in airplane time as the valuable time of their flight training experience. I can't count how many students think its just about showing up hopping in the airplane and going. Nevermind how many times Joe-want-to-be-pilot says to me "I checked out the plane, I'll go hop in and be ready for you" to which I grab them by the back of the shirt and am saying "Not so fast Maverick, lets sit and talk about what we're going to do today before we start turning fuel into noise". Its tough to convince students how important their ground time is to making their flight time productive - the idea of "just need to get my hours" is a tough misconception they have to break.

Sadly however there are plenty of instructors out there willing to take advantage of this misconception to turn what would be valuable ground time for the student into valuable flight time for the instructor.

I was at another school in another part of Canada last week.
The weather was overcast but it was good for circuits. It got better during the day...
An instructor was sitting there quietly with nothing to do, everyone had cancelled... "Did they cancel or did you cancel them?" I asked... He cancelled them, and sadly I was not surprised.

There's a lot to learn in this game, student's spare the time to come in for a flying lesson so that time is available...

To be fair Michael, you had no clue what those students were supposed to be doing and if you can honestly say that you knew with great certainty that the weather was going to get better than worse, you can't make that call. In all honesty, if one of my instructors was supposed to be doing an introduction to stalls and spins that day and decided since it was good enough to do circuits that they should jump ahead to get the time in, we could have a discussion about how that would be equally detrimental to the student's learning. More importantly, it would be another good example of an instructor who was more interested in getting more hours and getting paid than what was good for the student.

You are right in that no lesson time should be wasted and the time that was booked for the lesson could be put to good use with the instructor. That being said, in my experience one must tread carefully and guage whether the student as a customer will accept that. Some get downright mean when they show up for a flight which I must cancel for weather, and many customer/students feel it was a waste of their time to come - despite all that one might do to make the time productive. In all fairness I realise it can be frustrating when I know some students are travelling upwards of an hour to come to a lesson and then find out they aren't going to be flying - I really wish they would see how hard one is working to see that their interests are served. Most however get so angry, upset and disappointed that attempting to use the time productively at that point is impossible. It can be worse than being at the complaint counter at Wally-world and telling people you can't take it back and give them cash, only offer something of equal value.

Lastly I know there have been times I've made a call on the weather and been wrong. It happens. It has on occasion been beyond my abilities of weather foresight to have predicted that the sun would come out and be excellent to fly. If you're like me you don't worry about those time you've been wrong, there will always be another day to fly. As of yet, I've never been "wrong" about the weather on the losing side. I know enough deadmen who have. Flight training is a very fickle place when it comes to calling the weather. It is my feeling that too many instructors out there aren't considering the weather enough when it comes to their student's learning ability and training needs. The first few flight lessons a student does I feel are crucial to having good weather, having a good clear horizon to reference, some smooth air so they can concentrate on the task at hand. Personally, while I make sure as the CFI I hold the ultimate say in the weather decision, I'll fully support the instructors on their weather decisions. If I couldn't do that, I wouldn't have them working for me, 'nuff said.

[cgartly]

I wish as students we were not as much at the mercy of the particular flight school policies towards self study. If Transport Canada says supervised self study is allowable than it should be mandatory for the flight schools to have a provision for it.

The school I did my PPL with did ground school once a week, two hours at a time. The ground school was "ok" I guess but could've been better. I don't blame that on the instructor teaching it as she is excellent but on the assembly of the curriculum so to speak. I did however find the preparatory ground instructions prior to flight to be top notch. The same instructor did both in my case. I was however short on ground school time when I was in my opinion ready to write the test. The flight school would not let me count PGI time at all, even though I paid a premium for it obviously. They initially would allow some self study time if I did the self study in one of their study rooms, they then changed policies on that. Besides the 2 hours a week, the only way to get more time was to hire an instructor at the full $50 hr rate. They would also not give a recommend until the 40 hours of ground school had been completed and 2 practice tests written with scores of over 80%. They only had a total of 3 practice tests so the pressure was on.

I know the answer here is going to be that I should've used a different school. However it was simply not possible, my job and family schedule would not allow for the 1 hour drive either North or South to different schools. I think the online ground schools could be an excellent resource.

I do not intend to become a career pilot, however I do want to be a safe pilot. I have been contemplating doing the online ground school for the Commercial license just for the learning experience, I would of course write the test if the online recommendation was valid, however I too am in the Pacific region so based upon Michael's comments it might be a problem.

As far as weather is concerned, I appreciated going out in marginal weather towards the end of my training, it is nice to get those experiences and feelings while you have a competent instructor beside you. I know that no matter how well you plan and how the forecasts look that there will be surprises while flying, my job as PIC is obviously to keep them at a minimum but having a little bit of experience flying marginal weather is valuable. I don't want the first time flying in 5sm visibility with rain or snow to be by myself, or a good strong 12kt crosswind etc etc.

[MichaelP]

To be fair Michael, you had no clue what those students were supposed to be doing and if you can honestly say that you knew with great certainty that the weather was going to get better than worse, you can't make that call. In all honesty, if one of my instructors was supposed to be doing an introduction to stalls and spins that day and decided since it was good enough to do circuits that they should jump ahead to get the time in, we could have a discussion about how that would be equally detrimental to the student's learning. More importantly, it would be another good example of an instructor who was more interested in getting more hours and getting paid than what was good for the student.

Did I say anything about actually flying???

It is unlikely that every one of any instructor's students is at the same level, i.e. all doing stalls requiring altitude....

My main point here is that students all need PGIs and these can be done on the poor weather days ready for the better weather days. It's probably more efficient this way in that the maximum amount of flying can be done in the good weather as the PGI has been done on a bad day.

Bad weather days are excellent for the students who are doing the self study route as these days can be spent gaining a clearer understanding through the help of the instructor who now has free time due to the weather...
Both the instructor and the student can use this uninterrupted time to progress with the ground training we all need.
We learn to fly on the ground and practice it in the air.
We save a lot of money through having a better understanding before we get into the air to practice or see it.

An instructor who knows his/her stuff and has the skills to impart that knowledge is at least as valuable to the student on the ground as in the air, and probably more so.

[modi13]

Perhaps the weather was below the school's limits. Perhaps, as is the case with me, every lesson for the next three flights had already been briefed due to so many days of consecutive poor weather, and there was no point in briefing any further ahead; one of the first things you should learn in your instructor training is that most information is forgotten within a week. Perhaps all the flights were checkrides and fams which required higher weather limits than circuits. Perhaps the instructor had personal experience with flying in marginal weather and had learned that dodging ragged cloud bottoms while practicing stalls was detrimental to a student's flying experience. Perhaps being cautious is better than flying in conditions which are dangerous. And there is, in fact, an online groundschool in the Pacific region which is approved by TC, at your very own airport Michael.

[Shiny Side Up]

Did I say anything about actually flying???

Please Michael, I haven't been doing this for as long as I have and not realise that when someone says:

I was at another school in another part of Canada last week.
The weather was overcast but it was good for circuits. It got better during the day...

It insinuates that someone was in the wrong cancelling a flight. Maybe they were wrong, but like I said, being fair you didn't know all the factors involved.

It is unlikely that every one of any instructor's students is at the same level, i.e. all doing stalls requiring altitude....

Maybe they did, its entirely within the realm of possibility after all, and it wouldn't be the first time its happened to me that I had a bunch of bookings in a day where I had to do the same lesson with four or five different students. That being said I can also think of several lesson plans where the weather you've described might be unsuitable for those particular students.

My main point here is that students all need PGIs and these can be done on the poor weather days ready for the better weather days. It's probably more efficient this way in that the maximum amount of flying can be done in the good weather as the PGI has been done on a bad day.

And I agree on that point, but you have to be careful with it as an instructor, and it depends on the student. Students are customers remember and sometimes showing consideration for their schedule goes a long way to maintaining a good relationship with them and keeping them on track when you do have them. For most students their flying lessons compete for time and funds with the rest of their life. In the case of some I would say that their travel and commute budget is on their mind so they want to maximize their time at the airport. Some students it should also be said fly for the fun of flying and no matter the benefit to them getting their licence have no interest in coming out when flight time isn't in the cards. Some extremely contrary students feel that if you bring them out and only do a briefing or set them to study time that it was an attempt to soak them for money (even if you didn't charge them anything) and can be extremely hostile to anything you might try to impart upon them.

Long story short, there are a lot of factors which govern the cancellation of a flight when it comes to making the weather call. An instructor often, much to their own detriment, is often put into the position of making choices to their student/customer's most benefit.

[MichaelP]

Lots of perhaps'
The point is that the school's aircraft were flying that day...
I see it too often that instructors only want to fly and if the weather is iffy they cancel flights and do not offer their students an alternative.

And there is, in fact, an online groundschool in the Pacific region which is approved by TC, at your very own airport Michael.

I am aware of this online groundschool, but I will still have to write the letter to TC in support of the student's application for a licence if that student does the online groundschool from another school while flying at this school.
In my mind, no online groundschool is approved if I have to write that letter.

Besides, I reserve judgement on that particular groundschool.
Students are a reflection of the school. Any school that is proud of its training is obliged to see that its students are trained to the requirements of that school above and beyond passing the TC exams.

I see it this way.
Children who are put into daycare when their parents go to work become products of the care givers and not of their biological parents.
I saw this first hand!
I do not agree with many things I see a particular school do at this airport. Do I really want our students learning from them?

I tell the instructors here that this is Sea Land Air, it is not any of the other school's on this field.
I hate it when I see some bad habits come through from the other places, like slamming and banging things... Let's look after these aeroplanes!

I like to think that we are doing our best to improve things, to produce better trained pilots with a high level of understanding and a sense of care for the aircraft and towards our fellow aviators.
As CFI I do my best to ensure that what I have learned over the past 35 years is of benefit to the instructors here.
I want quality training with an interest in the student's progress.

Some extremely contrary students feel that if you bring them out and only do a briefing or set them to study time that it was an attempt to soak them for money (even if you didn't charge them anything) and can be extremely hostile to anything you might try to impart upon them.

IMHO such people do not belong in an aeroplane, patience is a virtue all pilots need.

At least the instructor should outline all the alternatives for the student on the bad weather day.

[Shiny Side Up]

Lots of perhaps'
The point is that the school's aircraft were flying that day...
I see it too often that instructors only want to fly and if the weather is iffy they cancel flights and do not offer their students an alternative.

My point being that instructors aren't the only ones guilty here of only wanting to come out if there's flying to be done. I would say personally that a good chunk of students have no interest in the alternatives which are often offered - which is too bad, because often I see instructors essentially volunteer their services in this regard, that is to say give the student something free rather than to sit and be bored wishing they were flying.

Now it is possible that, yes you had seen yet another lazy instructor sitting around, but I wouldn't be too quick to pass your judgement upon them.

IMHO such people do not belong in an aeroplane, patience is a virtue all pilots need.

Then we share the same opinion, and I've lost lord knows how many students who've become impatient with the training process. It usually doesn't stop them from getting a private licence, though it is amusing to see them come occasionally grovelling back sometimes when they realise their training wasn't going to get done faster by acting impatient with it, or to see they went somewhere else and after an 80 hour licence and a few years finally finished and hear their story on how that went.

Needless to say, patientce is a virtue few people have. If there's one lesson my father imparted to me it was that if you're going to do something, its worth taking the time to do it right. Mainly because it will really suck to have to take the time to fix it or do it again.