Anybody train at SkyBlue Flight Academy in WPB Florida? South FL/Treasure coast options

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ChrisJupiterFL

Filing Flight Plan
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Jul 28, 2024
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Chris
Hey everybody. I’m 40 and interested in flying (minimum PPL). I’m located in Jupiter Farms, FL and am luckily located about 20 minutes from the North Palm Beach County Airport. I feel like it’s not a very busy airport, but I could be wrong about that. I’m also fairly close to Stuart’s Witham Field. I’ve scanned Reddit and various message boards and still don’t have the clearest idea of where the best schools around me are. I’ve read the Google and Facebook reviews, looked at Reddit and on here. I visited Skyblue (part 61) at the North Palm Beach County Airport close to my house a few days ago and am considering a discovery flight over there. I got a decent vibe over there although I don’t know a thing. I’ve got the money, so I wouldn’t have to finance if I wanted to go the entire commercial airline pilot route. Of course, this is if I really enjoy that discovery flight, so I’m thinking kind of far ahead. I’ve also reached out to ATP for pricing info and definitely have seen mixed reviews. It would probably be a better option if I had to use financing which I don’t. Their closest location is a 35 minute drive for me, so it’s on the table but definitely wouldn’t be my first choice. Skyblue was a lot cheaper for their PPL program. I’d like to bang out this thing as fast as possible if I was really interested in it. Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!
 
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SkyBlue is mentioned a few times on this site. No one has bad mouthed them.
 
I’ll just say stay away from Aviator College in Ft. Pierce. Two fatal crashes in nine months with CFIs at the controls.
 
ateamer said:
I’ll just say stay away from Aviator College in Ft. Pierce. Two fatal crashes in nine months with CFIs at the controls.
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In one accident, the pilot was practicing shutting down one engine in the multi-engine plane, the other a wing came off.
 
ateamer said:
I’ll just say stay away from Aviator College in Ft. Pierce. Two fatal crashes in nine months with CFIs at the controls.
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Thanks. I already had them marked off my list because I also saw that! I saw that two men at F45 crashed in the pond by the runway and died fairly recently, but I can’t find any info on what school they were from. They left from Sarasota, so I’m assuming over there.

Runway excursion Accident Piper PA-28-161 Warrior II N81250, Wednesday 10 July 2024

On July 10, 2024, about 1410 eastern daylight time, a Piper PA-28-161, N81250, was substantially damaged when it was involved in an accident near West Palm Beach, Florida. The flight inst...
asn.flightsafety.org
 
The Stuart flight school (TCFT) is a big operation, about 20 instructors, no accidents, it’s a busier airport and class D. Unlike Fort Pierce, it doesn’t have a separate runway for training so sometimes you will get “the pattern is full” if you want to do T&Gs.
 
MooneyDriver78 said:
The Stuart flight school (TCFT) is a big operation, about 20 instructors, no accidents, it’s a busier airport and class D. Unlike Fort Pierce, it doesn’t have a separate runway for training so sometimes you will get “the pattern is full” if you want to do T&Gs.
Click to expand...
Thanks for the info
 
The big mills like ATP (or Aviator College) are usually not a good choice for those who wish to fly just for fun.

I highly recommend to look for a flight school where the instructors are a little more seasoned. The bigger the school, the bigger the likelihood to end up with a low-time instructor who cares only about the magical number to qualify for ATPL and start with a regional airline.

I would always prefer part 61 over part 141 since this gives you way more flexibility to address weaker areas. Those 5 hours more will not make any difference. And at the end it will not matter if you pay 20 $ more or less for the plane or instructor. You should have always in mind that aviation is a costly adventure. You will always end up to fork over more money than initially expected. Do not rely on those cost estimates based on 35/40 h, especially in a Class D environment. Becoming a competent pilot is way more important than just passing a check-ride with marginal results.
 
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