Suggested flight school for accelerated IFR training?

What do you mean by "south"?
GATTS in Kansas is well recommended for IFR accelerated. Is that south to you?

Will you be using a rental aircraft (vs your own)?
 
It's not 'south' but I used Gatts in Kansas and think the world of them. They did a great job for me

Gary
 
Tailweels in Lakeland, FL.

Did my private there with lots of students that were IFR as well...they have the accelerated thing down pat and had a 172 with G1000 on the line.

I did my IFR with PIC and highly recommend them...only reason I did not go back to Tailwheels was that I already had my own plane on the other side of the country.

But the old sayin applies to this as well...Good, Fast, Cheap...pick two.
 
groundflyer said:
I'm planning to head south this winter for a few weeks to obtain IFR rating and looking for a great flight school. I am private pilot that flys C-172 regulary, but also have flown Piper, Diamond, motorglider, and a tailwheel. Plan to complete FAA IFR written before going to flight school, and also max out the hours I can under hood with a safety pilot, as well as ensure I'm at 50 hr Cross Country before heading to school house.

Any suggestions for flight schools that are reasonable price with nice planes to fly in warmer winter climates?

thanks!
Click to expand...

Atlanta area has many flight schools. Really, just about anywhere in the south. Oh and the south isn't just FL or TX ya know, regardless of what those Carolina boys say . :D
 
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I did the 10 day course with American flyers in Addison Texas. It was intense to say the least but I got it done.
 
If at ALL POSSIBLE, try to speak with your instructor first. Make sure you're compatible.
 
Try IFTA in Fort Lauderdale. There prices are reasonable and they give free Multiengine flight time to students www.ifta-fl.com
 
Manhattan.

They offer a fixed rate that includes an apartment and a car to use while you are there. If you don't pass the checkride 7 days after you start training it also includes any additional training required, continued use of the car and apartment, and the additional checkride. Needless to say it's pretty unusual not to pass the first time.

I only had the three hours instrument instruction that I got with my PPL. Their web-site says you need 10. I didn't like the idea of getting additional training from someone else just so I could get training from them so I called them to talk about it.

I wanted to do the training in my plane so their suggestion was to have an instructor fly to Houston to fly to Kansas with me and they'd count the additional time for that trip as close enough. It didn't add much to the original price and was still far below what I'd been quoted locally for accelerated training so I went for it.

We did actual IMC on the trip to Kansas and during the first three days of training. By the fourth day everything had clicked and the rest of the time was just building hours and polishing skills. The checkride was fun and I've been comfortable in IMC since then.

One of the things I really like about them is that when I walked in I saw a sign that said 'this isn't drill instruction, it's supposed to be fun'. My instructor did his best to honor that philosophy and I went home feeling like that week was one of the best vacations I ever had.

I know that accelerated training may not be the best choice for everyone but it was for me.

Gary
 
My suggestion (based on personal experience) is: be really wary if they want money up front, but then tell you something like, "just show up and we'll get you on the schedule with so and so, or if he's not available, what's his name is good too." Once they have your money, you're subject to their availability. What's their maintenance program like, are you gonna be at the mercy of their "100hr" schedule? I've actually showed up to brief a flight, only to be told, "gee sorry. Somebody flew it beyond the 10% on the 100hr. We don't have an aircraft for you today."

If I were to do it, it would be one of those guys that does the multi-day IFR cross-country trips.
 
Not sure if you're interested, but lot's of recommendations in other threads to get some sim-time before actual plane time. I have X-Plane 11 and you can definitely learn some beginning instrument stuff and have a ton of options on weather conditions while keeping it cheap and safe.
Fog, rain, winds, storms, etc., or any combination you want to try. The default c172 is pretty nice also.

Good luck what ever you decide!
 
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