Chiều Tuyết
I have always wanted to fly and have read as much about aviation as I could in the past years. I am planning to start training later this year and want to share with general aviation fans out there some resources that I have found very useful for a student pilot.
Flight schools in Silicon Valley/San Francisco Bay Area:
The following are some cursory impressions about the schools without my having actually visited them. The most important factor in your training is probably your instructor, not the aircraft or the school, so please keep that in mind. Flying out of KRVH in San Jose is generally cheaper than operating from KPAO in Palo Alto.
At Reid-Hillview airport (KRHV) in San Jose:
Aerodynamic Aviation: Besides trigear aircraft, this school also provides tailwheels for primary and acrobatic training. They have the cheapest aircraft for rentral in the Bay Area: a Taylorcraft that was Amelia Reid’s original trainer, for about $62/hour if buying in blocks. The Citabria 7ECA, at $85/hour, seems to be a fantastic primary trainer, forcing the student pilot to learn good rudder-and-stick skills from the beginning. Of course, they also have the typical Cessna 172s and a Piper Warrior for reasonable prices.
Squandron 2 Flying Club: Cessna 152s for $87/hour.
Nice Air: Lots of Cessna 152s for $89/hour. Seems to have many students from Japan.
Trade Winds Aviation: They have a nice Remos for renting, but their 172s are newer and thus more expensive.
At Palo Alto airport (KPAO):
Stanford Flying Club: not affiliated with but having a strong historical tie with Stanford University
West Valley Flying Club
Sundance Flying Club
Advanced Flyers
Advantage Aviation
Handbooks and useful resources:
FAA aviation handbooks
AOPA
AirNav
Forums:
studentpilot.com
pilotsofamerica.com
Blogs and personal websites:
Flight Level 390
From the Flight Deck
James Fallows
AVWeb Flash
AOPA Air Safety Foundation blog
Jetwhine
Philip Greenspun
Compare renting vs. owning aircraft
Discussion
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