Jack Burton Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 Has anyone here attended Helicopter Adventures in either CA or FL?? What are the pros and cons if I may ask? And what is the quality of the CFI's as well as what is the typical progression for a student there(I.E. average hours it takes to get you PVT?). Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flyby_heli Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 HAI. Pros: Very professional staff. Knowledgeable instructors. Florida weather for flying. Lots of people, from all over the world, running around with the same interest as you. Great reputation throughout the industry. Lots of helicopters. Solid ground school program.Very good maintenance department. Pay as you go, or put money in an account up front. Examinors readily available when you are ready. Cons: Very big school can make you get the "pilot factory" feeling. Used to be hard to get on schedule because of all the people running around trying to fly. Florida weather again (summers between 2-4pm is a lost case). Most people that went through the program at the same time as me finished the private in 50-65 hours. Then 10 hours of transition into the R-22, do the instrument and commercial solo requirements in the R-22 (that way you have your 50 hours so you can instruct in the R-22 as well) and then finish up commercial in the Schweizer. Most people finished just above minimum commercial requirements (150-175 hours seemed to be the norm.) From there you can choose which ship you want to do CFI and CFII in. Good luck with your choice.Flyby Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flingwing206 Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 If you plan to be a professional, there is no better place to learn. This next bit is important: a lot of folks put a lot of import on getting a CFI job at Helicopter Adventures. To be honest, you will be best prepared for the "real world" if you train at HAI, but work somewhere else - preferably at a smaller school where you carry more responsibility for the whole operation. Don't get me wrong - HAI is undoubtable the best training facility out there (hey, they trained me, and I'm really, really good!) - but it is also very much a self-contained world, and things are a lot different once you get away from Titusville. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2rst1 Posted September 22, 2006 Report Share Posted September 22, 2006 Helicopter Adventures must without a doubt have one of the best training enviroments there is. Not only do you receive training from people that really know what their talking about, but the companionship with other students is also quite unique. I'm currently working on my CFI, and i must admit there is no place i would rather work than right here. As FLYBY HELI said, it is a big school, and the first couple of months this year it could at times be hard to get on the schedule, but that has improved. Currently HAI operates almost 40 Schweitzers (mostly 300CBi's) and around 10 R22, they also have some 206's for turbine transitions. And i would say, getting on the schedule now is not a problem, if you want to fly there is always a helo to be found. In the end the descision is all yours, only thing I can tell you is: Drop by and see for yourself, you won't regret it. Good luck. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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