Hi all,
Does anyone know of a good place to do the Sea Plane SEP rating in Scotland??
Thanks
Mark
PS A nice down to earth instructor is a bonus!!
On Track Aviation, only game in town.
West Coast of Canada has several very good seaplane instructors, or if you are looking for some sun, Jack Browns school in Florida is highly regarded and even with the travel probably cheaper then Scotland
Yeah but BPF, even the beauty of BC would have difficulty matching the beauty of a Scottish Loch!
Mark, if you think to venture to North America, I can highly recommend Lake Country Airways, in Ontario.
They have an ideal set up of land planes and floatplanes at the same place. Though now, it's the time of year to pull floatplanes out of the water. I was up there today, and several were being flown in to come out for the season.
Unlike Florida (and perhaps Scotland, I don't know), where you just learn the plane and the water, in Canada, either BC, or Ontario, you'll also learn the bush. Add in some mountain flying in BC. It's one thing to learn how to float, it's a whole other, and very important thing to learn where and when to float - And where and when to not try! Unlike wheel flying, which is most commonly airport to airport. it's fairly certain that a float plane is going to somewhere other than an airport, and that demands a whole new bunch of piloting and decision making skills.
In this part of Ontario, you can take off one lake, and have thirty or so different lakes, or parts of a lake, upon which to land, within a half hour's flying.
http://www.neils-seaplanes.com/
I'd highly recommend Hamish Mitchell who has a Reims Rocket on amphibious floats, based at Prestwick.
Both the operators in Scotland (Hamish included!) are unbelievably poor at responding to emails but don't give up! IF you can manage to get hold of Hamish, he's a nice guy, you'll get some good instruction and most importantly - you'll have a lot of fun.
Neil Gregory (see previous post) is apparently also a really good guy - but is even worse than Hamish at responding to emails :)
Not Scotland but Greenville, Maine was lovely and would be a great place to do the rating.
I did a few hours with Caledonian Seaplanes a few years ago - on Loch Earn.
Wasn't particularly impressed and the weather didn't help either. Super Cub on floats, seaplane parked on the water on a jetty a stones throw from a reasonable hotel . . .
I did a few hours with Caledonian Seaplanes a few years ago - on Loch Earn.>
If this is the same company I am thinking of I believe they have stopped operating. I recently bought an Avgas bowser from a lady in Perthsire who traded as Calendonian with a Cub and a Husky on Loch Earn but stopped flying a few years back.
Hamish is probably worth the effort contacting. He's an effective instructor and very personable. Whether or not he'll be able to offer training towards a rating is another matter given his commitments. His 172 is absolutely splendid if a bit lacking in performance. Scotland is just like BC only in miniature. I went to Canada last year for training on a 180H. Flight from Glasgow-Vancouver direct for £700 return. B&B Can$575 for a week. Very pleased with training, customer service. Very friendly, and utterly stunning location. Effective hourly rate about £50/hr cheaper than here, offsetting travel cost somewhat. In Scotland you'll probably be restricted to loch operation. In bc I got coastal and lake experience, river as well. There's really only the Clyde you can operate from here. It's not a real river - not like the Fraser!
