#YouHaveControl | So, Here we are. One week away from the PPL ground-school at CATS aviation in Luton. That means REVISION! Ok, so what is ground-school?
Ground-school is where I’m heading next week, to undertake the 9 written exams that form part of the overall PPL course. 9 exams! Thanks to Sebastian Pooley, who gave me the student starter kit containing all the books, is very easy to read and comprehend…WOW. The theory course comprises of the following subjects:
• Aviation Law
• Operational Procedures
• Meteorology
• Navigation
• Aircraft Technical
• Principles of Flight
• Flight Planning & Performance
• Human Performance
• Communications
If you’re thinking, that’s quite a lot of subjects, then you’d be right. Primarily, they are all pretty interesting and very important to master to make a safe and efficient pilot. That being said, I have not found the studying easy at all. However, its best to get all the written exams out the way first, that way, once they are done, all I have to do is concentrate and enjoy the flying. Without the worry of having to complete the written exams before being allowed to do the flight test. The exams will be valid for two years once I pass the last exam.
If I’m being honest, I maybe somewhat foolishly thought having just finished a degree only a matter of weeks ago, I would be in a pretty good position to smash the studying and be heading off to Luton feeling fairly confident. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t think I’m going to fall flat on my face (metaphorically speaking) but the sheer volume of information and understanding has been intense!
But for me, its about learning and knowing the subject, not just learning to pass the exams!
I’ve enjoyed studying the human performance, aircraft technical, communication and operational procedures. That’s stuff that makes sense to me and it is what it is. Follow the rules and you should generally be ok. I have however found the other subjects quite difficult to grasp. I’ve been reading books and revision guides and have checked out CATS pretty slick online system for studying and I’ve been doing more mock exams than I ever did at university!
Overall, the studying has been tough, it’s taken me a little by surprise; BUT I am enjoying it, my scores on my mock exams seem to be increasing slowly and the team at CATS, (Matt especially) seem really friendly and cool. They’ve told me not to worry too much and have been helping to put my mind at ease. I’m very excited to be really getting stuck in and I’m very much looking forward to meeting my other classmates! Hopefully we can all support each other through the week.
I’m going to get back to my revision guides and notes and I’ll catch up with you again in Luton itself! Here’s hoping my exams go OK and I can report back with good news and look forward to the practical part of the flight training at Flight Training London in Elstree.
Whilst studying at home, I came across this video; its of Jeremy M Pratt from Airplan Flight Equipment (AFE) talking to FITA about the new EASA PPL and LAPL training syllabus. Supported by the UK CAA, the new training programs have removed out-of-date or irrelevant material and place new emphasis on basic flying skills and the practical knowledge required by today’s PPL. It might be worth watching so you can get up to speed on the new PPL syllabus…
Until the next time world – Anna. x
