0 to PPL, EASA

Hi 99,
I’m a FI in Lugano and we usually have several Swiss students from all over Switzerland, as well as from abroad. If you need more informations, feel free to contact me.

hanski wrote:

Finland sure would not be the best place for getting the license but for comparison I can tell that here in a couple of clubs the PPL costs about 9000 euros, LAPL 6-7000

about the same in Estonia. Medical here is around 100EUR (77 last time?), for checkrides I payd the plane rent (250EUR/hr ATO plane , check pilot included)
And so far I’m quite happy with LAPL, also have night rating. travelled across whole europe with it . For you in Switzerland it might be a bit different- there are couple of non-EASA countries where you cannot go with LAPL nearby..

To me it looks like 99 would like to have some clue about actual prices – or at least he should be interested to avoid problems with the budget. Finland sure would not be the best place for getting the license but for comparison I can tell that here in a couple of clubs the PPL costs about 9000 euros, LAPL 6-7000. Not including medicals or check rides. So to me the Swiss prices look awfully high. Here at some clubs you can rent a C150 for about 130, C172 or Piper for 170. Even in commercial places those prices are around 190-250, apparently less than in Swiss clubs?
I would also be interested about the prices in Spain or Malta etc. Not for myself but to tell others who might be able to combine a holiday trip with the same money as “plane” flying here. So if you have some up-to-date data, please add it here.

Not sure where the OP lives exactly, but here is my 5 cents (or rappen, if you prefer). Context: I used to live in a suburb of Zurich (Adliswil) from 2013 to 2018, I started my PPL training in the end of 2014 and got the license in summer 2017, since 2019 I live in the UK.

1) Country of your first medical is going to be country of your license. It must be an EASA country, but it does not need to be Switzerland. I’d say during PPL training it will be simpler to have the same licensing authority as one overseeing the school where you do the training.
2) I used a local flying club called “Swiss Flying Club” (swissflyingclub.ch) based in LSZN. Most of the stuff on their website is in German, but all instructors are English-speaking, and I had no issues doing the course with them. I’ve heard that other flight schools in Switzerland are completely happy with English-speaking students.
3) Theory course in Zurich is typically done through Horizon-SFA. It’s definitely more expensive than in UK, but those guys definitely deliver what they charge for. They tend to monitor your online progress checks in distant learning, point out the areas you need to focus on, and very helpful if you have any questions. They can do the course in English too.
4) Overall cost for everything was slightly above 11k GBP, but not by a huge amount (~15-16k CHF). I don’t think I could have possibly saved by doing a course in another country, especially considering the pace at which I did it.

If you decide to do the practical training in UK, some things will be very tricky. First, you’ll need to do it with an ATO (and not with DTO), because right now in UK only ATOs (and only those under EASA oversight) can do courses for EASA licenses. ATOs typically charge more for everything. In addiction you might need to have UK medical too for solo flights.

Don’t one have to do mountain flying basics in Swiss PPL?

I mean if going in/out of Valleys it’s a must…

If you plan to stay in CH, getting your license here at a local flying club will be a very good experience for you. You’ll meet some cool people, learn the airspace, and have fun flying and learning. As they say, the journey is just as important as the destination.

It’s been a while since I took the written tests, but they were available in French, German, and Italian – not English. However, this is not that big of a deal, because at that time they were mainly translations of FAA questions. That could be different today, it’s been 20 years. The FAA test took less than an hour, the Swiss written test was closer to 6 hours. The Swiss test covered the same info as the FAA, plus the airspace specifics of Switzerland and Europe, and just asked more questions about the same stuff. It was not harder than the FAA. I used Rod Machado books at that time.

My main instructor was outstanding. I’ve flown with many others over the years for flight reviews, and all are very solid pilots and I learned a lot from each. I feel that the quality of instruction here in Switzerland is high.

Just my CHF 0.02.

The99percenter wrote:

I live near Zurich

Then finding a flight school shouldn’t be a problem… 2 on my field (20km W of Zurich): Silvergoose and Fliegerschule Birrfeld
And there are plenty of other fields with flight schools around Zurich… and I have yet to find an FI around here that doesn’t speak English

If you wanna get that licence in a hurry, choose a school with pro instructors, you don’t want the airline pilot FI that cancels your session at the last minute as he’s been called outta standby or else…

Seba wrote:

you will need help for the bureaucracy.

I am sure he will

Seba wrote:

If Strasbourg is an option, you can get your license here for less than your budget and if you start in summer the weather is pretty good most of the time.
Not sure if you speak French, but if you don’t, I think some of the instructors here speak English as there are some current or former airline pilots.
Though with zero French knowledge you would be limited to some of the medum/bigger airports during your training + you will need help for the bureaucracy.

Forgot to specify, this is valid at the aeroclub not at the private schools based at LFST. For those, your budget is not enough, on the other hand, English is guaranteed.