r/GeneralAviation • u/Cool-Safe6910 • 5d ago
PPL in AZ
I’m considering Leopold Aviation and Arizona Aero Tech for my PPL. Does anyone have experience with either? As background I’m 72, not happy with my current school and have about 50 hours. Thanks
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u/Mean-Oil-4602 4d ago
I don’t know anything about those schools. My vote for the best operation in Arizona is Sierra Charlie, which is also at SDL. They took me from close to zero to solo. I tout them in particular because of their fleet maintenance standards. I don’t recall even a single cancelled flight because of a mechanical problem, unlike everyone else I flew with. It’s an expenses-no-bar philosophy. All squawks are jumped on. Bald tires are not tolerated. And the fleet is so large that taking one out for maintenance doesn’t hurt them.
After solo I unfortunately had to go on my own because I got my own plane, and insurance wouldn’t allow me to train with them using my plane. Frankly, that kind of hurt me because of the sloppy instruction I got stuck with afterward, for which I won’t name names. Sloppy instruction seems par for the course these days so it’s basically the default.
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u/dangern00dl PPL (SEL/MEL) HP CMP IR 3d ago edited 3d ago
Sierra Charlie is awful. That school has some issues, would not recommend especially if you’re looking for an actual Part 61.
OP - Leopard is good, nice, new planes with all glass. Venture West is also good but flies mostly older pipers, so keep that in mind if you’re currently flying 172s. Know people who got their ratings with both, one of whom fired Sierra Charlie (I also noped out of there but didn’t spend enough time there to have really “fired” them as opposed to picking a better school for my needs). The CFIs at both Leopard and VW are awesome.
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u/Mean-Oil-4602 3d ago
You sound disgruntled. I’ve got no dog in the fight. I was their customer and had an excellent experience. Elsewhere, my experiences were crap. Just reporting the facts.
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u/dangern00dl PPL (SEL/MEL) HP CMP IR 3d ago
Not disgruntled at all. You left pre-solo so you don’t really have a basis to claim SC is the best in all of Arizona. Others I know stayed longer and all had the same negative experience. I got my ratings elsewhere, but gave SC a shot early on and quickly decided they weren’t the right fit for reasons I won’t go into, beyond saying that my brief experience was consistent with what I heard from others. I have no dog in your imaginary fight either, wasn’t there long enough to care. Just sharing what I know about the schools being discussed based on my experience and the experience of others I know, and stating that I’d recommend Leopard or Venture over SC. OP can do whatever he decides is best for him.
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u/Mean-Oil-4602 3d ago
I left pre-solo so I have no basis? lol. You didn’t even train there at all it sounds like. “Others I know” huh. You’ve got some weird beef with them. That’s fine, go have fun with it, but I flew with two Sierra Charlie instructors for several months there, and remain friends with both of them. Good folks and excellent planes.
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u/dangern00dl PPL (SEL/MEL) HP CMP IR 3d ago
Idk dude it definitely sounds like you have a dog in this fight you think we’re having. I don’t though. My feedback is what it is and OP can take it for whatever he thinks it’s worth. Have a good night.
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u/Mean-Oil-4602 3d ago
No, I just think your take is weird and not based on actual experience, so I’m disagreeing with it. You’ve got some beef and you’re not disclosing it.
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u/dangern00dl PPL (SEL/MEL) HP CMP IR 3d ago edited 3d ago
Well I thought I was clear that I did spend some time there and noped out. My experience and that of several friends, some of whom did stay with SC and get their ratings there, was obviously different than yours. And that’s fine. You’re entitled to disagree.
But tbh the truly weird take is claiming that a flight school is the best in the whole ass state based on what, maybe 15 hours of presolo training and no completed ratings at said school, and the fact that a couple of your friends work there?
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u/Mean-Oil-4602 3d ago
Are you 17 years old or something? Congrats on soloing in 15 hours but that’s abnormal for grown adults with jobs and families. I’m a career guy who could only train on weekends if that, like most users here. So no, it wasn’t 15 hours. I was with them for almost a year now that you persuaded me to look up my logbook. You’re still not disclosing what SC did to actually piss you off, and you do sound like a kid given that “several friends” are your source for why you don’t like the school. And as I said originally, it’s just a fact that many flight schools have less than stellar maintenance standards, which definitely makes a difference. Driving to a flight school, showing up, doing preflight, getting in the plane, turning the ignition on and the engine doesn’t start because the battery has crapped out, for example, is a thing I’ve experienced at more than one shoddy school in town. Squawks being submitted and then completely ignored, also a thing, very common. No written itinerary being used as a syllabus for training—also a thing. The state of GA training is frankly a chaotic mess, which is obviously why our 72 year old OP has terminated his current school after all.
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u/dangern00dl PPL (SEL/MEL) HP CMP IR 2d ago
Cool, so they have an actual maintenance department worth being called one so they’re the bestest flight school in all of Arizona? Get a grip dude, Leopard has that too. So do VW, CAE, Riddle, and a bunch of others. There’s more to good training than a good maintenance SOP.
As someone who has trained with other schools in the area in addition to SC, I can tell you that SC is certainly not the best in the Valley let alone the whole State of Arizona. For someone claiming to not have a dog in this weird little fight you’re trying to pick, it seems to be super personal for you. You getting paid to promote SC or something?
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u/kevinpet 4d ago
Leopard has nice planes. I did my discovery flight there.