Hello everyone! At the moment I'm deciding on whether to do the RA-AUS RPC or go for just a few hours of flying in larger aircraft like the C172/Archer in Australia, looking at flight schools all over, mainly Sydney and Brisbane (leaning towards BNE more). Currently live in a foreign country, so the ARN and Medical stuff is more complicated, as I don't hold an Aussie passport either, therefore solo is pretty complicated and mostly out of the question.

I was just wondering if anyone could give me advice on these two questions:

1) Is it okay to complete a RPC in 3-4 weeks for an intensive course? - if so, how can I prepare before and during the course?

2) If there are any specific flight schools that you'd recommend, especially in Brisbane that would do an RPC for 8-9K AUD, please do send me some and let me know! I've already looked at Aerohunter, Calboolture, Flightscope and others. Anything relatively close to BNE would be amazing.

Thanks a lot for your time. If you have any other details that would be great.

Hi everyone,

I'm a veteran with a 100% P&T VA rating, considering a career change to airline pilot. Before committing, I want to know if a First-Class medical is realistic. I know the FAA looks at diagnoses, not the total percentage.

**My main concerns:**

- **Migraines (VA 50%)**: well controlled with OTC acetaminophen/Excedrin as needed. Keeping a headache diary.
- **Chronic adjustment disorder with mixed anxiety and depressed mood (VA 50%)**: no medications and no current therapy.
- **Obstructive sleep apnea (VA 0%)**: on CPAP with consistent use.
- **Ventricular septal defect (diagnosed in childhood)**: heart murmur, no symptoms. Cardiology follow-up every 2 years. Recent echo, and my VA cardiologist cleared me with no concerns.

I also have musculoskeletal and peripheral nerve ratings (back/IVDS, right radial neuropathy, bilateral sciatic radiculopathy, joint strains). No pain meds. I'm fully functional.

**My plan so far:**

1. Neurologist appointment coming up for a letter on frequency, no aura, OTC-only treatment, and stability, backed by my headache diary.
   
2. Sleep medicine follow-up to get a 90+ day CPAP compliance report and a letter confirming effective treatment.
   
3. Psychiatric evaluation to document current status and explain the "chronic" adjustment disorder label.
   
4. Cardiology letter and echo report. I know the FAA wants cardiac testing within 90 days of the exam, so I'll time it accordingly.
   
5. Pulling my full VA records so everything lines up.
   
6. Calling AOPA's Pilot Information Center (and possibly joining Pilot Protection Services) for guidance.
   
7. Pre-consultation with a HIMS-trained Senior AME before submitting MedXPress.

**Questions:**

1. Has anyone gotten a First Class with a similar profile? Office issuance, or Special Issuance?
   
2. Any recommended HIMS AMEs in the SF Bay Area?
   
3. Anything missing from my plan, or anything I should have in hand before the exam?
   
4. For the neuropathy/radiculopathy ratings, did anyone need a SODA?
   
5. Anyone with a congenital VSD go through FAA review? How long did it take?

Thanks!

I’ve been taking Lexapro for a few months now switching from Zoloft and have some cuts on my upper arms and shoulders. I really like flying and want to do it as a career. But I’m afraid that being marked as a MDD single episode on my medical record will stop me before I even begin.

I’m 21yo and haven’t had any thoughts about committing suicide, only ones of self harm. Can anybody help please?

I’m a PPL student working toward my checkride. I’ve been training on and off for the past two years and have around 110 hours. I work full-time, and my work hours can be grueling, so I can only fly on weekends. I’ve had to take multiple extended breaks, sometimes up to four months, due to life getting in the way—family, work, and other responsibilities.

I’m doing this purely as a hobby and have no intention of making aviation my career.

As I prepare for my checkride, I see another extended break on the horizon after December due to personal circumstances. If I can’t get my checkride done by then, I’m considering putting training on hold until life becomes a little less hectic time-wise (although I realize that day may never come).

I have no regrets about the time or money I’ve invested so far. However, my spouse is falling into the sunk cost fallacy, arguing that since I’ve spent so much already, I should see it through. What they don’t fully understand is that every time I take an extended break, I need to spend an additional 10–15 hours getting back to checkride-ready proficiency, and the costs add up quickly.

Has anyone else been through a similar phase? How did you handle it? Did you push through and finish, or did you take a break until life became more manageable? I’d love to hear your experiences and perspectives.

It has been said that on the oral portion of the checkride, you should say only what you need to answer the question. If you say too much, you might dig yourself into a trap the DPE could exploit.

My question is this: on the flight portion of the checkride, should you be talking, verbalizing your actions, or keeping silent? Verbalizing your actions allows the DPE to gauge what you're doing and how you're making decisions, and helps him evaluate your thinking and analyzing skills as a pilot. But, you can also trap yourself, much in a similar way to the oral checkride.

How much talking during the flight is too much?

Thank you.

hey everyone, i’ve been curious about this and thought it’d be nice to hear from people in aviation about their experiences so far.
for those of you who are student pilots, flight instructors, airline pilots, or anywhere else in your aviation journey, how has everything been going for you?

i’d love to hear how you got started, what your journey has been like, and how things have turned out for you so far. was becoming a pilot something you’ve always dreamed of, or did you discover your interest in aviation later on? has the journey been what you expected, and how do you feel about where you are now?

whether you’re just starting out, halfway through training, or have been flying for years, i’d genuinely love to hear your stories. the good, the bad, the unexpected, all of it. everyone’s journey is different, and i think it’s really interesting to hear how people ended up where they are today.
looking forward to reading your experiences! 🤗

I have CJOs at both.

I live a little over an hour (driving) away from a junior UAL base. EWR.

I live about an hour and a half to two and a hour hours (driving depending on traffic) from a Delta. LGA/JFK.

I cannot move.

Which would you choose?

Looking to get back in to flying after a year… with a commercial-instrument rating. Looking to get the essential package but tempted to get the premium. Is it worth it? I’m only going to flying local on my Cessna 172. So I’m not sure if I’ll be needing all the features and save the extra money.

Took a friend up in a rented Cherokee a couple weekends ago. Nothing ambitious, just a local sightseeing flight. Weather was good, visibility was great, and I figured we'd be back in about an hour.

About 20 minutes in we started getting some afternoon bumps. Nothing particularly uncomfortable by GA standards, but I could tell my friend had gone quiet.

I asked if he was doing alright.

He hesitated, then said, "If I wanted to go back, would that screw up your flight?"

That caught me off guard more than it should have.

I told him absolutely not, we could head back whenever he wanted. He looked genuinely relieved. We turned around and landed maybe 15 minutes later.

Walking back to the parking lot, he admitted he'd been uncomfortable for a while but didn't want to waste the money I'd spent renting the airplane. He also thought that once we'd taken off, the route was basically decided and changing it would be a big deal.

And I realized that in every passenger briefing I've ever given, I explain seatbelts, doors, emergency procedures, what not to touch, when to stay quiet, all the usual stuff.

I've never explicitly told someone they can ask to end the flight.

Which seems like a pretty important thing to leave out when you're bringing along someone who has absolutely no idea how flying works.

I think sometimes we forget how much authority a pilot appears to have to somebody who's never sat in a small airplane. They might not know the difference between something that's operationally necessary and something we just happen to have planned.

Obviously we can't always land immediately or change course without considering terrain, weather, fuel, etc. But that's not the same as expecting someone to sit there miserable because they don't want to inconvenience us.

I've added a sentence to my passenger briefing now: "If you're not enjoying this, tell me. You don't have to tough it out, and you don't have to worry about disappointing me."

Curious how many of you explicitly cover this before taking non-pilots flying. And what else have passengers assumed about flying that surprised you?

Okay, so I’ve heard many opinions on this subject. I even had an instructor say the airlines won’t take electronic flight logs because “hours can be forged.” That makes zero sense to me. In fact, it’s more likely you forge a paper log than an electronic one (at least the way ForeFlight manages logs). My first instructor didn’t make it a requirement and I’ve got almost 200 hrs TT all electronic. Am I cooked?

I have checkride next 2 weeks is CFI has anyone taken checkride with him or have gauge on him?

For context, I am a CFII nearing 1000 hours and am expecting to hit 1500 sometime next year (like many other pilots out there). The school I instruct at is pretty much in the middle of nowhere though and I really have no networking opportunities in-person aside from the occasional student who may fly different types of piston aircraft.

I'd like to set myself up for success in the coming months since pretty much every mid-level job seems to be filled up instantly, but without being at an airport with an FBO or within reasonable distance from a major city, what are my options to excel?

I have been considering planning trips to attend networking/career events but would love any advice on other avenues that may help my chances to stand out. It could be anything. Where have you found success if you have been in my position in the past?

Long story long, I’m in a position where I own a Piper cub, need tailwheel hours/XC hours and have essentially unlimited access to a Cherokee 180 and only have to pay for fuel.

My wife’s family is about a 2.5hr drive away and outside of that, every weekend she wants to drive somewhere hours away.

Every single time I bring up hopping in the Cherokee she acts as if it’s a huge undertaking and I cannot get the message across to her that it will make the trip shorter and more enjoyable.

She likes flying, she’s gone up with me in my cub and my Cessna 150 before it and had fun. But only for short hops. She’s by no means afraid of flying, but it seems as if she has built traveling by air into something much larger than it actually is and I don’t know how to overcome that.

TLDR how do I get my wife to fly places with me instead of driving?

Hey guys, I was recently on a Discord call with an instructor getting some tutoring, and we got to talking about some of the things my instructor has me do during flight training.
I mentioned that, from time to time, my instructor makes me suck on the pitot mast to help clear it out. Everyone on the call immediately started laughing and making jokes, saying that’s not actually a thing. Is this really not a thing? I don’t know who to trust anymore.

Looking for some insight on long cross country flights (1,000NM+) in small piston aircraft.

Do you keep your route and length of flight for each day pretty flexible to adapt to the weather and how much you can comfortably fly each day?

Any tips for finding good airports along the way? It took me years of flying to know the good spots and nice FBOs in my area.

Im a new ish student but have had experience at tons of different airports, different planes, different instructors.

How do I become better at listening to my instructors? I feel like whenever they are talking its going in one ear and out the other.. maybe im just having a hard time digesting info. Out of all the things he talked about today i remember him talking about wanting to get his helicopter license and going to texas which has nothing to do with anything im learning lol

I also had an instructor tell me I interrupt them too much. I don't know if it's because flight training is always the last thing I do during the day so college and everything else on top of it makes me feel tired but I get excited at little things and start rambling. Especially when i spot planes i know

My schedule allows me to fly 1-2 times a week. I no longer find training enjoyable but flying for fun is an absolute blast. Although i dont feel like im progressing, hopefully it'll change.

I’m working on my PPL and have been advised to start studying my PSTAR, but I can’t seem to find many resources on the material to study from.

How do people prep for this exam?

I’ve seen people wait 9-10 months but also heard recently someone got their class date within 3 months of a CJO from SkyWest. Does anyone know what their typical timeframe looks like right now?

Im getting ready for my written test but can't find any good practice tests. I tried the PSI website, but it doesn't even open the test there. I would use my online ground school tests, but it expired and im not sure my family can afford to renew it. Does anyone have any good resources?

Starting 2027 SkyWest will no longer pay for ATP-CTP. Thoughts?
How does that affect the training contract? Will cadets be expected to pay for it as well?
Are we likely to see regionals asking applicants to have a type rating in the airframe?

Looking for some folks to weigh in and help me make a decision.

I earned my PPL in Feb of 2026 flying 2-3 times a day, and due to a variety of reasons, haven’t been able to fly after that. I’m looking to pursue an IR, likely starting in Dec. ‘26, and would be flying and studying full-time, 5x a week.

After I’ve completed my IR (hopefully 2 months). I’ll have to take another 6 month break to work my seasonal job where I likely won’t be able to fly, or maintain instrument currency. At that point (Oct of 2027), I plan on pursuing my CPL, assuming I’ve competed my instrument training.

My question is, should I just wait until after I complete the seasonal job to pursue both instrument and commercial one after the other? At that point I’ll have gone over a year without flying and will likely need some re-training. I can chair fly till the cows come home to maintain some semblance of aviation in my mind but I think we all know that doesn’t cut it.

Alternatively, will I really be doing myself any favors flying for a couple months after a 10-month break, just to take another 6-month break?

There’s a variety of financial considerations here, I’m looking to pay as I go and not take loans. I’m looking for some wisdom from folks who can comment on how these long training gaps might play out and what the best option might be? I hate to think of going more than a year without flying but I’m aware that getting my IR now may just be a checkbox as opposed to an in-depth gain in my piloting ability.

My CFII and I flew the other day to do my 250nm XC for my IR checkride. We planned out the route and what approaches we would fly where. the first airport we went to they would not let us fly the ILS due to the wind direction and it being a not too busy class Charlie. instead we got the localizer. Seemed fine just needed 3 different types of approaches. Other 2 airports and approaches were an RNAV (Lnav non precision) and a VOR.

After we got back, my CFII double checked the regs and 61.65d just says 3 different kinds of approaches but somewhere else said it has to be a precision ILS. So now we’re wondering if bc I didn’t do a precision approach and just a LOC if this would count for my checkride?

I need some more XC time anyways so I’m okay with having to refly it but we both just want to make extra sure this meets the requirements per the regs and there is no guessing come checkride day.

TIA

Hi everyone!
I would like to know which schools should I choose to start a flight training in Asia? Especially South East Asia.I am now looking for schools in Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines. Which schools are good for career pathway and the quality of teaching?

Last time I went to Orlando I flew into ORL. Looking at it now avgas is cheaper at ISM and even MCO. I would have expected MCO to have “we don’t want you here” prices for single engine pistons but that doesn’t seem to be the case. 99% sure I’m going to ISM this time but I’m intrigued.

Flying in on Monday, leaving Saturday. Am I being crazy or is flying a Cherokee into MCO not as stressful and “in the way” as I thought it would be?

I just finished MT7 at a regional. Through MT6 I felt very solid. My only sticking points were holding centerline after touchdown in crosswind landings and holding my heading on rotation for V1 cuts. After MT6 my plan was to get one or two more V1 cuts in to get a better feel for the rudder.

MT7 didn't go well. I woke up two hours before my alarm with a sore throat, felt run down, and was behind from the start. I made small mistakes I wasn't making before. My V1 cut was within standards but right at the edge of the 10-degree heading limit. My first two crosswind landings were good, but on the third I veered off centerline once the nosewheel touched down.

My instructor recommended me for MV but said I can take an add session if I want one. I have tomorrow off and MV is in two days. I know I've flown better than this, but my confidence took a hit, and I'd like a few more reps before the check.
Is there any real downside to taking the add? My airline allows one add without it going to ST. My only concern is how other employers might view it down the road.