flyguy
Well-Known Member
Well, I'm sure I'll get royally flamed for saying anything good about Sierra, but I'll share what I've seen over the last few weeks.
Planes:
We now have 4 late model 172s (2 172SPs, and 2 172Rs). They are all being flown. We've got a total of about 10 or 12 172s in commision and on any given day we have about 6 or 7 up and running, and we've had very few cancelations due to no aircraft available. We're now able to fly about 5 days a week each when the weather cooperates. We've been told that the plan for the 172s is that they will maintain 10 late models and 10 refurbished older models, though I hear something different every week. So far they have not deviated from the origional plan of the number of new/old 172s they wanted to have by this time. I hear complaints about the availability of Duchesses however, but since I don't fly them yet I can't give much of a testimony, nor do I know what the plan is for them. Same goes for the 172RGs.
Simulators:
We've got one of the new simulators installed, just in time for me to start instrument training.
We've also got one of the old ones in place. I hear the plan is to have 2 sims up and running, though I'm not sure when and if they are going to replace the other one. We've been told they will have the 737-800 sim in place sometime this summer, though I'll believe that when I see it.
Facilities:
As we speak they are rennovating the men's downstairs restroom. I poked my head in yesterday and it looks like they have leveld the floor.
Soon we will be getting projectors in the classrooms. They have set up a reception desk near the front door and have moved dispatch there and will be moving reception down there as well. They are in the process of setting up the book store in the room where dispatch used to be. In the meantime, the bookstore stock is in Rashid's office and we can buy supplies from him. They have plans on doing some landscaping out front, and have pressure washed the front patio. We got the new vending machines. They are no cheaper than the old ones, but we got our snacks back. They are located in the lobby as the old snack room now houses the new simulator. We also got a couch in the lobby, which makes things more comfortable. Back in January there were talks of moving to a new facility, though now it appears as if they will be staying put for a while, and over time, we will be making as many rennovations as we can, given that its a historical building and there's not a whole lot we can do. KSA is keeping an open mind, but we do not want to loose the prime airspace we are located in, not to mention that airport real estate is extreemely hard to come by.
Finances:
All Key Loan situations have been finalized. Those of us that were put on hold have had our loans released, although rather than giving us 3 large chunks per phase of training like they used to, they will be giving us monthly disbursements and only enough will be drawn each month to keep our ballance at a minimum amount, bassed on how much we are flying. New students and future loans will be going through a third party. A non-profit company called Pilot Career Foundation, located in Utah, is handling all the money. PFC sends each student a debit card which is debited each week for billing of the activites and will be drawn from the account. KSA does not see the money until the card has been debited, so this eliminates the possibily of having the school close and run off with our $$. The major downside to this is that because PCF is located in Utah, Key is only allowing living disbursements based on Utah's cost of living, i.e. a maximum of $800 per month. Ryan is trying to talk them into allowing at least $1000, but it dosn't look like they have budged, at least not yet. At the last student meeting, we each recieved a written and signed statement from Key Bank, indicating that it is them, not KSA, who is imposing the $800/month limit.
Overall, the improvents started out very slow, but over the last few weeks I've witnessed some major changes for the better. I've gone from somewhat satisfied, to very impressed, and am looking forward to seeing how things will develop over the next few weeks/months.
Okay, flame away.
Planes:
We now have 4 late model 172s (2 172SPs, and 2 172Rs). They are all being flown. We've got a total of about 10 or 12 172s in commision and on any given day we have about 6 or 7 up and running, and we've had very few cancelations due to no aircraft available. We're now able to fly about 5 days a week each when the weather cooperates. We've been told that the plan for the 172s is that they will maintain 10 late models and 10 refurbished older models, though I hear something different every week. So far they have not deviated from the origional plan of the number of new/old 172s they wanted to have by this time. I hear complaints about the availability of Duchesses however, but since I don't fly them yet I can't give much of a testimony, nor do I know what the plan is for them. Same goes for the 172RGs.
Simulators:
We've got one of the new simulators installed, just in time for me to start instrument training.
Facilities:
As we speak they are rennovating the men's downstairs restroom. I poked my head in yesterday and it looks like they have leveld the floor.
Finances:
All Key Loan situations have been finalized. Those of us that were put on hold have had our loans released, although rather than giving us 3 large chunks per phase of training like they used to, they will be giving us monthly disbursements and only enough will be drawn each month to keep our ballance at a minimum amount, bassed on how much we are flying. New students and future loans will be going through a third party. A non-profit company called Pilot Career Foundation, located in Utah, is handling all the money. PFC sends each student a debit card which is debited each week for billing of the activites and will be drawn from the account. KSA does not see the money until the card has been debited, so this eliminates the possibily of having the school close and run off with our $$. The major downside to this is that because PCF is located in Utah, Key is only allowing living disbursements based on Utah's cost of living, i.e. a maximum of $800 per month. Ryan is trying to talk them into allowing at least $1000, but it dosn't look like they have budged, at least not yet. At the last student meeting, we each recieved a written and signed statement from Key Bank, indicating that it is them, not KSA, who is imposing the $800/month limit.
Overall, the improvents started out very slow, but over the last few weeks I've witnessed some major changes for the better. I've gone from somewhat satisfied, to very impressed, and am looking forward to seeing how things will develop over the next few weeks/months.
Okay, flame away.
