Grey Eagle Aviation at CRQ

[inigo88]

Hey guys,

I moved into the SD area a couple months ago, and I'm looking to start flying down here. I'm a low time private pilot with tailwheel endorsement and basic aerobatics experience, and my short term goal is to build a PIC cross country time toward the instrument rating (and concurrent tailwheel if possible), and get to explore socal in the process.

Grey Eagle seems to be exactly what I'm looking for. They have extremely good rates on both their 152s and Citabria, and no membership fees like the flying clubs down here. Plus One Flyers at MYF is closer to me than Carlsbad, but as a full time college student I would be throwing my money away with their initiation fee and monthly dues if I can only afford/have the time to fly every couple weeks anyway.

They have gotten really good reviews on this forum in the past but they're all a couple years old. Any current students or instructors on here? How well are the aircraft maintained? (I worked in maintenance at my old flight school so I know all too well that a dirty trainer from the late 70s that gets flown frequently does not equal unsafe. )

Thanks!

 

[USMC-SSGT]

I did a few hours there and used to rent their citabria a few times per month. Mel (owner) is a real good guy and fits the definition of a mom and pop flight school. On the field there is them and Pinnacle and Orion although I am almost certain Orion shut down. I ended up choosing Orion in the end because they were the best happy medium between Grey Eagle and Pinnacle. Pinnacle is after the money and charge more than anyone on the field although they do a good job. I enjoyed Grey Eagle but it was just a touch too laid back for my goal and the duchess which I needed was down for mx a bit (could have just been the timing). I ended up going over to Orion because I had a very accelerated goal in mind that they were able to meet with their slightly larger fleet and instructor availability.

Since they are gone now I think Grey Eagle would be the best choice on that field. I did my private at Pacific Coast Flyers which was a club there at the time and used someone off their CFI list. Real cheap and worked out well. It all depends on the pace you want and what you are looking for. I cant picture you being dissatisfied with Grey Eagle though. Keep in mind this is around 04' -06' range data.

 

[inigo88]

College has forced me to make flight training a lower priority for a while, so their laid back atmosphere actually sounds like a really good fit.

Thanks again for the reply, I appreciate it!

 

[inigo88]

Finally got the chance to call them up and talked to Mel. Sounds like a really nice guy, and I'll be doing a checkout with them this weekend. Looking forward to start flying in socal!

 

[jcrews]

Don't know if you've checked them out, but try Golden State at KSEE. Pretty reasonable rates and I don't think there are monthly dues or initiation fees. Had a buddy who worked at Grey Eagle for a bit and he said there were issues between the owners. But he stayed and instructed there for about a year, so I guess it couldn't have been that bad. If you do end up trying Golden State, talk to Glen. He's a CFI and a great guy.

 

[inigo88]

Thanks for the info on Golden State. I checked out with Grey Eagle yesterday and have nothing but good things to say about them. I appreciated the prominence of their mx board and how transparent they were about past squawks in their airplanes. The Duchess was down for mx again while I was there but that could have been a coincidence. Did touch and goes at MYF (holy crap it is busy over Mt Soledad!) and SEE, looped back over El Cajon mountain and did some landings at Fallbrook. Fallbrook is such a fun airport! Crosswinds, upsloping short runway on top of a hill, proximity to Camp Pendleton restricted airspace... I had a blast.

Also for what it's worth, flying in Southern CA for the first time was not the constant impending midair collision I was led to believe. There was certainly a lot more traffic and it requires extreme vigilance, but ATC was extremely helpful and accommodating. I was also really impressed to see how disciplined VFR traffic was using in 122.75 as an unofficial advisory frequency for the VFR practice areas, especially "San Diego Coastal", which gets REALLY busy around UCSD/Torrey Pines/La Jolla Shores (under the Miramar Class B). This is NOT something you'll see on a chart, it's a local procedure. It's just a shame they can't get a discreet frequency, since using the nationwide air-air frequency means you get a lot of non-participating guys BS'ing as well.

All in all, I'm very proud to say I've joined the ranks of southern California pilots.