Questions about ATP

[JDMcFly]

I'm going to be calling up ATP tomorrow, but was wondering if any future/current/past students could answer a few questions for me.

ATP Inc. has been recommended to me by several people, all either student or commercial pilots, and after reviewing the website information and digging as much as i can from those people, I became very exited over the program (and it's much more affordable cost!)

I have talked to a few people who all seem to think that the college experiance/equiv. can probably be waived- but none are sure. I was wondering whether any of you knew if it was possible?

I am still deciding how I plan to work out college and was advised to earn an affordable college degree while building hours post certificate, this obviously doesn't work if I must have the time before hand as a prerequisite.

Also, I am still deciding, if I were to go to ATP, whether it would be a good idea to earn my PPL back here at home, or take the Jacksonville program- I thought to my self at first it will be much cheaper here, but then noticed they do require 85 hours, and the 5995 (with housing) covers that 85, and not just the private pilot certificate. Which path do you all advise?

Also, what location has been more favorable for those that have gone? With so many options I am finding it very hard to decide where to go other than crossing out a few I would not want to go (Chicago, Trenton, DC... etc No offense to those that train there).

Can anyone help me out? Thanks a lot in advance!

JD

PS: If you wish to talk to me about this in private message instead, that would be welcomed as well.

 

[Hollywood]

Hey JDMcfly,
i guess you could call me a future student. as far as best location i couldn't tell you. if i were you i would consider doing the ppl program with them. i'm finishing my ppl right now and have already spent well over what they quote for a price and i won't have the total time or the cross country time required to enter the program. i'm going to build about 20 hrs of cross country time with them to meet the mins. they only charge like $50/hr to do it. that's unheard of. when i was making my choice of flight schools atp didn't have the ppl course. i wish they did because i definatly would have went that route. they have a program now where you can do your ppl a certain fbo's around the country or recommend one to them and get a fixed price for your ppl at that fbo and meet their mins. the details are better explained on their website. as far as the college thing is concerned i'm not sure about that either. i have a bachelors degree so that wasn't as issue for me. i think they count work experience or something like that. in reality it's a flight school just like any other only cheaper. if you have the cash, i doubt you'll be turned away provided you pass the interview. believe me, it's not to tough. actually, i don't think you even have to interview if you don't have your ppl due to the fact the interview is primarily based on ppl knowledge. there are many others on this board who know a hell of a lot more than me who will be able to answer your questions better. good luck.

 

[robair73]

I'm doing my PPL there because your not going to get a better deal than that anywhere. 85 hours for 4,995 is rediculous.
I think I saw someone post on here that they were able to attend without the 2 years of college prerequisite. They just want to make sure you'll be up for the challenge of accelerated training and are serious about your training.

On choosing a location, find out which locations have the ACAP program. That program is not offered at all locations. This will narrow down your choices.
I'm almost positive that the PPL program is only offered at the JAX location. So if you do the PPL, you'll be going there first. Good luck to ya. You've made a good decision to attend ATP.

 

[CapnJim]

I'll back that up robair73. When I got my PPL from a local FBO I had the same number of hours, and it cost about $2,000 more. Worked out for me because I didn't want to be in debt at that point, but if you are planning on loans you'll save a bundle.
ATP's Skyhawks are great- all equiped with Garmin 430 GPS's. But when you get to the navigation portion of your training, I advise trying to ignore the GPS as much as possible, and learn to navigate with the VORs and HSIs. It's harder to understand than flying the little purple line on the GPS screen, but it will make you a better pilot, a better instructor, and may save your bacon when you get hired flying planes that aren't GPS equipped.

 

[JDMcFly]

Thanks for your answers, still considering.

I'm going to have to calculate the cost of the PPL vs. PPL there, I'm guessing they won't be *too* far off. I do plan on using loans, so it may be more economical for jax. I think the FBO here is relatively cheap, but the instructors are mostly part time, so while the planes are often free in advance, the instructors aren't.

On the 2 years experiance- Yes, I *completely* understand their desire to want people who are actually motivated, and why they have the prerequisites there.

Thanks for the advice, any more opinions?