Yes, we do provide student pilot accommodation. It is from $60 per night or $1,200 a month including water, electricity and internet. Please contact us for more information.
Archives: Questions
LTF Frequently Asked Questions
Can I learn to fly with Learn To Fly Melbourne if I am from overseas?
Yes – in fact, most of our students are international. You will need to be able to obtain a visa for entry into Australia, and you will also need to satisfy the relevant course regulatory requirements (which can include English proficiency, medical check, age, and aviation security check). For the Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL), Private Pilot Licence (PPL) and other programs which can be completed in under 3 months, students may be able to learn whilst on a tourist visa.
For the Commercial Pilot Licence (which takes approximately 12 months), students will most likely require a student visa. We are able to put students in contact with a registered migration agent to assist with requirements and the application process. The best source for specific visa requirements is https://www.homeaffairs.gov.au/ but please contact us if you require further information.
How much experience does my Flight Instructor have?
Flight Instructor experience and seniority are divided into three grades numbered 1 through 3, with Grade 1 being the highest. An instructor’s progression to a higher grade is based on achieving at least the required number of flying instruction hours as well as satisfactory reviews. Several hundreds of hours are involved in this process.
In addition to this, instructors often undertake other ratings and endorsements, fly recreationally and participate in other flying activities. Consequently, their total flying hours is likely to be much greater than just their instruction hours, as will be their overall flying experience. Several of Learn To Fly Melbourne’s instructors have total flying hours in the thousands, and even some in the tens of thousands!
How to get to Moorabbin Airport from Melbourne City?
The Moorabbin Airport area is served by frequent bus and train services. The bus service has a pickup and drop off point adjacent to the Moorabbin DFO shopping complex. It is a 5-minute walk from the Moorabbin DFO bus stop to Learn To Fly Melbourne’s base at 22-24 Northern Avenue.
There are also two railway stations – Mentone and Cheltenham – that are local to Moorabbin Airport. Buses depart from both stations to the nearby DFO shopping complex. Always check timetables for schedule details, particularly for weekends and evenings. All timetables can be found at https://www.ptv.vic.gov.au/timetables
What happens if the weather is bad on the day of my flight?
Safety is always paramount at Learn To Fly Melbourne, and for both flight lessons and Trial Introductory Flights, we will assess the weather ahead of time to determine whether your flight has a good chance of going ahead. If it is looking likely that the weather may cause your flight to be cancelled, we will contact you to reschedule. There may be times when changeable weather means that we need to cancel flights unexpectedly or at short notice, but we try to be as proactive as possible.
For student pilots, your instructor is trained to assess weather conditions and determine whether flying will be suitable for your level of experience. There may be times when your instructor “pushes the envelope” and encourages you to fly in less than suitable conditions. This is done so that experience is gained with poor weather conditions and techniques that help maintain a good safety margin.
Can I take passengers on my Trial Introductory Flight lesson?
Sorry, you are not allowed to bring passengers on a Trial Introductory Flight.
How long does each flying lesson last?
Whilst studying your Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL), you will generally spend around 2-2.5 hours at the airport — 1 hour in the air, with the remaining 1-1.5 hours split between classroom briefing, aircraft preparation and debriefing.
When you are studying your Private Pilot Licence, you may need 4-6 hours at the airport — which will be made up of 2-4 hours in the air, with the remaining 1-2 hours split between flight planning, classroom briefing, aircraft preparation and debriefing.
Is flight training expensive? How much does it cost to become a pilot?
The cost of becoming a pilot depends on the type of training you want to do, and also the aircraft that you want to fly. If you just want to fly for fun then you may only need a Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL) or Private Pilot Licence (PPL). If you want to fly for a career then you will need to hold a Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL), which requires building at least 150 flying hours.
Becoming a pilot can be an expensive process, but it shouldn’t prohibit you from achieving your dreams. We want to make flight training accessible to as many people as possible, which is why we provide flexible and transparent pricing options. We offer package options for our courses that contain all of the theory and practical flight training required to complete the required syllabus. On eligible courses, you are able to pay in interest-free monthly instalments via SplitIt. Note that there are ancillary items you may need to purchase in addition to the package inclusions. We also offer Pay As You Fly options for many courses, where you can pay as you progress.
Some courses also allow you to utilise our state-of-the-art flight simulators, which can dramatically reduce your costs by reducing the amount of time you may need to spend flying in an actual aircraft. We recommend chatting to one of our flight training specialists about which payment option is best suited to you.
Are there any time limits on finishing a flight training course?
Since flight training is competency-based, there are no times limits imposed on completing courses. Overseas students flying in Australia will however need to be aware of time limits relating to their visa. Some components of theory, licences and endorsements do have expiry or maintenance periods but this can be easily managed during your flight training.
Is there much home study? Do you provide online theory training?
How you decide to manage your time between studying at flight school and studying at home is up to you. Experience shows that those who are able to spend more time studying at flight school tend to absorb more knowledge.
If you’re spending enough time at flight school then you may not need to study much at home, but if you aren’t then we recommend that you study fairly regularly at home so that you retain what you have learnt and are ready for your next lesson.
In addition, we provide online training via our student portal. We offer the following theory courses
- Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL) Theory Course
- Private Pilot Licence (PPL) Theory Course
- Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) Theory Course
- Instrument Rating Theory Examination (IREX) Theory Course