Flightblog

Our Tour of Atlanta Flight Schools

We just got back from a 12 day trip to Georgia, getting a feel for the lay of the land and sniffing around to see if it's a place we could call home. I'm sure many of you will think we're nuts for leaving Maui for 'the Poultry Capitol of the World' (I'm even shaking my head at that one), but after weighing the pros and cons as well as we can, we really think this is the best move our family could make.

One of the many great opportunities this move will afford our family is putting us in a position for me to pursue my flight training all the way through the professional ratings. During our trip, dad and I went around to several of the schools I'd learned about on the internet and then tried to make the decision of which one would be best suited for my personality, goals and expectations.

One thing is for sure: There are a lot of really, really good flight schools in the Atlanta area. We were really impressed!

I believe I have settled on American Air Flight Training at Peachtree-Dekalb airport just inside Atlanta's I-285 perimeter and about an hour and a half from Gainesville.

I was introduced to American Air several weeks before the trip by Ken Rosengren, one of the CFIs who teaches there. Ken read a post of mine at flightinfo.com asking for information about schools in the Atlanta area. He sent me a private message telling me about the American Air, where he's been working since last summer. I was really impressed with Ken's willingness to go into detail with me and really communicate with me about the differences he's seen between his school and some of the other schools in the area.

I think one of the reasons I was able to trust him on this was that he's a CFI...and a new (at that school) CFI at that! Hardly any motive to paint a false picture of the school or to boast about things that aren't true, right? I mean, what's in it for Ken if I train there? Not like he's working off a commission or anything.

He just gave me really solid info and insights into his perspective of the airport.

It was a really good start.

When we visited, we noticed that the professionalism just continues from there. Steve Shaner, the chief instructor, is another great guy. We sat in on a instrument rating ground class he was teaching and were both sort of moved by how thoroughly he covered the material associated with that course. During the break he took a minute to explain to us that you can do your ratings anywhere, but that what they emphasize is training pilots to a degree of competency and professionalism that will put them in a position to get the job.

The emphasis on training professional pilots was what I think did it for me. I want to train at a school where they know how to turn out competitive professional pilots.

Then there was the icing...

After our visit and tour, Ken joined us for lunch at the Downwind, a Greek restaurant upstairs from American Air in the huge Epps building. Great food, great service and delicious sweet tea. While we chatted about flying and the industry and the airport, I sat and watched the ramp in front of Epps Aviation. In the 45 minutes that we sat there and ate, no less than 10 charter flights came and went through the ramp at Epps. There were a couple of Lears. A couple of King Airs. A couple of Pilatus PC-12s and a Baron...all busily taxiing, loading, fueling, arriving, departing. I couldn't believe how BUSY this place is! They have EVERYTHING, from single engine turboprops to piston and turboprop twins to small jets all the way up to a BIG challenger! It's like pilot heaven! When it dawned on me that I could train down the hall from the place that flies all these gorgeous planes, it was decided.

Dad and I left there to drive down to Hartsfield for a tour of Flight Safety International arranged by another internet friend, Tommy C. Tom is an intern with Flight Safety and I swear has one of the coolest job descriptions of anyone I ever met. Tom 'fills in' on the simulators. He's a rated CFII with about 450 TT and has taken every class FSI has to offer. King Air, Lear 25/31/60, Citation, CRJ...this guy has done recurrent training and checkrides in all of them. Amazing! After the tour he put my dad and I in the Lear 60 for some pattern work. Absolutely incredible! It was so real it was like being there...I flew a jet! Tom talked my dad through the avionics and told me to simply fly the flight director and we did that all the way through the loop around the pattern, final approach and landing. I landed us safely on 9R at Hartsfield and came away from the experience knowing one thing for sure: I want to fly jets!

Keep an eye on Tom, this guy is definitely going places. He's someone we'll be very, very friendly to whenever we get the chance.

Later the next week I came back to American Air for a flight with Ken. We went up in the Warrior for a 1.3 orientation to the area and introduction to AAFT procedures and the new aircraft. I fell in love with the airplane and got a chance to see someone fly like they know what they're doing! While we were admiring the scenery and I was noting the distinct lack of decent emergency landing fields, Ken told me about this tiny little airport with a crooked runway surrounded by golf courses and condos. I'd heard about it before, someone I know once had an actual emergency landing there. It was as small as I'd heard. Ken took the airplane and slid us into a tight, descending turn that put us right on runway heading at about a perfect approach height and airspeed. It was so cool! One quick motion and we were stabilized on final for this tiny little runway. I was impressed.

Throughout our flight, even though I was nervous and totally unaccustomed to the high power, low wing airplane, Ken made me feel like a pilot. He praised my strengths and chalked my weaknesses up to inexperience with the plane and ultimately told me I was doing great. What a great CFI! I'm definitely looking forward to working with this school and hope that Ken is there when I get started.

After spending almost 2 weeks there, we were sufficiently persuaded that we bought a lot to build a home on! It's a gorgeous acre of woods in a really nice subdivision that would sell for $250K here on Maui. At $30K we felt like it was a great deal and are totally excited to commence with the upcoming exciting chapter of our lives.

If there's anything at all to it, I hope that God's faithfulness and goodness are on display as this story unfolds. Me of all people, being treated by Him to a life as good and as rich as this...I just can't believe it sometimes. Give Him the praise and the glory for the wonderful, kind and loving things He has done. Amen.

Posted by johnpeace at February 4, 2004 09:56 PM