Flying a plane is like driving a car: one needs a licence! I have opted to go for a PPL, which stands for Private Pilot Licence. It comes in two flavours:
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PPL(A): This licence is needed to fly aircraft.
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PPL(H): This licence is needed to fly helicopters.
I will be going for the aircraft version.
Be advised that the PPL is not the only licence out there if you want to fly a plane (or a helicopter). It all really depends on what you intend to do with it. Some basic characteristics of a PPL are:
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International: The PPL is an internationally recognized licence, unlike for example the Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL) and the National Private Pilot Licence (NPPL). So if you do not want to be limited to your own country while flying… get a PPL!
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No Passenger Restrictions: A PPL does not have any passenger restrictions so you can transport as many people as you like.
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Private (as Opposed to Commercial): If you want to make money flying an airplane, the PPL is not for you. Under the terms of this licence, you will not be allowed to charge your passengers, although you can ask them to share in the costs (petrol, landing rights,…). Licences you can opt for if you do want to make money, are the Commercial Pilot Licence (CPL) and the Airline Transport Pilot Licence (ATPL).
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Additional Ratings Available: You can add extra ‘ratings’ to your PPL, which will allow you to do the really cool stuff, like flying at night or in bad weather (unless of course that is not your type of ‘fun’). Given some extra training, you could even pull up gliders. Such extra ratings are not available under an NPPL.
1 Comment
January 11, 2009 at 12:19
[...] versus Helicopter Jump to Comments Separate Private Pilot Licences exist for aircraft (the PPL(A)) and helicopters (the PPL(H)). That is because these two types of [...]