By Joseph Nderitu
Joseph Nderitu is a Kenyan student who did all his training from 0 hours to Commercial Pilot/Instrument Rating (CPL/IR) with Lowveld Aero Club. He shares below the 5 top reasons for choosing Lowveld Aero Club
1. Home Away from Home
The Lowveld Aero Club brings together pilots who share a common love for flying. I had opportunities to hear from the “grey beards” who have flown pretty much anything under the sun. Some fought in wars, some still fight forest fires using impressive air tractors. Some fly for the airlines, others fly just above electricity lines as they swoop down to fight fires in various parts of the country. Just a few days ago, I was having coffee outside the club when Lt. Col Koos Kieck walked in with a few passengers from Hoedspruit. Kieck, flew many hours in the mirage that is on the lawn of the club. We chatted a bit about his days in the war. I can only imagine how it felt to fly an
aircraft where, upon rotation, the pilot had less than 5 seconds to retract the gear, otherwise the speed would bend the doors! Such history simply inspires. The camaraderie helps you to keep learning because you always get a chance to know just how little you know, and how much more you can learn.
2. Quality of Instruction
I am a firm believer in training under dedicated career instructor. Oftentimes, large flight schools keep changing instructors. Whilst there are good instructors who take pride in developing students into, the truth is that good, “solid” instruction is not easy to locate. Good instructors have built the experience, skill, patience, and mindset required to be a teacher, mentor, and coach. It is one thing to fly well. It is another thing to teach others to fly well.
The aviation training environment is awash with instructors who only want to build hours. That is not to say that grade III instructors building hours using this track are not worthy. However, the sad fact is that not all dual hours logged are equal.
I was particularly interested in training with Charmaine Vincent, the CFI at Lowveld Aero Club, not just because of the thousands of hours she has logged training different people in different cockpits, but because she is well known in the Mpumalanga area as an instructor with a good head on her shoulders. Charmaine’s calm demeanour and expert decision-making taught me more than any textbook ever could. Her ability to inculcate the fundamentals from the start ensured that when I was finally flying solo, I could draw on those critical lessons with confidence. Aviation training is expensive. Therefore, it’s crucial to get the best instructors in the market to train you!
3. Focus on Safety
Flying comes with its own set of risks. It is often said that if God wanted us to fly, He would have given us wings. We operate in an environment that can turn dangerous quickly. To guard against this, safety procedures are important. At Lowveld Aero Club, the slightest snag with the aircraft gets checked out by the maintenance facility on the airfield. Nothing is glossed over; no snag is too small to be checked and the plane only flies when it is signed out after maintenance. For this reason, when flying, the student’s mind is at rest. Because the flight school has a focus on safety, students learn to operate in this mindset right from the start.
4. Simple/Reliable Administration Processes
Over the course of the training, my paperwork has been handled well and my accounts kept accurately. Sylvia Strydom, the Club Secretary, runs a tight ship. Payment processes, insurance arrangements and student records are managed to the highest standard. You can focus on flying because the tedious and complicated processes are taken care of. This is not just about compliance with CAA standards. It is a way of working and it sends a continuous message to students that we need to be organised, in training and, later, in our professional and recreational flying.
5. Mpumalanga is Simply Nice
Last but not least, Mpumalanga province is simply a nice place for aviation training. Reasonably priced accommodation, easy to get to Johannesburg and generally secure, I could not have a chosen a better place to stay during the training. I also had numerous chances to fly over diverse places and take in the sights of the province.
From Nelspruit I flew to Komatipoort, Middleburg, Lydenburg, Phalaborwa, Hoedspruit…The views, of the rolling escarpment, the vast wilderness of Kruger National Park and the calm Nelspruit town as you approach the airfield from the north, especially on early Sunday mornings will forever remain in my memory.