The starting point to learning to fly is to arrange for a Trial Introduction Flight. This will give you first-hand experience in flying one of our club aircraft, which are Australian made Jabiru J170 Light Sport Aircraft. At the start, the instructor will give a brief description of the aeroplane explaining the basic controls that allow the aeroplane to fly.
This is followed by the Instructor and yourself moving outside to the aircraft and conducting the necessary pre flight checks.
From there you will sit in the aeroplane and go through the startup procedures following our checklists. The instructor will then contact the control tower and obtain clearance to taxi to the active runway, with an engine runup check on the way, and a pre takeoff safety briefing. Once cleared by ATC you will enter the runway, make final checks, and then experience the thrill of a takeoff.
Once the aircraft is airborne and flying straight and level, and with all safety precautions in place, the Instructor will allow you to take control of the Aeroplane and will guide you through performing some gentle turns, you would generally be able to have a feel of climbing and descending, and get an idea for how all the control elements work to achieve coordinated flight in the direction that you want to go! Eventually you will turn around and head back to the controlled airspace around Coffs Harbour with the permission of ATC again. The landing will be performed by the Instructor and when you return to the Aero Club a debriefing will be carried out.
Although your head might still be up in the clouds this concludes the Trial Introduction flight and hopefully you will return to complete your training with us, in fact the TIF becomes the first entry in your pilot’s logbook as dual time.
We have many pilots who started flying here and are now flying for Qantas, Virgin, and other Domestic and Overseas Airlines.
Contact us to discuss booking in for a Trial Introduction Flight. The cost includes a ground briefing, the trial flight itself, and a debrief afterwards. The overall time for a TIF including the briefings, preparing the aircraft, and the actual flight is around 90 to 120 minutes
The cost is $300 and the Aero Club is not registered to collect GST. We are very happy to help you book a TIF as a gift.
The best way to book a Trial Introductory Flight is by filling in the form on this page. One of our friendly team will coordinate the payment and work out a time and date for your flight.