Self Fly Hire & Hour Building

Once you have your licence – what to do next?
We encourage our Self Fly Hire pilots to gain more valued experience by actively guiding pilots to develop their skills and suggest different flights and routes to undertake as the pilot gains confidence.

When approved to Self Fly Hire and you are confident with your home airfield, why not work your way through the list of more advanced flying?

  • Start by doing a cross country in the local area.
  • Cross country with passenger(s) to an alternative airfield. (And treat them to an all-day breakfast – the pilots’ staple diet – at the aerodrome café!).
  • Fly to a private site, perhaps a hotel or friend’s property (check with an Elite Instructor for suitability of site beforehand).
  • Explore the London Heliroutes (requires instructional flights and approval from the CFI prior to solo flight in the London Control Zone).
  • Mountain Flying in Wales.
  • Cross Channel flight to Le Touquet/Paris.
  • Add another helicopter type to your licence – generally a minimum of 5 hours’ training plus flight test.
  • Obtain a Night Qualification.
Having a structured programme for your Self Fly Hiring/Hour Building is crucial in order to progressively build confidence and experience. For those PPL(H) pilots who are intending to continue to Commercial Pilot level, this programme will go a long way to ensure that you have built up and acquired sufficient worthwhile flying experience prior to commencing the CPL(H) course.

Advanced Flying & Ratings

We’ll help you progress further with a range of options to suit you.

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Need to know more?

If you have any questions about Self-Fly hire or Hour Building, our friendly team are on hand to help.