Pilot Training

This page provides details of training offered by Skylark Aviation. We pride ourselves on the standard of instruction that we provide, and firmly believe that we offer the best combination of training quality and value for money available in the UK. Together with Prestwick Flying Club, we have a proven record and enviable reputation for producing skilled, knowledgable and confident pilots.

Currently, all training is given on Skylark's DHC1 Chipmunks, G-AORW and G-BDEU. The hourly cost (wet*) is £136.00; for dual flights with an instructor, an additional £22.00 per hour is payable. The landing fee at Prestwick Airport is £8.00 for both full-stop and touch-&-go. All briefings and ground tuition are given free of charge.

(*The wet rate includes fuel and oil. Prices are correct as of 01/06/06)

If you have any questions relating to any aspect of training with Skylark Aviation, please fill in our online enquiry form or contact our Chief Flying Instructor, Steve Maric on 07710 531936.

Aerobatic cockpit photos

Meet our instructors

Air Experience Flights and Trial Lessons

The perfect introduction to flying an historic aircraft. What's more, if you decide to learn to fly, your trial lesson may be logged towards the total flying hours required for your PPL. Secure on-line ordering is available in our shop.

PPL / NPPL Training

Skylark's aircraft are available for ab initio students wanting to train for a private pilot's licence. Learning to fly in an aircraft such as the Chipmunk will equip you with levels of skill and judgement over and above that of the average PPL or NPPL holder.

We offer basic training in a Chipmunk for a lower cost than many schools charge for modern aircraft such as Pipers and Cessnas. What's more, most training organisations wouldn't allow students or low-hours PPLs anywhere near a vintage aircraft! Skylark is different: train for your licence on the Chipmunk and we'll turn you into a more confident and competent pilot.

Tailwheel Conversion

Open up the possibility of flying some of the most interesting and challenging aircraft types around. Our tailwheel conversion course will give you the knowledge, skills and confidence to explore this rewarding facet of aviation. Even if you don't intend to fly tailwheel types on a regular basis, a conversion course will greatly improve your basic aircraft handling skills.

Unlike most training organisations, we won't abandon you after a fixed number of hours: we prefer to give each student the type and amount of instruction that he or she needs to become fully proficient flying tailwheel aircraft in all situations. Particular attention is paid to handling the aircraft in crosswinds, dealing with potential problems such as bounces and swings, and avoiding ground loops.

Most students solo the aircraft after around five hours of dual flying, and normally at least ten hours are flown before the final proficiency check flight and sign-off. If you learnt to fly in a bland modern training aircraft, you'll certainly learn what your feet are for!

Students must already hold a PPL.

Advanced instruction - courses & training for advanced pilots

Formation flying

Formation flying is one of the most rewarding and enjoyable ways to put your skills into practice, not to mention sharing the experience with your fellow aviators. However, without the correct training, flying in close proximity can be hazardous. A formation flying course will further enhance your piloting skills and increase the margin of safety when flying with other aircraft.

Aerobatics

Aerobatics provide an excellent way to improve your confidence and aircraft handling skills. For those wishing to become proficient in basic aerobatic manoeuvres and advanced aircraft handling, we offer an AOPA course, or will tailor a course to your requirements.

· Loops
· Aileron Rolls
· Barrel Rolls
· Stall Turns
· Combination Manoeuvres
· Spins

The course emphasises safety through confidence and competence, and includes both theoretical instruction and flight training. Students will be taught to recover from unusual attitudes (including inverted and vertical positions) as well as inadvertent spins. The course ends with an air test in which the student will fly their own aerobatic sequence.

Spinning

We are currently putting together an integrated course in spinning, to give you experience of this much misunderstood phenomenon and to increase your ability and confidence in spin recovery and avoidance.

Please visit this site again soon to keep up to date with developments; fill in an online enquiry form or contact us at info@skylarkaviation.co.uk for more information.

Alternatively, call our Chief Flying Instructor, Steve Maric on 07710 531936.

Here's a small taster of what it's like performing aerobatics in Chipmunk. It's also a good opportunity to sample some of our stunning scenery here in the West of Scotland!

Photographs by John Stewart

Our Instructors

Steve Maric (Chief Flying Instructor)

Steve started flying as an air cadet at sixteen. Starting on gliders, he progressed onto powered aircraft and gained his PPL at twenty-one. He continued to pursue his enthusiasm for flying whilst studying engineering and running the family business, becoming a flying instructor in 1988. He has flown commercially with Loganair on Jetstreams and the Shorts 360, as a training captain with British Regional Air Lines on the BAe ATP, and is currently a captain at British Airways City Express on the Avro RJ. He spends most of his spare time instructing, flying aerobatics, and collecting books.

Colin Wilcock (Instructor)

Colin grew up in East Africa and joined the Royal Air Force at the age of eighteen. He flew operational tours on the Lightning, Jaguar and Phantom before progressing to the Empire Test Pilot School at Boscome Down. He spent three years with the Royal Aircraft Establishment at Farnborough, becoming a test pilot instructor, and test-flying most types in RAF service at the time. After leaving the RAF, he joined British Aerospace and was involved in test flying the Jetstream 31 and 41, ATP, HS 125, Nimrod and BAe 146.

Stuart Hill (Instructor / Examiner)

Stuart was an ATC cadet and completed his PPL when he left school. He became a flying instructor at the age of twenty-one, and taught at both Glasgow and Edinburgh flying clubs. With a CPL and instrument rating under his belt, he began work as an air taxi pilot in 1982, joining an airline a year later. By 1986, he was a training captain able to instruct for instrument and type ratings. Stuart joined the BAe Flying College at Prestwick in 1989, spending two years instructing and three years on the standards line, prior to joining the Civil Aviation Authority as an examiner. More recently, he has worked with British Regional Air Lines as a training captain on the BAe ATP, but has now returned to the CAA as a flight ops inspector.