MEI and CFII addon at ATP...Chicago or Richmond anyone?

[flyTotheSky]

I'm planning on getting my CFII and MEI at ATP this December.

I've got friends and family that live in both of these cities and was wondering what all of you think would be a better place to do my training. Does it even matter? Anyone have any experience at either of these locations?

What's the training like? I imagine they only teach you for the checkride with only 5 days to spare. Does each ATP center have the gouge on the checkride for that specific FSDO?

[Clocks]

I can tell you the training goes fast. I did the 15 hour MEI/II and I was surprised how fast 3 days go by (the last 2 are the checkrides).

My advice is before you show up for training:

1. be nearly 100% ready for the orals
2. have the seminole supplement memorized (basically the multiengine aerodynamics and systems)
3. be instrument proficient (be able to shoot a partial panel ILS, fly a DME arc, enter holds correctly)

...and then it wont matter where you go or what DE you go with and I can virtually promise you'll do great. The courses are long enough to learn and refine the new stuff you need to learn. Just remember you really aren't supposed to be learning things you should have known back as a brand new instrument/ME pilot when you are training for your MEI/II.

Hopefully I didn't sound to "preachy", but my biggest pet-peeve is people showing up to accelerated training without being able to demonstrate what their certificates and ratings state they should already know. I showed up about 50% of where (in hindsight) I feel should have been, and it was rough.

[NJT916]

December? Chicago? What about all the snow, wind, and ice?

[flyTotheSky]

Originally Posted by Clocks

I can tell you the training goes fast. I did the 15 hour MEI/II and I was surprised how fast 3 days go by (the last 2 are the checkrides).

My advice is before you show up for training:

1. be nearly 100% ready for the orals
2. have the seminole supplement memorized (basically the multiengine aerodynamics and systems)
3. be instrument proficient (be able to shoot a partial panel ILS, fly a DME arc, enter holds correctly)

...and then it wont matter where you go or what DE you go with and I can virtually promise you'll do great. The courses are long enough to learn and refine the new stuff you need to learn. Just remember you really aren't supposed to be learning things you should have known back as a brand new instrument/ME pilot when you are training for your MEI/II.

Hopefully I didn't sound to "preachy", but my biggest pet-peeve is people showing up to accelerated training without being able to demonstrate what their certificates and ratings state they should already know. I showed up about 50% of where (in hindsight) I feel should have been, and it was rough.

I totally know where you are coming from...

I have a buddy that went through the entire CFI program down at JAX a few years back and he was preparing months in advance and did just fine. He told me some guys showed up not prepared at all, and well...you can guess what happened to them.

Thanks for the insight!

[flyTotheSky]

Originally Posted by NJT916

December? Chicago? What about all the snow, wind, and ice?

This is true...I've been a Chicago resident all my life except for my last few years in college. I don't know if it's global warming or what...but the bad winter weather has been showing up later and later each year...

[NJT916]

Originally Posted by flyTotheSky

This is true...I've been a Chicago resident all my life except for my last few years in college. I don't know if it's global warming or what...but the bad winter weather has been showing up later and later each year...

You should come to Vegas....