FBO, or Academy?

[Fly Boi]

O.K., I was wondering what's the best way to go for flight training. I'm 66% done with my PPL. I havent been flying recently because my sponsor hasent has sufficient funds for me to contiue. I'm 17, and turing 18 soon. At that time I can aplly for SLM, or some other loan. The FBO that I'm currently attending just recently bought a multi engine plane. They only have one. I figured that It would be diificult to book. So I was wondering if it would be best to go to a Academy, of stay at home. The college that I'm planning on attending allows you to complete all of your training, and they subtract about 27 credits, if youu've completed all ratings. My options are Delta, Flight Safety, and ATP. Most of the academies offer food allowance, and housing. Some could that be a factor, a to why they are so much expensive? My mentor, a first officer for Chautaqua, suggests that I go to ATP, or Flight Safety. What's the best way. Also what are some of the better, if any, loan options? Best Repayment options?

[anavalairman2]

save your money and pay for it with cash

[planesiscool]

doesn't matter where you get your ratings. You are young and are in no hurry. Don't go $55K into debt for anything but a house. I'm almost 25 and I'm going to get my ratings at an FBO. No need to pay for things you don't need.

[moxiepilot]

I would question your mentor's insight. That may be how he or she did it, but that's the expensive way.

if you can stay away from loans, do so. If you cant get the lowest financing you can.

I recommend finishing your private at the local FBO then making your decision

[cfii2007]

FBO

[Fly Boi]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

[Fly Boi]

Nice Site. Did you develop it?

[ILS37R]

Stay away from loans if you can. A lot of the "student loans" available from the big academies are predatory at best.

Definitely finish your PPL at an FBO. After that you can take a look at academies vs. FBOs to knock out your other ratings. Both have pluses and minuses, depending on the individual, but for most non-VA people, FBOs are a better fit.

Also, if you're 17 going on 18, you might want to consider a collegiate program of some sort. Somewhere in your flying career you'll probably want a 4-year degree, and 18-22 are better spent in college than on reserve at a regional where you can't upgrade due to the age limitations on ATPs.

With regards to collegiate aviation, there are aviation degree programs (e.g. UND, Purdue, Florida Tech, Eastern Washington, etc.) and/or schools with flying clubs which can offer extremely favorable rates on flight training. The grants and loans that can be gotten through 4-year schools are generally far better than those available through the academies... plus you get a B.A. (or B.S., B.F.A., etc.) when you're done.

In summary, I'd say continue your ratings at your local FBO, ship yourself off to college, study what you want and finish your ratings there (either through your degree program, a flying club or an FBO local to the school).

***

To give you an idea, the loans you can get at the academies typically require a cosigner (for someone of your age and without major assets of their own) and at best have a 7-9% variable interest rate. While they don't require repayment during your training, they are accruing interest. For a $60,000 loan, you could easily be looking at payments of $500/month (and conceivably in excess of $1000/month) as soon as you're done training, which are hard numbers to make work on CFI or Regional FO pay. Student loans, by the way, now persist through bankruptcies.