Trim Tab Altitude is everything!

A person wanting to begin flight training in Ottawa is prepared to spend in the neighbourhood of ten thousand dollars, and it only makes sense to get the best deal and the best experience. Choosing a flight school is something I did almost two years ago, and I believe I made the best choice at the time. That being said, has the situation changed now?

A Google search for "ottawa flight school" returns a handful of operators in the Ottawa area, including the Ottawa Flying Club (OFC), Ottawa Aviation Services (OAS), and the Rockcliffe Flying Club (RFC). I began flying at the OFC, and just switched to OAS. I have personally dealt with only these two, though, so the rest of this post only deals with them. (Side note: there used to be a Carp Flying Club, but a few months ago it was absorbed into the OFC)

Tables are pretty, so let's start with one that simply compares the two schools on even terms.

Okay, so now that the basics are out of the way, a little bit of "comparison beyond tables" is next. The OAS has a definite advantage in terms of aircraft; for instance the Grob is fully qualified for aerobatics, and the Diamond Katana DA20 goes far beyond any Cessna trainer out there. The hourly rates between the two schools cannot be compared perfectly, but I would give the win to OAS. Speaking of money...the OFC is a "club", and well, members do have to pay up. OAS on the other hand brands themselves as a flight school and require less commitment from their members. This translates to free membership.

The OFC partnered with Algonquin College to offer a one-year diploma in Aviation Management a few years ago, and has since devoted a large percentage of its resources to properly tracking students through their program. Unfortunately, private members who are not enrolled in the diploma are at a disadvantage because aircraft are usually booked solid for a couple weeks in advance.

Despite the OFC's aircraft being very old (several more than two decades), the equipment is improved occasionally. For instance, a couple planes have been outfitted with improved GPS/NAV combo units. The DA20 I saw the other day at OAS had a 1990-era GPS unit, not too impressive.

I called this post a comparison rather than a review of two flight schools because the outcome is relatively neutral, and a review can't be neutral - it has to come out and blurt either "this rocks!" or "this sucks!". A comparison leaves the final decision up to the reader, and that's what I wanted to do. Maybe once I've spent two years at OAS I'll write a review