I’m in my senior year of College right now. I’ve been seriously planning on starting with ATP July 2020 for a couple of years now. I also applied and went through the interview process with American Airlines, just for the sake of more options.
I was accepted into American’s program and need to respond shortly, so I thought this would be a good time to ask about the few concerns with ATP I do have.
What insight can anyone give me about the ground school method?
On kings courseware are we watching videos, taking quizzes or is it essentially just a textbook for us to read?
If we have questions on the material, is there a set time for ground school with our instructors or do we just catch them the next time we see them to ask them a question?
How much/often are you working with other students (ground school) and or studying together?
I’ve heard some rumors about hidden fees for flight time that students thought would be covered, or any other fees once you’ve already begun the program. (so outside of the original, Ipad & equipment when you first begin, I mean maybe 2 months in, or 15 months in) can you shed some light on that please?
Thanks again, I’m looking forward to hearing all of your experiences and what the mentors have to say.
I suggest you do googling but the King’s are legendary for training programs, software and videos.
They’ve been around for decades and no one does it better. They’ll be videos and quizzes that will take you through the program.
I’m sure some current or recent students will chime in as it’s been a while but I believe it’ll vary based on your location. Larger locations have “classes” while smaller ones ground school will be just you and your instructor. Students are always free to ask questions, get clarifications or simply say they don’t understand at any point.
one of the things I appreciated the most were the study groups and that’s the advantage of ATPs housing. They’ll be students at your level, ahead and behind you. Great environment for learning.
there are no hidden fees at ATP. That’s been one of their selling points since day one. If someone didn’t read or study the website then shame on them. The price is the price sans the required materials and test fees. On rare occasions students require additional hours but that is the exception rather than the rule.
It’s primarily self study, but there is always some form of in-person ground. Each location does ground a little differently. If you want to know how it’s run at the location you’re interested in, you can call ATP to schedule a tour of the training center. The only reason you would have to pay extra is if you needed extra training.
The King software provides you with foundational knowledge and allows you to pick up on the general concepts. The AOPA videos provided by ATP dig a little deeper and provide even more information.
At my location (KDAB), there are several group ground sessions scheduled per week, but they may or may not be covering what you’re currently working on. You can also schedule individual grounds with your instructor if you’re struggling in a certain area. Also, if you have a great instructor like I do, they’re only a text away if you have a question. To address your concern more bluntly, I don’t know of many people struggling with the knowledge stuff, ATP provides everything you need to be successful there.
I wouldn’t exactly refer to the fees you’re talking about as “hidden,” but they have been catching people with a bit of surprise. It is my understanding that ATP used to provide students with “currency flights” at no charge to either keep them within FAA requirements, or within ATP’s even stricter safety requirements. I.e if you were grounded in the solo x country phase for 8 days due to weather or other circumstances, ATP would provide an hour instruction so you could qualify for your solo. ATP now charges for these flights, even if you’re legal to fly. A gentleman at my location became (ATP) incurrent over the holiday break and was required to reschedule his private checkride and pay for a 2.5 hour x country instruction flight to become current. I can understand their safety concern on solos, but I think the checkride should have been left up to the student’s discretion.
Thank you. Do you mind sharing your pros-cons? From what I see ATP is a faster track but AA-academy provides a more “secure track” to hiring. Roughly the same price but different locations and probably a more personable teaching style.
AA is no more secure of a track than ATP. Their students end up in the exact same flow program as ATP through the AA flow regionals (Piedmont, PSA, Envoy).
Yeah, I’ll do my best & it would be great if anyone would weigh in on them and correct me.
AA Pro’s:
~ a classroom style ground school ( this is just personal preference it seems like ATP’s ground school is excellent),
~ is marginally cheaper
~ all equipment and check rides seem to be included in the price
~ guaranteed interviews with Americans 3 regionals
~ it’s still small and new so it seems like they’re really invested in everyone’s success
Cons:
~ you are not guaranteed the flight instructor position to build your hours (though they promise every reasonable effort to place you somewhere or help you get hired)
~ it’s still new so it’s hard to gauge how reliable of a program it is
~ seems to be a couple of months slower than ATP
ATP Pro’s:
connections with many airlines (and their diverse tuition reimbursement offers )
consistently produces airline pilots
guaranteed the flight instructor position assuming you pass all your licensure and check rides
Seems to generally be a faster program than AA’s
Cons:
possibility of currency flights (see above) though this seems negligible as far as I know
no guaranteed interviews with American, this seems negligible as well given the pilot shortage
ground school seems to resemble an online course at college ( this is no big deal, it’s just not what I think I’d prefer)
Got it, thanks for clarifying and sorry if it came off disparaging ATP, definitely unintentional (my biggest concern is learning the trade safely, no matter how long it takes…)
I did some research into the currency flight issue today as it did not sound quite right to me.
The ATP Student handbook states the following on currency flights:
Refresher Flight
Students who experience a delay of seven days or more between the endorsement flight and the checkride will be offered a one-hour refresher flight before the checkride.
The currency flight should be able to be done at no charge to the student by re-allocating flight time from other areas of the program, without impacting the student’s progress through the program. If that cannot be done, the currency flight should be provided to the student as a courtesy by ATP. I reached out to you privately for more information on the student that was charged for the 2.5 hour currency flight as ATP admin would like to look into that and address it.
For those that might be interested, Anderson shared with me the details of the student that was incorrectly charged for the currency flight. I shared the details with ATP administration and the charges were reversed as a mistake had been made.
Over the years I have always found ATP admin to be incredibly responsive and to do the right thing. This is another example of that.
I’m currently working on the CFII at ATP in UT and have thus far found the culture to be incredibly autonomous. Our small group that started on day one zero stuck together throughout a good portion of the process. Some moved ahead faster, some behind, some quit, and some moved out of state.
We were at school daily earlier than we had to be and stayed later than necessary. We constantly read our current material and new material. There wasn’t a day that went by that one of us didn’t discover something new and we shared it with eachother. Anytime we couldn’t find the answer we asked our instructor or any victim who managed to cross our paths while we were on the hunt for knowledge.
Near everyone is very willing to assist in any way possible to make sure you know what is necessary and then some. The design of the program is unconventional and thus you must have the internal drive to succeed. In the event someone has to hold your hand and tell you to get out of bed, to study, and to be on time this program is definitely not a fit. Otherwise, if you are driven it’s a perfect set up.