Helicopter flight school in Georgia?

Question

Can any one suggest a helo flight school in Ga.? All I could find on the web is Silver State. Are there any others?

Answer 1

http://www.flightschoollist.com/georgia.html



http://www.flightschoollist.com/georgia.html



BIG BUBBAS FLIGHT SCHOOL l, ha just kidding. all flight schools in Georgia

Answer 2

http://www.prestigehelicopters.com/



I couldn't find a website for Heliserv, but this page has their location and phone number:

http://web.userinstinct.com/13329582-heliserv-inc.htm



You can find other flight school listings here:

http://www.verticalreference.com/helicopterreviews/showcat.php?cat=2



Choosing a Flight School:

There is no one best school out there. There are many good ones, and there are some bad ones. It will be up to you to find out if the school is good or bad, and you should do A LOT of homework before starting. Consider the following:



- There are many schools that allow you to pay as you go. Avoid the schools that require full payment for their entire program up front.

- Make sure the school will have enough aircraft and instructor availability to meet your needs. You don't want your training to take longer because you are unable to fly as often as you like.

- Many schools hire their own graduates, but do not assume that you will automatically get a job with them after graduating. There may not be enough positions available to accommodate all graduates. There is no guarantee that you will get a job after training.

- Many schools do not require a 70k contract to begin training. The school should work for you, not the other way around.

- Meet the instructor you will be flying with. Often being compatible with your instructor is more important than being compatible with the school.

- You don't need to fly airplanes to be a helicopter pilot.

- Consider the type of aircraft they fly. The Robinson 22 and the Schweizer 300 are the most common. Investigate the differences between the two. Some people prefer one or the other. Look beyond your initial training and consider that first instructing job too. Robinson's are more common, but sometimes meeting insurance requirements is harder. I personally recommend flying the Schweizer.

- Plan ahead carefully for the expense of training. Paying is the hardest part of civilian training. Some schools are set up for Sallie Mae or other loans, but make sure you understand exactly how they work first, and pay attention to the details of the loan terms lest you get screwed. You should know exactly what it will cost and when you have to pay.

- With regard to safety, you can always check if the school you plan to attend has any accident records. Go to the NTSB website, and do a search with the name of the school, and see what comes up.

http://www.ntsb.gov/ntsb/query.asp

- CAVEAT EMPTOR, when looking at ANY flight school.



On Training Aircraft:

The two main civilian training aircraft are the Robinson 22 and the Schweizer 300. Investigate the differences between the two, as there are pros and cons to each. Some people prefer one or the other. I personally prefer the Schweizer, and highly recommend it. Be sure to look a step ahead and consider the types of flight instructor positions available for someone with experience each one. You might also ask yourself which one you feel safer in.



Once you get to 1000 hours or so and start looking for a "real" pilot position, which one you flew becomes much less significant. Also, you can always consider getting some experience in both during your training.



You're making a huge investment in time, effort, and money. Give this decision the careful consideration and research it deserves. Aviation is an awesome and rewarding career, but you can get burned if just dive in head first. Talk to pilots, research schools, get information from several different sources, figure the costs, and go into it fully prepared and knowledgeable about every possible path towards your goals. Don't start until you can prove to yourself that the path you have selected is the right one.



Good luck!

Answer 3

I completed Middle Georgia College's helicopter program and I can say it is top notch. Their rates are the lowest in the country at around $200 and that includes the instructor and fuel. At the time they had 2 fully outfitted Schweitzer 300CBIs and were looking to get a 3rd aircraft. The helicopters they had were fairly new, and fully outfitted with dual Garmin 430s. They were NICE! I also heard they recently added a part 133 certificate (external load) and NVG program (night vision goggles). I plan to go back and utilize their NVG program when I have the money. I can definitely recommend it as a THE place to go for helicopter training in Georgia.

Answer 4

Silver State Helicopters is gone. Do not do business with anyone associated with SSH. Do not hire their, now out of work, employees for any aviation job. Secure your watch if you are found near anyone that worked for SSH.



I question the integrity of anyone who has helped "build" SSH. This includes all former employees, they new the truth. They were just as willing to take your money and profit from questionable practices.



Call the student loan programs you are in and cancel any future disbursements.



Do not pay more than 50% of going rate for any "fire sale" assetts you may be able to acquire from SSH. Get a clean bill of sale for anything you do pick up and use banking sources as independent as possible from SSH.



Do not resume flight training with any spin-offs from ssh. The same people with the same values and integrity will be running them.



Do not resume training with them, no matter how good it sounds.



I am pretty sure SSH shut down because their rep finally caught them. Just conjecture on my part. They had 3 people turn in applications from the last "seminar" in Mesa, AZ.



As for the "CEO's" excuse, Hooey! Other schools are getting financing for their students. Just another jerry tale.

Answer 5

Heliserv and Prestige Helicopters at PDK (peachtree-dekalb) , Atlanta, GA.

Answer 6

Silver State was a student loan harvesting machine, see below:



As of Feb 3rd, 2008, Silver State Helicopters has closed the doors for all of it's facilities.



Below is an open letter from Jerry Airola to his staff and students:



I know the rumors have been flying and I’ve been told some of you have taken action in anticipation of a company shut down some time today. The Board of Directors has been working diligently with student lenders and the financial institution that carries the majority of Silver State’s debt. The entire lending industry was crippled in October and the impact hit all student lending sources particularly hard; we felt this full force. Silver State Helicopters has done everything possible to weather the storm and will continue to work on a solution that will allow this company to continue to explore options.



The Board of Directors has not made a final decision as to Silver State Helicopters. Because the monthly operating expenses, even at the recently streamlined levels, continue to exceed cash flow the Board has elected to suspend all operations effective at 5:00 PM today. All offices are closed effective immediately and all employees are terminated as of 5:00PM today as well. All employees will receive a final payroll check via your normal payment method (check or direct deposit by ADP). I know there are many questions that you will have and I will attempt to answer some of those now:



1. When will I receive my final paycheck and what will it include? Your paycheck will be processed immediately and sent to you via ADP as it has in the past. You will be paid through close of business today. The company does not have time cards collected already to reflect the most recent days so, as is common practice in these cases, non-salaried employees will be paid assuming a full 40-hour work week.



2. What will happen to my 401K? Your 401(k) remains secure with the outside service Company as it always has been.



3. If Silver State Helicopters are able to restructure will I be offered re-employment? The Board of Directors will continue to work to find the best possible solution for Silver State Helicopters. If the company can be restructured it would certainly make most sense to allow priority hiring to former employees that apply.



4. Should I seek other employment? Yes - Silver State Helicopters can make no promise of re-employment at this time and there should be no hesitation on your part to secure alternative employment.



5. Will I be able to retrieve my personal belongings from the office? Yes - You will be notified as to the available times and procedures to recover any personal property from a locked office within the next few days. Please do not take anything from the locations that does not belong to you unless you have written permission to do so as that would constitute theft. Surveillance equipment has been recently installed in most locations to protect assets.



6. I have a company vehicle, should I turn that in? Yes - Non-employees are not authorized to drive company vehicles. It is presumed reasonable that all vehicles will be returned to the closest Silver State Location no later than Monday, February 4th. You should co-ordinate all vehicle returns with Lisa Gunther.



7. What will happen to students? The students will be notified as soon as a clear direction is confirmed.



8. I have company assets at my home or in my possession, what should I do? Contact Steve Shaw or Lisa Gunther and make arrangements to return all items no later than Monday, February 4th.



9. What about health insurance? Angi will be processing termination for all employees on Monday. This will trigger COBRA notices and you can contract the carrier directly to preserve your coverage. The company also encourages you to begin your process immediately so that you may collect unemployment insurance.



Please accept my most sincere apologies for the stress and sadness this may cause you. I know that many of you consider this company and the employees to be your home and your family. Holly and I have made a decision to fight for every option to help the people of this company put something together so we may again enjoy the success we have shared in the past.



Most of you have been comfortable in writing me or calling me I the past and I will continue to keep my door open. Please realize that I am inundated with calls and e-mails right now and it is difficult to return all in a timely manner when there is so much work to do. Regardless of the final outcome over the next few weeks I will be eternally grateful for the friends that I have made and the greatness that we all have shared. There are few people in the world that will ever have the opportunity to share in the experience that we all have over the past eight years. If someone had told me back in 1999 that this company would do all it has done and then face the challenge that it is facing now I would still gladly sign on as an opportunity of a lifetime and an education that can not be bought. Thank you all for the opportunity to work with a great group of people.



I can not tell you how hard it is to push “send”.



With love and respect for all of you,



Jerry Airola

Answer 7

Don't go to Silver State!!!