ABOUT SHADOW AVIATION
We love to share the joy of flying!
Shadow Aviation Ltd is a CAA Approved Microlight Flying Training School.
We provide specialist fixed-wing microlight training and Instructor courses in the Ikarus C42 and Shadow microlight aircraft when available.
Our base is the very friendly Compton Abbas Airfield in an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty on the Dorset/ Wiltshire border.
The flying school was established in 1993 and became Shadow Aviation Ltd in 2002.
We moved to Compton Abbas Airfield from Old Sarum Airfield in 2019.
Fiona Luckhurst
Fiona started flying in Spain and France in the early 1980s and has been teaching people to fly since 1985.
She is a Flying Instructor Examiner and Chairman of the Microlight Panel of Examiners and
is also a LAA and BMAA aircraft inspector and a Trustee of the Flying Scholarships for Disabled People.
Kathryn Hutchings
Kathryn started flying in 2006 and has been instructing since 2010.
She is passionate about all things flying and always keen to learn new flying skills,
When not instructing or working in her electrical business Kathryn can be found flying,
day or night, a Cessna 172 called Winnie!
Raymond Proost
Raymond started flying in Belgium in 1986 and has been instructing since 1991.
He is incredibly passionate about inspiring disabled people through flying.
He looks after the school aircraft.
WHAT WE DO
CAA Microlight Instructor training
Become a flying Instructor
CAA Microlight Instructor examining
From initial tests to FIC tests
CAA Microlight Examiner authorities
Initial, revalidation and renewals
NPPL M Examining
Revalidations, renewals, ground exams and flying skill tests (GSTs)
Advanced and refresher training
Can be tailored to your needs
Flying training for disabled people
Shadow Aviation Ltd is a flying school provider for the Flying Scholarships for Disabled People charity.
The school’s Instructors have been teaching disabled people to fly with modified controls since 1993.
Aircraft Inspections BMAA and LAA
Come to us or we can come to you
To Be A Microlight Flying Instructor
To teach someone to fly is extremely rewarding work.
As an Instructor you will share the same ‘highs’ as your student and their sense of achievement when they get their licence.
(You will also share the same ‘lows’ as your student, but that is all about being an Instructor).
The work is demanding and the responsibilities on the Instructor great.
Below is an extract from the BMAA FI(R)C Syllabus:
“Before taking this major step forward it is essential to understand the very great commitment you are making.
In your hands will be the lives of future pilots and everyone they will carry as passengers.
There are no short cuts to competence. The course is demanding in terms of both time and effort.
As a FI(R) you will have the responsibility of inspiring trust and confidence in your students.
That trust demands both a moral and legal obligation you must meet on each and every occasion.”
The Flying Instructor (Restricted) Certificate
The CAA Flying Instructor (Restricted) Certificate allows you to instruct students
for the NPPL (A) Microlight Class Rating under the supervision of a Flying Instructor.
When you have sufficient experience (100 hours instruction, 250 hours PIC and have held the FI(R) rating for 10 months)
you can apply to upgrade, by test, to a full Flying Instructor Certificate.
A FI(R) Certificate is valid for 36 months and is type restricted to Fixed Wing, Flexwing or Powered Parachute control types.
Course Start Requirements
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A PPL or NPPL with a Microlight Class Rating without operational limitations. In addition, you must have had a Licence for 8 months or more.
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A minimum flying experience of 100 hours as PIC, minimum 40 hours of which must be on Microlight aircraft.
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Pass two pre-entry tests - a flight test and a written exam.
The flight test is to assess whether or not your flying is of a standard to start learning how to teach, rather than having to relearn how to fly.
The flight can be conducted with the candidate in the PIC seat.
The written exam consists of 50 multiple choice questions on all subjects in the BMAA NPPL (A) M syllabus.
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Both pre entry tests must be passed within 6 months of course commencement.
The FI(R) student should be competent with flying the aircraft from the instructor seat before starting the course.
The Flight Instructor (Restricted) Course Syllabus
Full details of the FI(R) course and requirements are contained in CAA CAP 804,
the BMAA FI(R)C Syllabus and the BMAA ‘Instructor and Examiner Guide’.
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A minimum of 15 hours flying training
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A minimum of 40 hours of ground training which includes teaching methods & techniques, ground course work and pre-flight briefings.
Please note these hours are the minimum requirement.
The average is 60 hours for the ground work and 20 for the flying training, especially on complex fixed wing microlights.
Costs
Prices at April 2020 and subject to change
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Pre-Entry Flight Test £100 plus aircraft hire @ £100/ hour
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Pre-Entry Written Exam £45
(Both valid for 6 months until start of course)
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FI(R) Course on the school’s Ikarus C42 aircraft - £5250
which includes 18 hours flying training and 50 hours ground training which is more realistic for budgeting.
Additional Flying Training is charged at £160/ hour to include 2 free landings per session.
Additional Ground Training at £45/ hour.
Typically, it is realistic to budget something like £6500 for the course to include entry and final exams and BMAA and CAA fees.
A deposit of £750 secures a course, a payment of £4500 due upon start of course.
Timing
It is more beneficial to you to complete the course within a reasonably short period of time to ensure continuity.
The school’s FIC work can be adapted, within reason, to suit your availability.
The course work takes some 20 – 24 days, weather does play its part!
Extra costs to take into consideration
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Ground study & flight training books, course notes
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BMAA FI(R)C Syllabus and BMAA Microlight Instructor & Examiner Guide
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FI(R) Certificate Flight Test by Examiner of Instructors at conclusion of course
plus a CAA Fee for issue of the Certificate and a BMAA fee for administration.
