Flight Training
Private Pilot License & Night Rating
We love introducing people to the freedom, excitement and life-changing perspective that flying provides.
The Private Pilot Licence permits you to act as the pilot in command of an aircraft for private use.

Learning to fly is not as daunting a task as it may first seem and most fliers agree that their days of being a student pilot were the most rewarding and enjoyable of all their time in an aircraft. Whether you dream of becoming an airline captain or a hobby pilot, the Private Pilot License (PPL) is the first step along the way. It enables the Private Pilot to continue training towards a career as a commercial pilot, train as an Instructor or gain experience on complex and more powerful aircraft. The PPL does not enable the pilot to fly for 'hire or reward' (i.e. you can not charge members of the public for pleasure flights or get paid to take aerial photographs and so on) but is essential for anybody who wants a career in flying.

*  View detailed Private Pilot License info

A Private Pilot License permits you to fly light aircraft like our Piper Warrior
The instrument panel of our Piper Warrior aircraft
If you want to see what it's like to fly an aircraft, why not take an introductory flight! Take a look at our gift vouchers options.

To get a taster of what it's like to fly an aircraft, many people take an introductory lesson first. The purpose of your trial lesson is to introduce you to the joy of flying. On the day, you will be given a pre-flight talk about how the airplane works and how you will be able to use the controls to fly it. Your instructor will then show you around the outside and inside of the aircraft, before starting up the airplane to taxy. Once airborne, your instructor will begin to teach you how to fly, and you will be able to see if learning to fly is what you would like to do. If after the trial lesson you catch the ‘flying bug’ then the training for your PPL will follow a structured course as outlined in the table below. The trial lesson will count towards the course requirements and it will be the very first entry in your PPL logbook.

Waterford city from the Tecnam

As a holder of a PPL, you can obtain additional ratings to enhance your license. At Waterford Aero Club, we offer training for the Night Rating using our Piper Warrior. This rating is a firm favourite with newly-qualified PPLs because it is a very straightforward qualification with no requirement for a flight examination. Additionally, the Night Rating is a requirement before starting the Commercial Pilot License course.

*  View detailed Night Rating info