First impressions are everything and from the minute I walked through the doors of Atlantic Flight Training Academy I knew I didn’t have to look any further into what flight school I was going to attend. I did quite a lot of research into where I was going to undertake my flight training, I looked at schools at home in Ireland, in the UK and in America. I also got in touch with family friends who were involved in the aviation industry either through leasing or airline pilots themselves and all indications were pointing in one direction and that was to Mark Casey’s operation at Cork Airport. Three family friends who were all independent of each other recommended Atlantic Flight Training Academy to me and as soon as I met Mark and his team at AFTA the reasons became quite apparent.
Atlantic Flight Training Academy is based down at Cork Airport which is highly beneficial to any pilot looking to kick start their career. You’ve got the surroundings of an international airport which means you have to deal with commercial traffic and ATC on a daily basis which is something I found invaluable, it made the transition into the commercial airline industry very easy since it was already familiar. The weather at Cork Airport can be challenging at times but again there are many positives to take from this, not only the skills you develop from flying in difficult conditions but also the planning beforehand, you get a taste of four seasons in a day sometimes and it means you really have to sit down and think and put a careful plan in place before you can consider a departure.
The ATPL examinations as many know are not the highlight of the training but are a necessity in order to become an airline pilot. I found the fact that the classroom groups were relatively small meant that if/when one required some one-on-one tuition it was readily available from experienced people who really wanted to help.
I found the fact that the classroom groups were relatively small meant that if/when one required some one-on-one tuition it was readily available from experienced people who really wanted to help
Each and every one of the flight instructors from day one maintained an extremely professional attitude but at the same time were easy to approach if there was something that needed to be discussed. The high level of tuition and the structure of the flight training made the steep learning curve quite easy to adapt to.
All of the aircraft at AFTA are in immaculate condition and maintained to the highest standard, which this was something that really caught my eye when I first looked at the school. There are also full time engineers on hand who are meticulous about what way the aircraft are kept and if you just take a walk around the hangar you will see for yourself, the place is spotless.
All of the aircraft at AFTA are in immaculate condition and maintained to the highest standard
Everyone involved in AFTA, the office/operations staff, engineers, instructors, classroom tutors and Mark himself have been more than helpful to me from day one right up until I secured my first airline job. Mark has all the tools there for anyone looking to pursue a career in aviation and it comes with my highest recommendation that if you are thinking of becoming a pilot, speak to Mark and his team first.
Sean O’Loughlin