Madras Flying Club ready to return fees of trainee pilots

Chennai: A cloud of uncertainty hangs over the future of the trainee pilots of Madras Flying Club (MFC), now in doldrums because of the dearth of instructors.
Two hundred students, no flying lessons, one chief flying instructor (CFI) who is not eligible to train freshers, three aircraft and just one commercial pilot licence holder (CPL) in the last five years: This is the status of the 78-year-old flying club, the oldest in the country.
The club on Sunday informed students that they are free to discontinue and go elsewhere if they wanted to finish their flying lessons quicker. “Those who want to finish their requirement for CPL in a speedier manner elsewhere should withdraw their membership and settle their accounts,” says a notice put up on Sunday by the club at its premises. “This looks as if the club does not want us to continue here. Instead of solving the problem they are chasing us out,” a student said.
According to students, even the November 2006 batch had not completed 10 hours of flying required to write the director general of civil aviation’s (DGCA) examination to obtain Private Pilot License (PPL). The CFI is over 65 years old and is not eligible to teach flying lessons for students with no flying experience.
01/09/08 Times of India