Flight schools in Central NJ

Trogdor

Trogdor

Pre-takeoff checklist
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Trogdor
Looking to start my journey to get a PPL. Have my 3rd class and hopefully will pass the knowledge exam shortly (I did ground school online). Hoping to start in August, 2-3 times a week, and shooting for a check by Xmas (maybe too aggressive?).

I live in Central Jersey and was wondering if anyone has any experience with:

- Infinity Flight School @ TTN
- Princeton Flight School @ 39N
- TriState Aviation

It's so hard to get any real reviews from folks who got their PPL at these places - most of the reviews I see are for how awesome someone's discovery flight was (duh!).

Any feedback/suggestions would be welcomed!
 
It's been a long, time, but I liked Princeton. I didn't finish there only because of job changes.
When I was there, Princeton was NIMBY, but uncharacteristically for a NIMBY area, didn't mind the airport and even supported it.
If you are looking at 47N, you might consider N51 (Solberg). Based on where you are looking, I suspect you live in Hillsborough somewhere along 206.
 
That's creepy but yes I do.

I know a friend who is a balloon pilot out of Solberg but that's about it.
 
I didn’t like Princeton, but that was over 10 years ago. There was a different outfit at Princeton that did helicopter training and those guys were great.

I did my training out of Old Bridge, but I’m not sure if they still have a school there. I also liked Eagles View out of Belmar: http://www.eaglesviewaviation.com/
 
skier said:
I didn’t like Princeton, but that was over 10 years ago. Stuffy, not very friendly, kind of what you’d expect for that area. There was a different outfit at Princeton that did helicopter training and those guys were great.

I did my training out of Old Bridge, but I’m not sure if they still have a school there. I also liked Eagles View out of Belmar: http://www.eaglesviewaviation.com/
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Odd- I didn't think they were "stuffy" or unfriendly, but I suppose it depends who you meet when you come in.

Trogdor said:
That's creepy but yes I do.

I know a friend who is a balloon pilot out of Solberg but that's about it.
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Not creepy, but elementary, my dear Trogdor. Route 206 runs fairly close to all the airports you mentioned.
One more thought- I think KTTN is more than 30 miles from KMMU and Bedminster? That may play a role if you get the Bedminster Golfing TFRs again.
 
TTN has to do with other family obligations, i.e. I pass it every morning which is a real treat! But I have ZERO information about Infinity Flight School (off their main page, and I asked for a price sheet off their contact us page and never heard back).

EDIT: I was kinda hoping someone over here could tell me if 5-6 months is realistic (2-3 lessons a week) for a check ride using outfits like these? Some of them have a price sheet with an average but I tend not to believe them!
 
I did my instrument training and keep my Tiger at Princeton. The airport is well cared for and in excellent condition. Lots of planes for training, so unlikely to have an issue with unavailability. Both for the 172's and the DA40's. If you really want to go upscale, a Cirrus training school just opened there (not owned by the airport).

All that said, I think you will find that the particular instructor you connect with will be the single biggest factor in your training experience. And, unfortunately, it's been long enough that I no longer know the instructors who are working there during the Covid-19 restrictions. My suggestion is to visit each of the schools and speak with as many of the instructors as you can. Then go with the one you feel will provide the most thorough preparation for your flying. How prepared are they? How thoughtful are their answers? How well do they listen to what you are saying? How do they describe a typical lesson cycle?

By the way, all 3 of the airports you listed are in the 30 mile rings of a Bedminster or MMU VIP TFR, so its effect on them will be similar. Although 47N is so close to the edge of the 10 mile ring that runway 7 switches to right traffic during a Bedminster TFR because a wide left traffic pattern on 7 would be inside the 10 mile ring.

If you want to take a hosted look around some day, send me a PM and we can set something up. My schedule is pretty flexible.
 
Send PM and thanks!
 
bkspero said:
By the way, all 3 of the airports you listed are in the 30 mile rings of a Bedminster or MMU VIP TFR, so its effect on them will be similar. Although 47N is so close to the edge of the 10 mile ring that runway 7 switches to right traffic during a Bedminster TFR because a wide left traffic pattern on 7 would be inside the 10 mile ring.
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I see tonight that you are right. KTTN is clear of a KMMU TFR, but it is within Bedminster's TFR.
 
Infinity at TTN is a pilot mill; I found their chief cfi to be the most condescending *** I have ever met in aviation.

Old Bridge is a wonderful place; the owner is an old dpe who did my private many moons ago. It’s a good mom and pop place. Eagles View is good as well with the new ownership.
 
Did some training out of Old Bridge summer of 1980 when the "office" was a trailer. It was a quick hop from Staten Island to Old Bridge and I was already familiar with the area from playing HS hockey at the rink in Old Bridge and having been to Raceway Park a few times.
 
Just finished my PPL at somerset Airport SMQ after training at other places previously. Can't recommend them enough from all possible aspects.
Whoever needs detailed recommendations can PM me
 
Someset (SMQ) is inside the 10 mile ring of a Bedminster TFR, so it is shut down when the TFR is active. Pretty small percentage of the time, but with the focus of the Bedminster visits including golf, they are usually on good weather fall-autumn weekends (like this one). Prime flying times.
 
Correct. But in the past 2 months this weekend was the second TFR I'm aware. And whenever there is a TFR they move their aircrafts over to Sky Manor so training continues uninterrupted
 
I recently got my complex at infinity at ttn and then my multi at Princeton. tTN is a pilot mill and everyone there Is building hours. Princeton is a family run operation and the chief pilot trained me and was excellent and committed. If Princeton is close that’s where you should train especially for PpL. Don’t get me wrong, the kid at TTN with 251 hours was fine but I think I was his first student and it was clear that place is focused on part 141 only.


Just my 2 cents
 
Gino Shtirlits said:
Ladies and gentlemen, I hope for your hand. I am working on pre-solo written test but I can't answer the question "what is the aircraft payload?" how could I calculate it for Cessna 152? PS. I am in N51.
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This probably belongs in its own thread, but for a C-152, take the maximum gross weight, subtract the fuel weight, and that's what you can carry (pilot, passenger, and any baggage). Then remember you need to check the center of gravity place everything. Payload usually doesn't include the pilot.
 
Btw, thanks everyone. Just finished lesson 2 at 39N (I did my first landing and power off stall....wow).
 
Trogdor said:
Btw, thanks everyone. Just finished lesson 2 at 39N (I did my first landing and power off stall....wow).
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And I was going to weigh in with a plug for Solberg... Family owned and operated. I based there for almost 4 yrs and really enjoyed it. Took in some instruction too, which I found professional and useful. I miss that place.

Oh well, good for you for jumping in and going for it. 5-6 months to complete is easy - I took about that to get my PPL, with a number of cancellations for wx and having to fire my first instructor. Not at Solberg, mind you.
 
Thanks for all the feedback!

I'm currently doing 2-3 a week at 39N with Peter. I'm ~6+ hours in and my landings are OK (certainly serviceable - I feel one to two more hours and I will be able to nail them continuously - it's more about my approach and adjusting pitch attitude based on conditions).

I'm having a blast but constantly SO nervous of screwing up (I need to calm down - that's my biggest issue by far).

I am hoping I'm good enough to be ready for a check by Nov/Dec time frame. At least that's my goal
 
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