Has anyone gone or known anyone that went thru DCA and can give me some insight.
Is there any other Flight only schools that can use FAFSA student aid like DCA not a full school like San Juan etc making you take regular class loads . If I goto a school I'd like to just focus on Flight school not literature and how many electives i need.
I can't seem to get a unbiased opinion from the ATP forum. (never would have thought that HA!)

 

I went to DCA, has all the bells and whistles of a good flight school, will impress you when you visit, when it comes down to going there, they want to soak you for your money and they do not care about you at all personally. The flight training is top notch no doubt about it, but they drag it out way too long. Their standards are high. If you are rich and have 90,000 to blow and 2 years then go there. If not try Ari Ben Aviator about an hour and a half south on the Atlantic Coast. They do not have the bells and whistles but they have multi engine aircraft, knowledgeable instructors and will cost you a third as much. On top of that you will be done in over half of the time. They accept the FAFSA there as well.

 

If Ari Ben is anything like they were 10+ yrs ago, be prepared for shooty maintance, instructors with a god complex who are doing you a personal favor by being your instructor, incompetent ground staff, an aging secretary that like to do the foreign students and convincing students that 3 people can log mutli time at once.

 

10 plus years ago??? ARe you kidding me? You are going to come on here with a quote like that?? Ok well if that is the case then I suppose the Packers will win the Super Bowl this year, Saddam Hussein is making chemical weapons and the price of gas is 85 cents a gallon......oh wait...the Packers suck, Saddam is dead, and gas is triple that amount. Things tend to change....

 

Let me guess ladder, you must work for them. Most $hitty places dont turn around in the aviation biz, they just continue to suck.

 

No, I work for an airline, which is my point, Ari Ben got me a job, in the end that is all that matters. I never worked for them, I was never a CFI and I spent only a month and a half at Ari.

 

DCA seems like a good school from the people I know that went there...its pricey but thats life...i think most the guys I know went to another school and got their B.S. and then went to DCA...I went to UND so I only know what they have told me...I still thing UND is the school to go to, but if your from the Florida area DCA sounds great and placement at regionals such as Comair is good.

PM me if you have any specific questions that you absolutley cannot find answers to on the DCA website or other sources and I will ask my friends that went there...

Good luck & open a savings account!

 

I went to DCA for my commercial multi, and I would have to say that the school has a great education and the right environment to study. But I will be honest, they are seriously out to get your money. Don't get me wrong, I had great instructors and a great flight education, but if you don't go all the way through their whole program up to MEI, they won't help you and of course they will drag out your training for as long as they can. Granted you will get a great benefit flying free when you become an instructor, but what they don't tell you is that they have a test for all instructor candidates. If you don't pass this test, you can't instruct their and they say goodbye and good luck. Not worth it if you ask me, I had a couple of friends who got a 79% on a test and now they are some where else. But I still like the training but I just can't see myself paying 20,000 plus for my instructor ratings. I go to the school next door and to tell you the truth, as long as you have a great instructor and good mechanics, you'll be fine and probably save a bunch of money. If you have any questions, just pm me or message me. I'll will totally help you out, I remember that I still loved the training and the enviornment there.

 

"Delta Connection Academy, Because Being Owned By Delta Means Everything!"


Two words, Stay Away.

 

I did my own research... and I think if you're motivated then just train at home (weather and planes permitting). That's what I decided to do after taking the tour at DCA. I live in San Diego... the weather is beautiful and I can rent per the hour here. I do have a cousin that went to DCA, had a great time, and now flies for Chautauqua (after 1000 hours total time). But who is to say he had to pay so much and not been hired doing it elsewhere?

Remember, the industry is looking good... so Delta's regionals will want you no matter where you did your training as long as you put the time and effort into it.