Scottish Aero Club

THE FUN FACTORY!
Realise your dreams at the Scottish Aero Club

AIRFIELD SCONE (PERTH) EGPT
WHERE 3NM NE OF PERTH, SCOTLAND
RUNWAYS 03/21 ASPHALT, 09/27 ASPHALT, 15/33 GRASS
FACILITIES HANGARAGE, MAINTENANCE, CLUBHOUSE, FLIGHT TRAINING - FIXED-WING, HELICOPTER, MICROLIGHT
TEL 01738 554850
WEB www.scottishaeroclub.org.uk

SO what makes the Scottish Aero Club so special? First, it's the oldest flying club in Scotland. Second, the club is run by people who treat flight training and the social element as separate entities, but under the same umbrella.

Although it's not unusual to find more than one flying school on an airfield, it is unusual to find they work together in complete harmony, with a diverse community of pilots socialising together. The local Strathay PFA strut is also based at Perth.

Chairman Roger Young, who flies a PFA-certified Long-EZ, joined the club in 1999 and became chairman two years ago. He believes this approach is the secret to the club's success and goes a long way to explaining the 350-strong membership. He says, "There are various camps within the club but there's lots of cross-fertilisation.

"We think of the Club as the 'fun factory'. With our flying school partnerships, we can help pilots realise their dreams once they have their licence."

There are many examples of teamwork at Perth, including the almost complete rebuild of a Tripacer, carried out by Roger and other Club members over the past three years. "It was in the hangar in pieces; we've given it a complete overhaul."

It seems everyone is welcome at Perth. Marcus Dalgetty, who runs microlight school, Pegasus Flight Training Scotland, has seen exponential growth since he set up at Perth in 1999.

Back then, there was only a sprinkling of trikes in the SAC hangar. Over the past six years, the number of resident flex-wings has multiplied tenfold. As some of the members joke, they appear to be breeding in the hangar. He told LOOP, "When I started, everyone wanted to have a go. Word of mouth spread and then people started to train."

The many islands scattered off the Scottish coast provide opportunities for beach landings and other impromptu trips. And with the growing bureaucracy surrounding Group A flying, Perth's flex-wing community continues to thrive.

Marcus also runs an operation from Gap in France, where he trains British students in the glorious setting of Provence-Alpes-Azur. There are plans afoot for a club trip to Gap this summer, and chairman Roger is flying his Long-EZ down.

There's also a rotary flying school at Perth, Kingsfield Helicopters, run by Russell Hogan and two business partners. They operate a fleet of Robinson R22s and R44s, and offer PPL(H) training. They hope to offer the CPL(H) from the spring, subject to CAA approval.

Russell recognises the benefit of the SAC framework for his students. He says, "The social side is useful as it allows pilots to share their flying highs or commiserate with each other. They realise they're not the only one making mistakes!"

The helicopter pilots are invited along on the SAC fly-outs and there's talk of a trip to Portugal this year, which is a great opportunity for pilots to gain experience. As Russell points out, "We've got a duty to help people use their licences and become better pilots."

Newcomer Allan Falconer is about to take over PPL training at Perth, under the SAC umbrella. There's no danger of treading on anyone's toes as the other fixed-wing flying school at the airfield, Tayflite, is concentrating on CPL and IR training.

Allan is determined to offer the best possible quality of training. He also runs the Leading Edge flying school at Cumbernauld and says, "We've got a good reputation. We're trying to give people something to do with their licence once they've got it, to develop it and to get involved."

Allan's philosophy is that students learn with the school, but as members of SAC, they can enjoy the flying community the Club provides.

Anyone involved with one of the schools at Perth is invited to become a member of the SAC. Because it is run as a voluntary organisation - technically, it is a limited company - Roger and the rest of the Board can keep their members' best interests firmly in sight, without the need to generate income from pilot training.

"The training side has got to be done as professionally as possible; it's no joke. Up here, there's already a very strong club element, so the atmosphere has always been very good," explains Allan.

Elizabeth Gatland, a PPL and Club member, compiles the SAC newsletter, 'Plane Talking'. She can vouch for the great club atmosphere and has covered all the fly-outs in the newsletter, including a trip to Enniskillen last year. "There's a real sense of camerarderie here," she confirms.

Local hero WHAT a whirlwind year for Scottish Aero Club member, 87-year-old John Moffat, a wartime pilot who was instrumental in the sinking of the Bismark. Thanks to an interview in LOOP (Plane Crazy, Jan 06), John has been all round the UK this year. We met him at Perth to review his year. "It was really LOOP that got me going," he explained. In February, John visited the Fleet Air Arm in Yeovilton where he flew a Jet Provost and tried his skills in the Harrier sim. "The next day I got a call from the Naval Air Station at Culrose, asking would I come down.