My PPL Journey... so far.
As is the case with so many people, since childhood, I have dreamed of being a pilot. I joined the air cadets and continuously worked on enhancing my abilities in maths and physics throughout school, which led me to pursue a degree in physics at university.
At university, I really struggled with knowing what I wanted to do. I was good at maths and knew I wanted to keep my brain engaged, but I had not believed that the pilot dream was an achievable one. I graduated with my degree during the Covid pandemic, which led me to applying for a graduate scheme to study towards being a Chartered Accountant, which as a learning process was rewarding,but it hasn't left me feeling fulfilled. I started thinking more and more about becoming a pilot. I applied to the usual funded ATPL schemes through Jet2, British Airways, Tui, etc., but these processes are extremely competitive and, although I reached various stages (initial and advanced) in the processes, I have so far not managed to get accepted onto one of these courses. In 2024, I applied to the Royal Navy to become a pilot there. This was a competitive process, and really fun in parts. The aptitude assessment day at RAF Cranwell was really interesting. I did not enjoy the fitness test at HMS Sultan! I ultimately did not join the Royal Navy, but learned a lot along the way and after this process, I sat down and decided that being a pilot was now the real goal, and I did not want to settle on a different career.
I had my first trial flight lesson in July 2025, and immediately confirmed that this was the path I wanted to follow. I can't describe the feeling it gave me.
So, why have I started this blog?
I have started this blog with the aim of creating a personal document of the process I am in, to hold me accountable and to track my progress after certain milestones in my course. I will try and describe my errors, strong points and plans for future flights, as well as documenting how I feel at each stage of the process.
Hopefully, I will be able to re-read the highs, the lows, and remember every step of the way.
Funding:
Training to be a pilot, whilst extremely fun, is not cheap. I am lucky to have a good job that provides me with sufficient funds to keep up the PPL process. I will hopefully be in a position to fund myself through the next stages as I get to them.
I have not given up on the funded ATPL route, regularly reading and reviewing tips that I can work on for future success, however once I start the commercial part of the modular route, this entry point closes off and I will be committing fully to the modular pathway.
If you decide to follow along on the journey, thank you very much! I'd be more that happy to talk to other people in a similar journey, or who have been through this process themselves, or would like to start in the future.
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