u/SnakyTN

Hey everyone,

I’m 28 years old and I’ve had the dream of becoming a pilot since I was a kid. Recently I’ve decided I seriously want to make it happen instead of just thinking about it for years.

Right now I work full-time and make around €3.5k/month, and from July it should increase to around €4.5–5k/month. My goal is not necessarily to become an airline pilot immediately, but first to get my PPL(A), eventually buy or co-own a small aircraft, travel through Europe, and combine flying with content creation/streaming because I also love filming, travel, adventure, and documenting progress.

I live close to the German/Czech border, so I’ve started looking at flight schools both in Germany and the Czech Republic. I found schools like Fly For Fun and some others in CZ that seem much cheaper than German schools, with prices around €10k–13k total for PPL including VAT depending on the aircraft.

I have a few questions for people who already went through this:

- Did you train in Germany or Czech Republic (or another EU country)?
- Was training in English possible and smooth?
- Did you commute or actually move there?
- Is it realistic to work full-time while doing PPL training?
- How much did your REAL final cost end up being including hidden expenses?
- Did you pay progressively/pay-as-you-go or upfront?
- Looking back, what path was safest financially and smartest long term?
- Would you still choose PPL first, or go directly into a professional/ATPL route?
- Any mistakes you made that you wish you avoided?
- How hard was the Class 2 medical honestly?

I’m trying to approach this realistically and avoid making emotional financial mistakes. I don’t come from a wealthy aviation background, so I want to do this intelligently and sustainably.

At the moment my rough plan is:

1. Discovery flight
2. Class 2 medical
3. Modular PPL(A)
4. Continue working full-time
5. Build hours slowly
6. Eventually combine aviation + travel content creation

I’d really appreciate hearing honest experiences from people who actually did it this way! especially people who trained in Czech Republic or commuted from Germany.

Thanks a lot ✈️

Hey everyone,

I’m 28 years old and I’ve had the dream of becoming a pilot since I was a kid. Recently I’ve decided I seriously want to make it happen instead of just thinking about it for years.

Right now I work full-time and make around €3.5k/month, and from July it should increase to around €4.5–5k/month. My goal is not necessarily to become an airline pilot immediately, but first to get my PPL(A), eventually buy or co-own a small aircraft, travel through Europe, and combine flying with content creation/streaming because I also love filming, travel, adventure, and documenting progress.

I live close to the German/Czech border, so I’ve started looking at flight schools both in Germany and the Czech Republic. I found schools like Fly For Fun and some others in CZ that seem much cheaper than German schools, with prices around €10k–13k total for PPL including VAT depending on the aircraft.

I have a few questions for people who already went through this:

- is it better in Germany or Czech Republic (or another EU country)?
- Was training in English possible and smooth?
- Did you commute or actually move there?
- Is it realistic to work full-time while doing PPL training?
- How much did your REAL final cost end up being including hidden expenses?
- Did you pay progressively/pay-as-you-go or upfront?
- Looking back, what path was safest financially and smartest long term?
- Would you still choose PPL first, or go directly into a professional/ATPL route?
- Any mistakes you made that you wish you avoided?
- How hard was the Class 2 medical honestly?

I’m trying to approach this realistically and avoid making emotional financial mistakes. I don’t come from a wealthy aviation background, so I want to do this intelligently and sustainably.

At the moment my rough plan is:

1. Discovery flight
2. Class 2 medical
3. Modular PPL(A)
4. Continue working full-time
5. Build hours slowly
6. Eventually combine aviation + travel content creation

I’d really appreciate hearing honest experiences from people who actually did it this way! especially people who trained in Czech Republic or commuted from Germany.

Thank you