Recreational Pilots Licence in Melbourne

The Recreational Pilot Licence (RPL) is the first step to your flying journey. Whether it be for recreational purposes only where you can take your friends and family flying around Melbourne. Or to embark on a career in the Aviation industry as a Commercial Pilot this first step is the same. The Recreational Pilot Licence is also a component of the Diploma of Aviation Commercial Pilot Licence should you want to complete a formal academic award qualification.

The Recreational Pilot Licence will allow you to fly your friends within the training area of Moorabbin Airport which is to the south east of Melbourne or within a 25 nautical mile radius (approximately 50km) from Moorabbin Airport or any other airport in Australia.

One of the many advantages of learning to fly from Moorabbin Airport is that the Recreational Pilot Licence privileges will permit you to fly to the edge of the Melbourne CBD. This flight is always popular with your friends.

Moorabbin Airport is the flying training airport for the city of Melbourne and has an Air Traffic Control tower. This means that when training for the Recreational Pilot Licence at Moorabbin Airport you gain the advantage of obtaining more than just the minimum. You will also acquire the Flight Radio Endorsement and the Controlled Aerodrome Endorsement. It is also Australian government regulation requirement that when flying from Moorabbin Airport the pilot will require an Aviation Security Identification Card (ASIC)

Your flying training will consist of both flying and theory lessons. A typical flying lesson would entail a pre-flight briefing, then the flight lesson and afterward a debriefing with areas to work on prior to the next lesson. The Recreational Pilot Licence also has other formal theory components throughout the training. There is the Recreational Pilot Licence (Aeroplane) theory course and exam. This course is conducted in house at our Tristar Aviation training facility at Moorabbin. The topics covered are Aerodynamics (how the aeroplane flies) Engines and Systems (How the aeroplane runs), Aircraft Performance (how the aircraft performs under certain conditions) and Human Factors (How the pilot can maximise safety by understanding their limitations and those of their surroundings).

Step Up

Once you have reached the circuit training stage of your flying (Circuits are where you practice taking off, and fly a rectangular pattern around the airport and return for landing) you will spend time perfecting the take-off and landing technique until you are ready for that first solo flight. Many pilots see the first solo as a major achievement in their flight training, one of which is looked back on with fond memories. Your first solo flight is then followed by further solo flight to gain experience at being pilot in command.

The final phase of the Recreational Pilot Licence training involves learning some more advance aircraft manoeuvres such as steep turns, slow flight and emergency procedures. This phase of training will also include some solo practice in the training area south east of Melbourne so that you can perfect your skills. The Recreational Pilot Licence Flight Test is the final sequence of stage one. This flight test will be conducted by a CASA approved flight examiner. You will demonstrate to the examiner that you can safely conduct a flight to the training area and perform certain manoeuvres. After the training area sequences you will then return to the airport for a demonstration of your ability to take off and land the aircraft in various circumstance. Once you have successfully completed this flight test you qualify for the issue of the Recreational Pilot Licence. The next Licence step is the Private Pilot Licence which will allow you to fly anywhere across Australia.