LI Flying agreed, then twice postponed and later entirely reneged on their agreement to provide an aerial tour at an agreed upon date. When LIF realized I was only interested in a one-time tour and likely never coming back after, they imposed a newly created and entirely arbitrary cash-grabbing "policy" demanding I fly with them "continually for a month" in order for my INSTRUCTOR to fly 60 miles west with me, make a loop, and return back. And while it should be common knowledge for flight schools in the area, nobody here has any clue how to fly the Hudson river SVFR. Between Ben, the general manager and my instructor incorrectly claiming additional training was required (apparently both mistaking it for DC SVFR which does, while NYC does not per 14 C.F.R. § 93.350) and having to explain step by step the procedure of flying in the SVFR to my instructor, it was apparent this school has absolutely no idea what they are doing.
I scheduled an intro flight solely to tour NYC and was told two hours was not enough time so I booked a second flight. I made my intentions very clear. I was then told via text (see attached) that it still wasn't enough time and would need to be another day. I kept both flights to avoid a penalty but both were lackluster with little instructing and barely any enjoyable views.
I again emphasized I had 120+ hours and all the endorsements needed to take the PPL practical, was moving shortly, had no intention of taking the practical here, and was solely interested in sightseeing and touring. Ben even explicitly told me a tour flight was entirely up to my instructor, so we were on the same page. That's why I was surprised when they now claimed I needed to fly a month with them and be ACS ready just to sit in a seat with my instructor and fly to NYC. In fact, Ben's persistent claim that they had never done such a tour or that they "don't do tours" is quite ironic. Another student/instructor had flow the SVFR before, briefed my instructor on it, and the fee for landing sites in NYC and JFK is even posted on their whiteboard of landing fees (see attached). Nowhere is this "rule" stated online or on paper nor was I previously informed of this "policy" and when confronted, Ben admitted he and David, the owner, made up the "rule" on the spot. When I asked to speak to the mysterious David, or even to Ben himself in person, he vehemently refused. It seems both shamelessly cower behind anonymity when confronted.
Don't let that be the only reason that should dissuade you from here; LI Flying has three planes total, all flying junk. One doesn't have GPS, Nav and HSI is broken, and the other has terrible VHF radios. I didn't fly the third but I doubt it's any better. Their office is a small, cramped, hot and messy room hidden in an aircraft hangar smaller than most office cubicles. As the old adage goes, you get what you pay for and LI Flying is the cheapest on LI for a reason. Caveat Emptor! read more
