Fall Flights Highlight St. Louis Training Opportunities: Video Sampler

Fly Twins Offers Affordable Cessna 310 Training and Flight Packages

By Carmelo Turdo

The Cessna 310 continues to be a staple aircraft type in the multi-engine training and light twin transport markets, offering good performance and economical operation in today's cost-conscious environment. The C310 is an excellent platform for gaining a multi-engine rating and flight time, combining the solid feel of a larger plane with the precision handling of a sporty twin. Successful employment of the aircraft for training and time-building, though, takes a great deal of planning and organization best performed by a professional aircraft management and flight instruction provider.

Fly Twins, a new program from Gateway Jets, provides a streamlined way for current pilots to obtain their multi-engine rating and build time in their St. Louis-based C310L. The Aero Experience met with Gateway Jets President, Corey Tomczak, to learn more about the Fly Twins program and the aircraft during a recent visit to St. Louis Downtown Airport.

"The primary uses of our Cessna 310 are for multi-engine time-building, rental and instruction," Tomczak said. "The Cessna 310 is Cessna's flagship twin-engine aircraft and a great multi-engine trainer," he added. The aircraft is protected in a modern hangar, and it is serviced by the airport's FBO, Jet Aviation. It is clean and meticulously maintained, as are all aircraft managed by Gateway Jets.

The Fly Twins C310L cockpit has a standard instrument and throttle quadrant arrangement with HSI, S-TEC 30 autopilot and Garmin GNX 375 GPS Navigator/ADS-B Transponder updates. This combination of conventional instruments and digital flight avionics provides continuity from other aircraft types while adding the safety margin offered by the latest technology.  

The time-building and rental package provides for up to 5 Hobbs hours at $1000/day, excluding fuel and instructor. Solo flights under this plan are included, providing the pilot meets minimum requirements. 

Fly Twins also offers the Fast Track Multi-Engine Flight Training Course for qualified private or higher-rated pilots. The $4,995 package includes up to 8 Hobbs hours, fuel and instructor. With prior self-study of the course materials, the training can be accomplished in as little as three days. Several pilots from around the Midwest have already taken the Fast Track Multi-Engine Flight Training Course and have successfully achieved their multi-engine (MEL) certificates.

In the video featured below, Corey Tomczak introduces the Fly Twins program and the Cessna 310L. Contact him at Fly Twins for more information.

Gateway Flight Training Adds Single and Twin-Engine Aircraft to Fleet

By Carmelo Turdo

Gateway Flight Training recently added two aircraft to their training and rental fleet at their Creve Coeur Airport facility. The twin-engine Cessna 310K is an excellent multi-engine trainer with good speed, range and handling qualities. On the other side of the spectrum, the Piper PA-28-140 Cherokee will serve as a primary trainer and fun time-building aircraft. The Cherokee was acquired from Wings of Hope, the St. Louis-based aviation non-profit, with the proceeds going to support humanitarian service programs in the U.S. and around the world. Contact Gateway Flight Training to schedule your flight.

Here we feature both aircraft on the apron and a training flight in the Cherokee.

EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2019: General Aviation - Piston Twins

Multi-engine aircraft serve an important segment of general aviation, offering increased payload and safety margin at higher speeds and altitudes than typically flown by single-engine aircraft. As a follow-up to our previous post covering multi-engine training, we insert this look at piston twin-engine aircraft types from our general aviation coverage of EAA AirVenture Oshkosh 2019. In this sequence, we feature the Cessna 310, Cessna 337 Skymaster, Cessna 340, Cessna 414 and Beech Baron.

Sponsor Announcement: Gateway Flight Training Offers Comprehensive Aviation Services

By Carmelo Turdo 

The Aero Experience continues to grow in this new year, and with another month comes another sponsor announcement! We are proud to add Gateway Flight Training to The Aero Experience team as a sponsor and advertiser. Gateway Flight Training provides comprehensive flight training, crewing, aircraft management, aircraft maintenance and other support services from their location at Creve Coeur Airport as well as from Spirit of St. Louis Airport and client home locations. The complex, multi-engine and ATP-level training capabilities of Gateway Flight Training complement the aviation services offered by our other top-flight sponsors, and we look forward to giving regular coverage to each throughout the coming year.

Gateway Flight Training offers a long list of training and aircraft crew services, all of which are described in detail on their web site and will be covered in this and future stories on The Aero Experience. In this introductory post, we will highlight the flight training, aircraft rental and aircraft maintenance services performed during a recent visit to the Creve Coeur Airport facility. 

We were welcomed by Brian Borton, Gateway Flight Training's Operations Manager who holds Air Transport Pilot, Certified Flight Instructor/Instrument and Multi-Engine Instructor certificates. During our visit, the Cessna 310Q multi-engine trainer was being prepped for two instructional flights scheduled for that afternoon, and everyone stepped in to help clean and inspect the aircraft. The Cessna 310 series is desirable for its comfort and performance as a training aircraft following the peak of its popularity as a 4-6 seat personal and business twin. Currently, six student pilots are progressing through their multi-engine training courses, and others come to Gateway Flight Training for recurrent training and flight reviews. 

"It's all about customer service and consistency, " Borton told The Aero Experience. Founded in 2010 to assist pilots in meeting the requirements posed by aircraft insurance companies for complex and multi-engine aircraft, Gateway Flight Training now offers flight training and ground school courses for the Private, Instrument, Commercial and Multi-Engine certificate levels. The staff of 9 CFIs (5 ATP/6 MEI) has a combined 85,000 hours civil and military flying experience. The curriculum was developed using industry best practices, and it is regularly reviewed by a curriculum development expert. 

The Cessna 310Q multi-engine trainer is seen here during rollout and a training flight with 15,000-hour CFI, Ben Lefton.

Gateway Flight Training offers comprehensive flight training and related aircrew education services to customers at all levels from Student to ATP candidate level. The flight instructors offer a wealth of knowledge and experience from decades of industry service. During our visit, Brian Borton emphasized the importance of getting to know the student to ensure that he or she understands the expectations and costs involved in pilot training. Ensuring a complimentary instructor-student match is also essential to success. "We have some students that are young professionals, and they understand the economics of it and the costs," Borton said. "The young students have great hand-eye coordination, learn fast and want on-line curriculum." Borton also told The Aero Experience that he recommends glider flight training for the 13-16 year-old students so they can get a natural feel for coordinated flight. Financial and moral support from parents and family are also very important for the younger students. And yes, Gateway Drone Resources offers training in Unmanned Aerial Systems for commercial and industrial use.

Gateway Flight Training offers the rental of their single-engine aircraft fleet, including this recently acquired Piper Warrior. This aircraft offers good general aviation aircraft performance for a reasonable price, and it is a stable learning platform for training. During our visit, the aircraft was rented for a local flight. 

Gateway Flight Solutions offers aircraft maintenance services for single and multi-engine piston and turbo-prop aircraft at their Creve Coeur Airport facility. During our visit, maintenance was performed on a Piper Tomahawk from the training fleet along with a Beech Baron and a Bonanza. A full engine run-up on the Bonanza was performed as part of the post-maintenance procedure.

The Aero Experience will return to Gateway Flight Training soon and include coverage of their business in our regular sponsor rotation. We again thank Brian Borton and his staff for their support of The Aero Experience as we continue to promote the best of Midwest Aviation. 

Spring Training Course Offerings at Creve Coeur Airport:

Private Pilot Ground School: Wednesdays, Feb. 12-April 15, 6:30 P.M. - 9:00 P.M. 

Instrument Pilot Ground School: Thursdays, Feb. 13-April 16, 6:30 P.M. - 9:00 P.M.

Contact Gateway Flight Training for more information.