This Review Overall Rating
I completed the Ryanair Mentored APS with VA in August 2019. In every way I would say that the package put together by the school was fantastic. A few weeks before arrival you receive the SOPs alongside a technical document for the 737 which allows you to prepare ahead of time so that you are getting the absolute best from your sim sessions. In Cambridge, the course starts with 4 days of theoretical instruction delivered by a range of instructors that use their varied experiences to get across the topics at hand. At the end of the theory days, you go into Cambridge for a few drinks for the VA social - a nice surprise and demonstrates the well rounded experience you receive, and how genuinely nice the team are.
The 40hrs in the simulator itself was most enjoyable, with the instructors always making sure that you were getting the most from every session, so that you were well prepared to pass session 10 - the assessment session. For each session you received a thorough briefing and debriefing to ensure that as little time as possible in the sim was wasted and that you spent the sim time going over the practical aspects of the APS MCC.
VA used FlightLogger which meant that you had your training schedule far in advance of time, and could view your instructor's feedback at your leisure - two positive points that exemplify the fantastic organisation that made for a stress free experience.
Being on the school's Ryanair Mentored APS MCC meant that we were training to the airline's SOPs and using Ryanair EFBs. I am certain that having done so set me up very well to pass my Ryanair simulator assessment in 2020 - for which we were prioritised as Ryanair mentored cadets. With a dynamic 737-MAX and COVID situation, VA was most helpful in providing some simulator preparation before the assessment, for which I remain grateful.
I would certainly recommend VA to anyone for the quality and professionalism of the training delivered, the APS MCC in general for the more in depth look at the practical elements that I believe assisted me going into an airline simulator assessment, and indeed the Ryanair Mentored course for the prioritisation going into Type Rating assessment.
Course(s) taken:
General
Simulators
Theoretical Training
Practical Training
