Posted on 02/14/2018 8:37:40 AM PST by Celerity
Greetings and Salutations to everyone on this fine Valentine's day and I hope this stupid little Vanity I spit out finds it's way to your eyeballs.
I'm moving my family across the country, but I'm not sure where yet. Luckily, this thread isn't about that.
What it is about is my simmering desire to take to the air. When I move across the country, I really want to se my next goal to be a private airplane owner. But I know nothing on the topic. I mean I read a lot on it, but I'm itching to talk to someone who actually owns and flies an airplane.
I would like to know what kind of freedom it allows, or if it's an illusion type of freedom. I want to know if you guys take your planes everywhere you want, when you want or if it's just better / cheaper / more feasible to sometimes just get on a commercial flight, hit the open road or do something else to get a thousand miles away on a moment's notice.
I would understand that owning a plane would make travel more expensive than commercial airlines, but do the pros still outweigh cons ? From packing what you want, when you want to avoiding security at airports or even in sleeping in your plane overnight on the tarmac - Is it really a great lifestyle that's worth it ?
I'm seeing some decent examples on the market for the cost of a Tesla. When we're talking about 200k and less pricetags I have to seriously think about this. How great is it (If it is at all) to take your family states away at a moment's notice for the weekend ?
Is this like Snowmobiling, where the snowmobile costs $2000 but every day you run it it actually costs like $200 in fees, licences, and arrangements ?
Buy or build a homebuilt? How much flying do you expect to do?
If you are looking at owning an aircraft and finding a new home, you might want to look at getting a place at an Airpark.
Costs a lot more than $200... :) We need to know how many people in your family, what distances you intend to travel, where (which part of the country), etc. This is not an inexpensive hobby.
Move to Georgetown, TX. Great little aviation community and a nice, big, clear lake.
IMO private flying and plane ownership is a passion, not an economic or practical decision unless you fly in Alaska out of necessity. The maintenance costs to keep an airworthiness certificate alone is a stunner if you aren't factoring that into your equation.
How big is your family? If more than 3 or 4, you’re looking at a 4 to 6 seat airplane.
If you don’t know anything about flying, before even considering buying an aircraft, I’d suggest that you take lessons first. See if you have “the right stuff”. Get your sport pilot or even a private pilot license. And for God’s sake, get an instrument flying rating. Once you know the requirements and demands of flying,, then you can get into renting airplanes, practice, practice, practice, and when you get real good, THEN you can start thinking of flying passengers, especially your own family. It takes experience to become a good pilot. Experience and being constant and thorough in your training.
So, after you have spent a year or two becoming a proficient pilot, THEN see if you really want to buy an airplane and by then you should have a pretty good idea on what you would want.
The best part of flying!
I hope to get a pilot license eventually.
First of all, how alert are you? Situational awareness will be huge. Quick thinking is also another thing to possess.
After that its all about the money. I fly a Cessna 172 for a living. I fly anywhere from 300 to 700 hours a year. I calculate about $100 bucks an hour to fly. If you only fly as an average pilot that would be around 50 to 100 hours a year. Now your costs per hour are going to be way more.
Just remember, there is no saying “stop I want out of here”! You are going for a ride to the end. Hopefully that is a smooth landing!
Age is a huge factor. I had a friend try to become a pilot at mid fifties and found himself in way over his head. He was flying and didn’t know where he was until he looked down and saw big jets landing and taking off. He busted some airspace. He then called for help to get him back to his airport and decided that was it. No more flying.
Good luck what ever you decide.
Haven’t flown ince 1984 when i decided i couldn’t afford to fly enough to stay proficient. You have to have a LOT of disposable income unless it’s your job. Hate it, especially on those severe clear days in the fall.
I should have replied to you:
How big is your family? If more than 3 or 4, you’re looking at a 4 to 6 seat airplane.
If you don’t know anything about flying, before even considering buying an aircraft, I’d suggest that you take lessons first. See if you have “the right stuff”. Get your sport pilot or even a private pilot license. And for God’s sake, get an instrument flying rating. Once you know the requirements and demands of flying,, then you can get into renting airplanes, practice, practice, practice, and when you get real good, THEN you can start thinking of flying passengers, especially your own family. It takes experience to become a good pilot. Experience and being constant and thorough in your training.
So, after you have spent a year or two becoming a proficient pilot, THEN see if you really want to buy an airplane and by then you should have a pretty good idea on what you would want.
(I have a Commercial Pilot Certificate (license), with airplane single and multi-engine land, rotorcraft-helicopter, instrument airplane and helicopter ratings, and a type rating in BE-200 (Beechcraft Super King Air). And I don’t own, I rent.
A real free spirit would invest in a hot air balloon and take the family where ever the wind blows. ;o)
Fly the friendly skies of United!....................
I am a MEI and don’t fly because of costs... I would consider a small inexpensive plane for joyrides if and only if I had a large unregulated airspace to play in... I prefer motorcycles.. 5% of the cost and 100% of the fun... or if you prefer get a nice convertible ,, Porsche Boxsters are cheap now (and more fun than anything Porsche now sells).
If you don’t fly frequently you will make dangerous mistakes and it sounds like you want to haul your family around.
Renting is FAR cheaper than owning.
Weather is a major factor in flying. It isn’t like the airlines. Small planes are bumpy, often not comfortable for many people, and don’t do well in any bad weather.
Try first getting a pilot’s license and then think about ownership.
The best part of flying!
************
The autopilot inventor crashed (survived) while flying with his mistress on a test flight... he was “distracted”.
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