Flight instructor here. It usually takes 5 or 6 flights for students to become comfortable working the startup and shutdown procedures. By the tenth time they climb in the plane I can normally say “okay start up and let’s taxi out” and that’s detailed enough instruction for them.
It takes about 6 to 8 hours of practice flying the plane, from straight and level flight, turns, climbs, descents, slow flight, stalls etc. before I even try letting them land, and then usually another 6 to 8 hours of practice before they can put the airplane down gently more often than not.
Is it worth it getting a pilots license? Would it be better to just fly commercial rather than a dinky Cessna or something? I wonder if it’s a good financial decision.
Becoming a private pilot is a stunningly terrible financial decision.
That “dinky Cessna?” I want you to imagine an 80’s Honda Accord that costs as much as a Lamborghini to buy and maintain, and that’s on top of the $8,000 or so you’ll put into training.
A better financial decision would be to buy a brand new Lexus every time you go out of town.
$8k sounds cheap, I looked into it for where I live and it was €15k minimum, probably more like 20… I gave up on that idea real quick and stuck with flight simulator and my drones haha.
All told I paid about $5,000 for my private pilot certificate in the early 2000s, though everything is more expensive and the US dollar is cheaper now. Since you used Euro, I wouldn’t be surprised if it is cheaper in America; we get a lot of commercial pilot students from around the world at places like ERAU.
Yeah that would make sense, car licenses are also much easier/cheaper in the US so I guess this is an extension of the same logic. Anyway the older I get the more anxious I become when flying (even commercial), and my vertigo keeps getting worse, so it’s probably for the best haha.
Flight instructor here. It usually takes 5 or 6 flights for students to become comfortable working the startup and shutdown procedures. By the tenth time they climb in the plane I can normally say “okay start up and let’s taxi out” and that’s detailed enough instruction for them.
It takes about 6 to 8 hours of practice flying the plane, from straight and level flight, turns, climbs, descents, slow flight, stalls etc. before I even try letting them land, and then usually another 6 to 8 hours of practice before they can put the airplane down gently more often than not.
Landing a plane isn’t particularly easy.
Is it worth it getting a pilots license? Would it be better to just fly commercial rather than a dinky Cessna or something? I wonder if it’s a good financial decision.
Becoming a private pilot is a stunningly terrible financial decision.
That “dinky Cessna?” I want you to imagine an 80’s Honda Accord that costs as much as a Lamborghini to buy and maintain, and that’s on top of the $8,000 or so you’ll put into training.
A better financial decision would be to buy a brand new Lexus every time you go out of town.
$8k sounds cheap, I looked into it for where I live and it was €15k minimum, probably more like 20… I gave up on that idea real quick and stuck with flight simulator and my drones haha.
All told I paid about $5,000 for my private pilot certificate in the early 2000s, though everything is more expensive and the US dollar is cheaper now. Since you used Euro, I wouldn’t be surprised if it is cheaper in America; we get a lot of commercial pilot students from around the world at places like ERAU.
Yeah that would make sense, car licenses are also much easier/cheaper in the US so I guess this is an extension of the same logic. Anyway the older I get the more anxious I become when flying (even commercial), and my vertigo keeps getting worse, so it’s probably for the best haha.