Did some pilot training long time ago. Friend was an instructor so I went with him. It was a good deal: he got the hours of instructing and I got the flying fun.
Price wise, think of how much it will cost you to fly after you got the license. How often will you fly? Do you have enough money to continue with this flying hobby?

My father was a WWII pilot. Growing up we were never without our own airplane. He basically taught me how to fly at a very young age. I acquired my private license in my early 20's and subsequently owned two planes in succession.Basically, I just enjoyed burning holes in the sky. The practical aspect was very limited other than day trips with my bicycle in the back seat. I would land at remote small airfields and spend the day or days touring the area. Owning a plane was expensive, making me wonder who owned who. Every weekend I felt obligated to fly as to justify the cost. I rented a bit between ownership, but the spontaneity just was not there.

When I transitioned to gliders I really found why I loved flying. The need for pure airmanship not compromised by the engine and prop as well as the lack of any purpose other than just being in the sky made it a pure joy. The primary flight instruments are the yarn taped to the windshield that lets you know turns are coordinated, your butt that tells you if you are going up or down, and your ears that let you know how fast you are going. Riding a thermal in formation with hawks or surfing ridge lift straight up over a mountain is like nothing else you will ever do. Pointing the nose straight down, accumulating speed, and coming up to a loop is quite a sensation. Once you solo you are basically good to go. It is unlikely you will carry passengers (most of mine got sick), you don't leave the area of launch, and the weather is always good. You can get you license at some time, but is not really a big deal.

If you just want to fly, check out gliding. It is a lot cheaper than power flight and will make you a better pilot no matter where you take your skills. It is just a hoot.

Good advice, all. I can't imagine buying my own airplane. I was thinking more of joining a flying club so I could have ready access to planes without the entire expense.

Has anyone done that?

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where do you live?
i was a flight instructor yeaaaaaaars ago. if you'd like to talk lemme know. i don't want to type out some of the stuff id like to suggest, too long and too many different avenues to go down. i havent flown a small plane in years but would love to do it again. i don't have easy access to a general aviation airport due to where i live.

if you get into flying i recommend this organization. https://www.aopa.org it's a nice site for info.

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ΜΟΛΩΝ-ΛΑΒΕ
we're doomed

Not myself but a close friend did when we were younger. He scrapped together the money to buy an old Cessna and flew all the time. He kept moving up to bigger planes and ended up flying with american eagle. While it might not be your goal, I'd think finding something on your own or joining a club would be a good idea starting out when you really want to accumulate the hours

I can tell you I have enjoyed flying in a lot of different ways for about 40 years or so. My Dad was a career Air Force pilot, retired and owned an FBO with a flying school for years, then became an FAA Examiner. He and I flew a few different restored warbirds to shows around the southeast. I flew gliders and competed at a national level for 10 years, then bought a Cirrus back in 2001. I use the Cirrus extensively for personal and business travel, but for most people, a partnership with 1-4 other people is absolutely the best way to get access to an airplane. I have one partner in the Cirrus, a close friend I flew gliders with, and we use Google Calendar to schedule the plane. In 15 years, I don't think we have had more than 1-2 scheduling issues between us.

If you want to fly cheap, you can't beat soaring. But, you need to be close to a gliderport. It is also the most rewarding flight experience you will ever have. Once you have learned how to stay up in the sky for 4-6 hours, you will realize you know more about the atmosphere than just about anyone you know.

Regarding your question of 'How long does it take?', well, that depends on you. It takes a unique blend of hand-to-eye, seat of the pants ability coupled with a somewhat mechanical mind that can understand instrumentation, reading maps, and navigating. If you have those abilities, most people can solo in 10-15 hours of dual instruction. Some, lots longer...

After you have soloed, there is still plenty to learn and you can't take anyone up with you except your instructor. Gradually, your instructor will allow you to venture away from the local airport and you will begin doing cross country flights that require you to navigate to another airport. Then, you will do a few cross country flights solo. When he feels you are ready, he will recommend you for an initial pilot exam with your local FAA examiner. You must have a minimum of 40 hours to be recommended, but most people have 50-60 by that time. If you pass, you will be fully licensed to fly where you want solo or with other people in the plane with you. However, you will be limited to flying when the weather is good with certain ceiling and visibility minimums. You will not be able to fly in clouds at all. For that, you will need an instrument rating and that is another course of instruction and it will be the most important rating you earn. Think of getting your private pilot license like getting your high school diploma and getting your instrument rating like getting your college degree. If you really want to use an airplane for trips that are planned well in advance, you will need an instrument rating. Otherwise, you will inevitably get stuck on the ground somewhere due to weather you can't legally fly in. So, the utility of a pilot's license is limited until you get an IFR rating, and even then, you have to know when to stay on the ground whether you can fly legally or not.

FWIW,
Greg

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If you are a Canuck that engages in gratuitous bashing of the US, you are probably on my Iggy List. So, save your self a bunch of typing a response unless you also feel the need to gratuitously bash me. If so, have fun.
"Don't underestimate Joe's ability to f___ things up" - Barack Obama, 2020

 
You really have to know how much money you are willing to put into it. Getting the license is a decent chunk to start, but then keeping the license requires a certain amount of flying and just flying for the sake of it is expensive as well.

Even with a flying club it can still be spendy. My buddy works for Boeing and has access to their employee flight club planes. It still costs $125+ per hour for him to fly. He is now looking into buying into a Cessna 172 partnership, he would buy a 1/17th share for $4,500. His hourly cost to fly that plane is $65-70 I believe. Much better than $125 but still not exactly cheap.

I have 38 or so flight hours. I started on my license when I was 16, got through soloing, did my night flying and my first solo cross country with a towered landing. I think I was just a bit young at for it at that point. I kinda lost interest and money after that solo flight. I was really close to done but just kinda quit. I am 31 now, 2 years ago for my bday my wife bought me an hour with my old instructor in his Cessna 172. He let me fly and evaluated me to determine how many dual hours he thought I would need to recert to solo and get finished. He thinks I can get it done in 10-15 hours if they are good focused hours, guess I hadn't lost too much touch. My Boeing buddy has let me have some stick time in the last 2-3 years which helps.

I want to finish but I want to have the money set aside to do it first so I need $2,500-$3,000 sitting in savings to just get it done all at once. Spreading it out over too long a time is a waste of money as you need frequency to build the skills to pass the test. If you are starting from scratch I would have $5k-$7,500 put aside to get the license.

Then you have to figure out if you can afford to fly for fun. We have a local flying club that would is $150 per year and $90-100 per hour to fly I believe. My instructor owns a 172 that is older, lighter and built to run on regular gas rather than avgas so it costs less to fly. If I was going to finish I would want to buy into that plane as it costs $45-50 per hour to fly which is much more reasonable. I just need $8-10k to buy into the plane.

So, when I have $10k sitting around with nothing better to do with it I will finish up my license. I really enjoy flying, it is just an expensive, selfish endeavor unless you have a good amount of disposable income. My wife is all for me spending the money, I just don't feel it is a good financial priority at this point. Hopefully in the next 5-10 years it will be more affordable for me.

I'm doing it right now. I did my first solo around the traffic pattern a few weeks ago at 15 hours, and currently have 23 hours total. I'm very much a noob at this shit... so take my advice accordingly...

Step 1 is to do a discovery flight. This is a 1/2 hour to 1 hour introductory flight lesson. Just do an internet search for local flight schools, pick up the phone and schedule it. I'd recommend doing this before doing any significant studying, getting a medical or committing any significant amount of money to anything. Unless you've already spent some time in small planes you don't really know how you will handle it. It's an entirely different feeling than riding in the back of an airliner and it's not for everyone. If you end up some combination of terrified or puking all over yourself it may end right here.

Step 2 is to get your medical. Go here to find a doctor. For a PPL you need a class 3. This should be trivial for anyone on a triathlon forum, but just in case there is something preventing you from getting a medical you would rather know right now than after you've spent several thousand on dual instruction. You don't need the medical to fly with an instructor, but you do to act as pilot in command (i.e. fly solo). Just a note, there is currently a bit of a regulatory shakeup happening with the 3rd class medical and apparently the day is fast approaching when you will not need it. I haven't paid much attention to this since my medical is good for 4 more years, but reading this it honestly looks easier to just go in and get the class 3.

At this point you have a few options depending on your location and budget. The most straightforward path is to go to an organized flight school. They will have a set curriculum, with ground instruction, flight instruction and plane rental all under one roof. This will almost always be the most expensive option. It will vary with your location and the quality of the planes, but typically you're looking at around $125/hr for a very basic 4-seat trainer (C172 or PA-28) plane and $60/hr for the instructor if you go this route.

The cheapest route, although it requires some capital up front and a bunch of legwork, is to buy a clapped out old 2-seater for <$20k and hire an independent instructor. The going rate for these guys around me (Twin Cities, MN) is about $40/hr. These planes don't depreciate much (they're all older than you at this point), so you're basically flying for the cost of gas, oil and insurance after you sell it. The problem here is that you're assuming some risk. If your engine takes a shit you could be selling the plane for scrap (a new engine costs more than scrapping the plane and buying another old plane). I personally wouldn't recommend this unless you already know a great deal about aviation and airplanes and have an in with a good mechanic, which is probably not the case since you're asking about aviation on a triathlon forum.

The middle ground is a flying club. This a very nebulous term that can mean just about anything, but the gist of it is that a bunch of people share access, and in many cases ownership equity to a plane (or multiple planes) and you typically pay some monthly fee for fixed costs like insurance and hangar, with an hourly fee for plane usage. Since these are typically set up as non-profits there is usually a significant discount vs. renting from a flight school/FBO. IMO this is the sweet spot for most people who aren't filthy rich (in which case you can just buy whatever plane you want and hire an instructor) or young kids looking for an airline career (in which case a formal flight school would get them out the door with their ratings and hours quicker, albeit at a price).

Two more pieces of advice. You will see some rental prices in Hobbes hours and some in tach hours. This a HUGE difference. The Hobbes meter runs at the same rate whenever the plane is running. It doesn't matter if you're sitting on the ground idling or at full power during climbout. The tach is calibrated to tick over an hour for an hour spent at typical cruise power. It will run much slower at idle. During training you spend a lot of time putzing around at way less than cruise power, so for the same time in your logbook you're paying ~30% less if you're renting by the tach. Most clubs charge tach time because it's more reflective of the actual wear and tear on the plane and it gives the members an incentive to not beat the hell out of the planes by flying around with the throttle firewalled all the time. Most FBO's and schools charge Hobbes because... reasons I guess.

The last thing is to not worry about how fancy the planes are. You can train in something brand new that has all the latest glass cockpit gizmos, but you will pay accordingly. All that crap is a distraction at best when you're still trying to get your stick and rudder skills up to snuff. It's actually easier to pass your PPL checkride in a minimally equipped plane. They can't test you on something that's not there. I've been told it's the other way around once you get into more advanced ratings, but for the PPL simpler is better.

The FAA requires a minimum of 40 hours of flight time to get your Private. After that you need to stay proficient and fly regularly or you risk become a statistic. It was part of my undergrad and now I fly for a living but I would have done it either way assuming I'm to spend the money to fly at least 2 x a month. You can get a nice, non instrument airplane for the price of a nice car and I'm also an A&P mechanic so the cost owning my own plane is greatly decreased. I'm in the market for a float/ski/bush plane that I can use in AK. Good luck.

Where in AK are you?

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North Pole/Fairbanks. I'm in the AK ANG flying KC-135s, I flew A-10s on active duty but decided to get out and and stay here.

Former Soaring pilot here.Spent way too much time away from family on weekends. Don’t regret it...but it was a selfish sport.There was no way my wife would go up with me. Was just reading how the anual number of new soaring pilots has plummeted. Flying takes a big commitment. Once you start you want to stay practiced. You not only have to get air time, you must study and memorize a ton of stuff. ...all of which your life may depend on.
If you have a mentor it helps a lot.
If there is a club, you’ll get more out of it .
Go for your solo, and take it from there. You’ll know by then. It's a great discipline.

I remember my solo flight. Up about 2500 ft over a trailer court, I looked out and saw a hawk flying along me just a few yards off the tip of the wing . I specifically remember thinking "what the fuck am i doing up here"
Hahaha, you gotta keeps your wits about you.

Nothing like being in a flat spin in a glider. do or die.

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sometimes

Cool. I'm in Juneau. Lots of places for a float plane to explore.

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so you went from the sand to snow?

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sometimes

since you're getting this info on the net, consider what you paid for it and who the messengers are. ;-)
if i knew then what i know now i'd have learned in a tailwheel airplane. you can take a taildragger pilot, put them in a nosedragger, aka: tricycle gear, and they'll pick it right up. you take a nosedragger pilot and stick them in a taildragger and it'll be one of the most frustrating things you'll do. until you get it, then it'll be the most fun and you'll wish you would have learned in one.

leanring to fly is one thing, learning to fly well is something completely different. a taildragger instructor will know how to fly. i cant take credit for this, but flying a plane is more art than science. bush pilots have the rep as being kick ass pilots for a reason, and their transportation of choice is usually a tailwheel airplane.

also, in a perfect world, if you are fortunate enough to be close to a small, country airport vs something with a couple FBO's or a lot of business traffic you'll get more out of your time. i used to teach at addison airport in dallas, KADS. in the winter especially, id tell my students we need to be in the air at or slightly before sun up or we're just going to do ground school. when we'd have a break in the weather every weekend warrior would come out to fly. it would take 20-45 mins to get off the ground. if you have the plane for 60, or even 90 minutes, 30 mins to taxi, 10-15 to get to the practice area then get back, taxi in, does not leave a lot of learning time in the air.

i was in college taking lessons so i took a lot of lessons at sun up on weekdays, before my classes, and didn't have to worry to much about weekend traffic. i was very fortunate, i learned in a nosedragger but than goodness my instructor taught tailwheel also, so he yelled at me to use my feel like i was in a taildragger. you're feet are so much more important than you realize right now. when he was teaching me to land we would go to a small local airport. the runway was gravel at the time, it's paved now, and something like 2500-2700 ft long and 35 ft wide. if i would have learned to land at KADS, where the runway is 7200ft long, the gravel runway would have looked small. but it was just fine for our little cessna and it made me learn to put the plane where you i, and needed, it. the tolerances were much smaller on that runway vs a big runway. but if that's where you learn that is your normal.

when i was teaching and we'd have people move into the area and want to get checked out in our planes i'd take them to the "little" runway i soloed at. they'd be nervous at first because of it's size. i'd explain that if their engine quit they may only have a place that big to land on, or less. lets do it with an engine that works and see what's possible so if you have an emergency you'll have more options. once they learned to land there they always wanted to go back.

i did tell my students they should take glider lessons so they know what it's like to fly with no engine. and they should take some aerobatic lessons, so they know what to do if they end up in an unusual attitude. lots of good suggestions here and few i don't agree with, but that's my opinion, and it's free, and that's exactly what it's worth. i fly for a living and havent flown a small plane in years, and i do miss that. the big ones are a job, the small ones are fun. i love husky's for their versatility and view. but if you have a wife or someone who travels with you a lot a maule is cool. it's side by side so your passenger is next to you and their view is better than sitting behind you like in the husky.

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ΜΟΛΩΝ-ΛΑΒΕ
we're doomed

Just don't do what Han Solo did

http://www.nbcnews.com/...lane-airport-n720826

"Was that airliner meant to be underneath me?"

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"What's your claim?" - Ben Gravy
"Your best work is the work you're excited about" - Rick Rubin