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For Student Pilots

Thought I'd start the ball rolling by addressing aircraft ownership by new pilots. I know this will raise some eyebrows, but stay with me, 'cause it works well. If you can afford to rent a plane for your training, then you can probably afford to buy a $15,000 to $20,000 car on the dollar down, the rest when you can catch me plan (i.e. financing). If you can do that, you can buy a Cessna 150, one of the best trainers out there for civilian pilots. You need 40 hours to earn your certificate, 20 hours of which has to be with an instructor. So do the math. Instructor is required whether you own or rent, so his $1,000 doesn't count here. Fuel burn of 7 gph at $4.00 per hour for 40 hours. That's 280 gallons or $1,120. Add a couple of oil changes (which you can do yourself) for around $60 and you're at a total of $1,180. You've got to make monthly payments on your little gem, so figure it takes you 3 months to fly off the 40 hours. Payments on the plane should be in the $550 range, so now we add $1,650 for a grand total of $2,830 for the plane. Now figure the rental. Been a long time since I rented a 150, but I'd imagine it would be tough to find one for less than $75 an hour. 40 hours equals $3,000. Not much difference so far, right? Here's where the difference comes in. No two planes fly the same. Each has its own little quirks, and you have to get used to those differences. Here you are flying in 123U today, and 234V the next. You're learning about a whole new world and find yourself a very busy little pilot. Why not fly in the same plane every time? You're used to her and can concentrate on learning to fly. But here's the biggy - you probably bought at, say $20,000, you've put 40 hours on the plane ( which is next to nothing) and guess what? You can turn around and sell the little puppy for the same $20,000. More if you've given her lots of TLC and maybe an upgrade or two. My daughter used this system and actually made $1,000 over the total cost of getting her ticket. Food for thought.

retread Oct 28, 2008 16:42:05

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Owning An Aircraft

For those of us who love aviation, there is nothing more satisfying than owning your own personal ticket to freedom. What does it take to own: short answer, money. But not as much as many people seem to think. Prices and costs are all over the map. Some planes, especially these new LSAs and other small aircraft burn as little as 4 to 7 gallons per hour of fuel. Not bad. Buying the plane will depend entirely on your tastes. Fast and high, low and slow. Each has its appeal. How many seats do you want? 1, 2, 4, 6, 8? More seats, more money. My personal mount for the last 18 years has 8 seats, flys at 220 knots and burns close to 40 gph at 75%. I figure it costs me $300 per hour to fly, including all reserves. That's a cabin-class twin and most folks have no need for such a critter where I do have that need. Get a Mooney and you cut those expenses WAY down. You can buy a Mark 20 for under $50,000 and they're terrific airplanes. Get a Cessna 150 and you take another big drop in expenses. I have no personal experience with the LSAs, but I suspect those will be cheaper yet, once everything settles down. Bottom line is, yeah, it costs a bit, but DANG it's worth it! That's your baby sitting out at the airport and you can go fly her anytime you take a notion to do so. The greatest freedom left to us is yours for the taking.

retread Oct 31, 2008 02:21:54

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Forum >> Aircraft Ownership

For Student Pilots

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Owning An Aircraft

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