Group advice - NW England

[742-xx]

Having passed my Skills Test at the start of November I am now looking for a share, ideally at Barton. I live near Crewe, therefore the location is pretty 'fluid'.

Firstly, where the hell do I start looking :eek:?! The magazines I have looked through seem to have a pitiful selection.

Also what are the potential 'pit-falls'? Probably there will be many but what are the main ones.

I have been 'advised' to steer clear of the 'no equity' schemes as they are supposedly booked for months in advance and it's therefore very difficult to get to use the 'plane.

Many questions, I know, but any advice would be very much appreciated !!

Thanks in advance.

[sammypilot]

If you have only recently passed your skills test you may have difficulty in buying into a group. Many specify a reasonable number of hours flown and in some cases an IMC rating must be held.

Taking into account where you live and the fact that Barton is getting more and more unfriendly to GA, why not try Sleap to get some hours under your belt. The club there hires at reasonable rates and has a reasonable sized fleet.

[Established Localiser]

In fairness Barton is not negative to GA , the only thing at the moment is a boggy field but that comes with Grass Flying.

You will get a decent share , just don't rush into it, think carefully about what you want to do with your new PPL such as IMC, Touring or just a local bimble every now and again, also think about how many hours a year you are likely to fly? and do the sums !! Hiring vs Group Ownership.

Group Ownership can be delightful but can also be a nightmare , I have experienced both ! turn up jump in and off to Le Touquet for 3 days are amongst the highlights, bickering, and high maintainence bills are amongst the downsides.

The time of year will affect the amount of adds on the notice board , have a good look at the Aircraft , speak to as many of the members as possible and ask to see the Finances, don't be shy about asking questions like any outstanding bills , maintainence , hangerage .

Good luck , I don't want to put you off , I am in a group at the moment and it works superb.

Good Luck

EL

[flybymike]

The "Flyer" forum has a group membership section which is worth trying.

Group flying is definitely the way to go for a decent aircraft and good availablity, but make no mistake that unless you join a large group ( when availabilty will suffer ) it can work out much more expensive than renting. It only takes a £22000 bill for an annual and new engine to ruin your day ( I have been there....)

[Beethoven]

Check PM.s

Beet

[C172 Hawk XP]

It only takes a £22000 bill for an annual and new engine to ruin your day ( I have been there....)

Totally agreed ! I (we) have been there too !

The important thing is that we LEARNED from that painful experience ! So now we pay a small contribution with each hour flown which goes into our "engine fund" which is kept in a high interest deposit account.

We are not expecting to have to replace our present engine until 2010, but if the unexpected occurred next month . . . . . we're ready !

[GIZZAJOB]

Dude , Check out aircraftgrouping.com based at Barton and Blackpool , cheap flying and no mistake .
As for Barton being Ga Unfriendly , as commercial operators are few and far between there they without GA it would just be a field with a police helicopter at the side , oh and an air ambulance , not really very good that.
Yeh AGL is a no equity group and anyone who tells you its booked solid is an arse and unlikely a group member. Yes weekends are a bit of a pain in the neck and do need some bookings in advance , but during the week its never a problem AGL has about 9 aircraft. based at both barton and bpool . I think you would find the same if you had a share in a 172 with ten members , so do what suits you , visit Flight Acadmey at blackppol and see the booking slots for yourself . I have afriend who recently our built using agl and h had a PA28 to himself almost every day .

[Rod1]

You may find that Tatenhill and the surrounding strips are a possibility. The A50 will get you close in no time and is much less congested than the motorway.

Rod1

[Fright Level]

I have been 'advised' to steer clear of the 'no equity' schemes as they are supposedly booked for months in advance and it's therefore very difficult to get to use the 'plane.

That's not my experience. Don't steer clear, just go an look and ask the questions you want. The advantage of a no equity scheme is that it's easier to get in (and out) of such a group and the flying costs are only a touch higher than they might be if you had £5-10k invested.

For the aircraft owner it works as he can easily "let go" any members he doesn't like so on the whole the group could work better.

I've been in a shared equity group of 4 and a non equity group of 10. The latter had better availability and there was no bickering between the members so with my equity money in a high interest account, I know which one works for me!