New PPL's who never fly again

[vegancruiser]

I think I read somewhere (maybe in this forum) that about 50% of newly qualified PPLs never fly again after passing their skills test, and wondered if this startling statistic has any truth. I only mention this because I'm in danger of becoming part of the statistic myself!

Can't really explain why but I'm having difficulty maintaining the momentum. It's not for financial reasons, although I'm not 'rich'; more to do with a lack of confidence, paradoxically. Also can't decide if I should continue flying the same - club - aircraft I learned in (Cessna 152), join a group, or even buy my own aircraft, perhaps a 3-axis microlight. I've got a PPL(A) but have hardly flown since passing the skills test last June.

[ChickenHouse]

Heard the same, about 50% not doing their first biannual. A friend with a flight school told me that of his students about 1/3 never set foot in a GA plane again after doing their license. I can only speak for me, but the confidence to really be able to be a pilot took about 100h after license. So, if you really want to continue flying, get a cheap plane, or share, or marry rich & old, or just hang out the bushes with hangar flying until a good friend let you fly his plane.

[Camargue]

lack of confidence makes sense.

you've done your ppl, you know the area around you well but just pottering around it is boring. going further afield is interesting but you don't quite feel comfortable doing it, what if the weather deteriorates, or you get lost or the donk stops.

perfectly normal.
Having spent the money, why not find someone to fly with, then you have a companion who you can go exploring with and enjoy the flying. sure there are plenty of people who would be delighted to share their flying

[Lukesdad]

To be fair, it is a bit of a struggle after you pass your skills test. Up to that point, your instructor has set the goals to be attained in every flight, he/she has organised the aircraft and made the judgement about weather conditions versus your abilities and also given you the confidence that there is nothing that can happen that he/she can't sort out.

Also, where you once had priority because you were a student generating income for the flight school, when you become just 'another PPL' I think you tend to feel a little isolated.

[Shaggy Sheep Driver]

What type of pilot are you? a 'going places' type, or a 'fly for fun' type? Some pilots are both, but not many.

If 'going places' get a share in a tourer (even a simple Cherrytree) and fly with group members to various destinations to build up your confidence.

If 'fly for fun' get a share in something interesting and responsive, preferably aerobatic and tail wheel, and get checked out and rated in it. You'll have no problems with confidence once that's under your belt.

[Sam Rutherford]

Find someone (experienced) who wants to do a fun trip, and go along with them paying half the costs (and doing half the flying). You'll be learning as much as co-pilot as actually hands-on - possibly more...

[rnzoli]

Don't lose sight what you brought into aviation in the first place. :ok:

Never let lack of confidence deter from your flight, keep your currency, select easier flights in that case, nicer days, less crowded airfields etc, and if all else fails, bring an instructure on board :)

I do share the paradox feeling though.

As a low-time pilot, I recognized that my pre-flight preparations were mostly filled with anxiety, but in some cases, I sense a little fear too, especially when I try to prepare for all the things which can go wrong.

Funny enough, I calm down when I get into the airplane, test the flight controls and the engine starts to purr. The rest is all down to what I learnt and, prepared for, emergency procedures included.

The worst situation for me are those flights, which are cancelled due to weather, aircraft glitches, etc. Then I only have the anxious part, but not the joy part. :{

[BroomstickPilot]

Hi vegancruiser,

Actually, the number I think you are referring to is that 70% of private pilots fail to renew their licences at the end of the first 5 years.

There are numerous reasons for this, but I don't think lack of confidence features highly among these. The ones I know of are as follows: -

1. Once having flown friends and family on the new licence, and bought a few £150 bacon butties, people become bored and pack in.

2. Long before having got that licence, the realisation of the full and ever rising cost of flying has horrified them and so they keep it up until they get their licence and then call it a day.

3. They become sick of the gross over-regulation and stupidity of EASA.

4. They are young and married and a baby comes along needing all their spare dosh.

5. They finally become sick of flying boring spam-cans but can't afford to take up aerobatics or some other more interesting form of flying.

6. They lose their medical for some reason.

7. They lose their job and have to cut back on expenditure while out of work.

There are other reasons, but I can't think of any for the moment.

Regards,

BP.

[P6 Driver]

As a non-PPL holder, one reason I never committed to going for my licence in the first place is that I was advised to sit down and think long and hard about what I would be doing with it a year, then two years+ after qualifying.


This was a way of getting me to think about the longer term elements rather than go for the "rush of blood" approach and based on long analysis, I decided not to try for it. This obviously leaves me with the feeling of never knowing for certain whether I would have qualified for a PPL, but I'd rather that than spend the money and put in the effort through the training just to find that I didn't utilise it fully.

[Heston]

Assuming we are talking about leisure aviation, what on earth is wrong with getting your PPL and then packing it in? It doesn't matter. It doesn't make you a bad person. Its not a waste of money as long as you had FUN getting your PPL in the first place.


On the other hand I do think there are folk who don't think further than getting the licence and haven't any idea of what to do next. It analogous in a way to blokes who retire and then don't know what to do and hang around at home getting under their wives' feet, because they haven't thought further than retirement day. For those PPLs its a shame because if they had thought it through and saw the licence simply as one milestone on their journey, they'd have a great time.


I prescribe three-axis microlights to cure the ills listed by BroomstickPilot (oh, apart from No. 4) :)

[foxmoth]

Decide what YOU want to do with your flying and set some goals, doing the PPL is a target and that is why many pack in after, they reach the goal and then do not know where to go from there, setting a new target gives focus, a good one for a new PPL is something like the UH Advanced PPL course, otherwise look at doing a basic aeros course with an aim at taking part in a basic competition aeros event/do the IMC or basic IR course/learn to fly a Taildragger/flying abroad to a destination well into Europe - another pilot to do this in tandem with is good here, whatever you do a target will help, and once you reach this target you will probably have more of an idea how you want to use your PPL.

[Simon T]

P6. Then you'll never know �� I only wish I had gotten my licence when I was in my twenties rather than my fifties

For me the sheer joy of flying just for the fun of swooping around some fluffy cumulus clouds on a summers morning looking down on the English countryside made all the training worth while.

Simon

[thing]

For me the sheer joy of flying just for the fun of swooping around some fluffy cumulus clouds on a summers morning looking down on the English countryside made all the training worth while.

Yup. Been flying in one form or another for 25 years and I never get sick of doing just that. As a kid I used to watch the bigger birds thermalling and basically just going where they wanted to, I always wanted to be up there with them. Now I can do it and the elation is just the same as the first time I did it. We're not really supposed to be up there and flying to me is a privilege that I never tire of.

[Gertrude the Wombat]

There are other reasons, but I can't think of any for the moment.
I can:

8. Getting a PPL was just something on their "to do" list. Having ticked that off, they've moved on to the next thing, maybe cave diving or extreme knitting.

[Private jet]

Yes, there are loads of them, you either need to go on to professional flying or have a disposable income that you are willing to spend/ blow (for a line in your logbook) on getting off the ground. There are a few clever posters on here who "advertise" their employers service under the guise of enthusiasm & the "love of flying"
The entire flight training industry NEEDS raw meat. That is why the entire profession has gone to pot.

[thing]

Getting a PPL was just something on their "to do" list. Having ticked that off, they've moved on to the next thing, maybe cave diving or extreme knitting. Nothing wrong with that though and I suppose FTO's aren't that bothered either. Keeps the air clear for the dyed in the wool fanatics as well.

There are a few clever posters on here who "advertise" their employers service under the guise of enthusiasm & the "love of flying"

I'm probably reading you wrong here but if you don't fly for the love of it then why bother? Not counting professional pilots obviously who all to a man seem to hate it.

[Private jet]

Quite right Thing.

You were very selective in your quote though. I refer any reader to the last line of my previous post.

The entire flight training industry NEEDS raw meat. That is why the entire profession has gone to pot.

[thing]

I'm not sure what you mean, why does an FTO needing new students mean that it's gone to pot? Genuine question.

[9 lives]

What's the objective?

If the objective was to earn a PPL, frame it, and move on to the next thing, so be it.

If the objective is to be a pilot, be assured that earning a PPL is just one milestone along that path. If you would like to be a pilot, think well beyond earning your PPL.

An objective could be to achieve a feeling of confidence flying an aircraft type or operation of your choice. You can enjoy working toward that for years.

[Private jet]

Thing.
The flight training industry constantly needs new recruits , be it the likes of the professional airline providers or local little airfields. The training industry needs per hour fee's while the individual is training but once they are fully licensed (as far as they want to go) they are redundant as far as the training industry is concerned and they need MORE to keep going. So the hunt is continuously on, with quite frankly a lot of salesmanship and over enthusiastic false "promises". From the professional side this has destroyed aviation as a profession due to flooding the industry with pilots, and from the amateur side it constantly produces a lot of people who spend a lot of money for what?? a cheap $hit coloured book.

[150 Driver]

Hire a plane (suggest the familiar 152) for a couple of hours (prob after a checkflight), think of somewhere different to fly to similar to what you've experienced before but not somewhere you've visited before and JFDI.

Once the nosewheel is off the ground the fears will disappear as you get down to problem solving. Once on the ground the other end you will either think (a) that was easy, what was the concern or (b) stuffed up this that or the other, how do I stop that ? Either way you have to fly back...

And once down you'll be reaching for the diary for the next booking

[tecman]

And here's me thinking Victor Meldew was a fictional creation....

To the OP, reducing your flying now is a bad move from a skills perspective. At your stage, you really need practice and any one of the paths you mention will give you that. If you get into a arrangement which allows you to participate in the operational and social side of flying, then find you still want to move on, do so with good grace. My own recollection is that flying some long trips (either LH or RH seat) with experienced pilots helped greatly.

30 years later I'm still flying, and have enjoyed using my PPL all over the world. It's like anything worthwhile, though, in that commitment and initiative are needed. That's doesn't seem to stand in the way of the enjoyment, and I see the same silly grin on the faces of all pilots, whatever they emerge from when it's time to go home.

[Viola]

I'm with posts 2,3 and 4 - in many cases it's confidence.

When you're training the instructor in effect makes the final judgement on the weather, keeps an eye on your planning, etc. You're in a routine - goals are set, the aircraft is booked, so you turn up regularly and keep going. Even if you feel nervous your instructor gives you confidence.

Once the PPL is passed you have to make the effort to keep going and make your own judgements. The instructors will be looking after new students (though in a good school they'll still be encouraging). It's easy to find excuses not to go.

Though it's good to do a few flights with experienced pilots, if you do it too much you can end up relying on them and so you're no better off. The best thing is to find a flying buddy at roughly your own level. You then get into a routine of planning and going flying. If you can't do that, set yourself a simple target - not too difficult as it needs to be easily achieved. Make sure you do achieve it and then set another one, just a bit harder, and keep going.

Once you've increased your hours, do another qualification - night flying, tailwheel or IMC (or whatever it is). Even if you don't use it, you'll have widened your experience.

Otherwise I've come across people who've dropped out because they underestimated the cost/financial circumstances changed or because they'd set a target to achieve a PPL and didn't really want to carry on.

Personally I just love flying :)

[thing]

From the professional side this has destroyed aviation as a profession due to flooding the industry with pilots, and from the amateur side it constantly produces a lot of people who spend a lot of money for what?? a cheap $hit coloured book.

Can't speak for the professional side but I didn't spend a lot of money for a cheap **** coloured book. I want to fly, I enjoy flying. To fly you need a license. Why would I spend any money at all on flying if I didn't enjoy it?

I don't like tennis, I have no interest in it at all; therefore according to your argument I should go to a tennis club and spend a wedge of money to learn to play tennis which I would hate and then as soon as I have passed an imaginary 'tennis exam' I should pack it in and tell everyone what a waste of time it was and how I ended up with a cheap, **** looking 'tennis exam' diploma.

There is no logic to what you are saying unless you are some kind of masochist (which I accept, this is 2015 and we should embrace all) who enjoys doing stuff that you don't enjoy doing.

[Maoraigh1]

I got my PPL in 1964 - and stopped flying in early 1965. I enjoyed flying but couldn't afford it.
I got my PPL back in March 1987, and have flown regularly since. Over 1970 hours solo. The original licence was worth getting for the hours it saved me later.
First, fly enough to feel relaxed in the plane. Then find what you can afford and enjoy. I've been in a Jodel DR1050 Group for over 25 years. £60 per tach hour, £50 per month, and the £1600 (1990) share is now worth £2200.

[foxmoth]

Not counting professional pilots obviously who all to a man seem to hate it.

Whilst many of us do lose sight of why we started flying in the first place, and PJ sounds like a prime example of this, there are others professional pilots who DO actually continue flying because we enjoy it, I have kept my instructors ticket valid for the last 30+ years for no other reason!:hmm:

[Pace]

FoxMoth

I agree I fly professionally because I enjoy it the day I don't enjoy it will be the day to hang up the spurs.

Obviously there are times you wonder why the hell you are doing this? a load of hassle,problems, things going wrong etc but other days you realise why you continue to fly?

before 911 I always used to go up front and spend time with the crew! I remember two contrasts! One captain could not remember the last time he flew a GA aircraft!

Another Captain when I asked what he did for fun pulled out a picture of a Pitts aerobatic machine from his wallet and proudly said that this was his baby ))
He said he flew aerobatics in his time off

a true lover of his trade and flying

Pace

[SidT]

So I was one of those statistics for 23 years.....

My Story (sorry, wall of text!)

Got my licence in 1987 thanks to a flying scholarship from the Air Cadets aged 18.

Due to a lack of "A" levels and a very minor medical issue that would have probably stopped me flying fast jets, my thoughts of going silly speeds for the RAF faded. Not having the £28k available to get myself on the BA Ab Initio scheme at that time also stopped me from pursuing a career in commercial aviation.

Kept my licence going (just) for 3 years flying club aircraft; just scraping in my (at that time) 6hrs per year doing friends and family local flights.. not even landing away (lack of confidence).. and some of that 6 hrs per year was of course check circuits with a club instructor due to the 30-day rule.

After those 3 years in September 1990 I bought my first property, with mortgage, and was immediately broke ... at least broke enough to not be able to fly.

My passion for flying never went away but went on hold.

Every year I would ask myself... "can I afford to go flying?" and every year I answered either a flat out "no" or "well maybe, but not much and there are other things I could/should spend the money on".

Then almost 23 years to the day since the last time I was PIC, I suprosed myself by answering "yes, actually I can, I want to and I will".

I went back to the flying club I originally trained with (one of only 3 clubs at the airport I flew from tht was still going out of about 8), got myself an instructor and took the plunge (hmmm.. bad expression here I guess!).

Since September 2013 I have:
- regained my licence. (CofE, whatever ;) )
- bought into a group aircraft
- done my IMC / IR(R) rating
- completed my night rating
- flown over 130 hours

Yup it cost me a lot of money, but boy have I had an excellent time and I fully intend to continue.

Of all the things I've done aviation-wise in the last 16 months, buying into a good group aircraft with at least one person that I fly with regularly has got to be the best decision I ever made.

He is a far more experienced pilot than me and I am learning all the time (I guess we all are really)... We go to airfields I'd never even heard of before and each time I visit a new airfield I learn something new (even if it's just their local procedures/noise abatement!).

I even had enough confidence to hire an aircraft whilst on holiday in Crete and after a check-flight with the school's instructor flew my wife around the Eastern hald of the isalnd one day in our first week and flew from Crete to Santorini in our second week... fantastic adventure.

Pleasure flying means different things to different people, but if I hadn't bought into the group aircraft I would probably already be getting bored with doing friends and family locals (and the odd away-day).

My general impression is that between 1987 and today GA activity has slimmed-down, diversified (many more microlights) and spread out from the licensed areodrome hubs to the farm strips (although I still fly from a licensed, "traditional", airfield).

But GA is definitely not dead yet and I now have many aviation friends of all ages, experince, aircraft types, airfields etc etc. But it does cost money and you need to think about how best to spend what you've got.

Each time I fly I can't help but realise how privileged it is to see the world from a different perspective.... so much so that I now volunteer for the Air Cadets to hoepfully give back something to an organisation that provided me the opportunity in the first place.

Sadly though, another of the adult volunteers at my Air Cadet Squadron who passed his PPL aged 23 last year has just had to take the tough decision to stop flying because he wanted to put the money towards his house-buying deposit fund and was struggling to keep interested doing friends and family local trips with the odd instructor circuit due to the 30-day rule at his club....

My comment to him.... "just wait 23 years and you'll be back!"

[CISTRS]

I NEVER regarded a light aircraft and a PPL as suitable for a means of transport in the UK. I never wanted to fly myself in IMC, nor fly at night.
The sheer inconvenience of not having my car available at a destination field put severe dampers on XC. My Qualifying Cross Country flight was, for a long time the longest flight that I had made.

I did fly taildraggers, finding spamcans intensely boring.

I acquired a share in an aerobatic Pilatus B-4 glider, and my hours increased dramatically every summer, to overtake my power hours.
I think the best flying fun I had was as a Civilian Gliding Instructor with an ATC VGS. It was structured, different tasks (I enjoyed winch driving), and we were flying Sedburghs and Cadet Mk3s with open cockpits...and in an excellent social context. Happy days.

I can understand why new(ish) PPLs lose interest.

[ChickenHouse]

Many discussion bits meandering around here ... let reflect on the original crucial point - lack of confidence.
If lack of confidence is not overcome, why?

This was never an issue for me, because when I was doing PPL, I got to know quite a few pilots as friends. They took me to place, I would never be gone to without a small plane. I still remember great trips, where one of them called me Saturday morning after weather for the weekend was there and we would fly to a place I had not thought of. It is amazing in Europe which locations are nearby by means of a light aircraft, where you would never drive by car! Yes, you have times where you almost piss your pants, but in the right crowd it does not matter.

Always keep in mind (although nowadays in rotten Europe this wisdom seem to be politically and ideologically forced driven to the back of the mind): The greatest personal achievement is behind the biggest fear and concern.

[SidT]

I think for me the reason for lack of confidence at 18 when I passed my PPL was that I had done all of the training in an intense one-month period - which seemed great at the time, but on reflection it did not allow me really socialise with the other pilots at the flying club very much.

Because of this I didn't really get to know any very well to be able to go flying with them afterwards.

[Pace]

I think we all probably go through times when we think of chucking it in.

i remember when I started flying i came into flying from car racing which I gave up when I lost my sponsor.
i had little money back then and originally found flying quite tame in comparison!

i decided to just go to solo stage when I could say I had flown a circuit in an aircraft by myself and then I would chuck it in.
I did the solo and the next goal was the PPL and then who knows?

i got the PPL and still with little money and other commitments went through the post PPL stage of flying friends and family around the local area on short trips which was all I could afford playing out the top gun image :ok:

then that became boring and expensive.

Shared trips with pilot friends broadened the horizon and brought back the interest as we were visiting new places further afield and that lead to a new challenge the IMCR.

i was then offered cheap flying in a Mooney by the owner friend and all was hunky Dory flying a complex and quick retractable until something happened which seriously made me nearly give up.
my friend the owner crashed it into a mountain killing himself and his passenger and for weeks I had no interest in flying to the point of wanting to give it up.

Somehow the interest came back and I moved onto new challenges in twins and eventually in Jets where I now fly as a captain.

It is important that you have goals and new challenges and accept that it is normal to find your interest wain

I have some fabulous memories especially in the twins and jets experienced things very few do! seen places very few do, Been amazed at some of the views and sometimes scared to bits.

How many have left Iceland at Dawn and landed in Greenland at Dawn with the sun not moving the whole way or landed into Dallas at the dead of night with all the city lights.

How many have taken off from India into a Monsoon where there were so many flashes that the sky was permanent day.
how many have landed in the middle of Saudi at a military base with 2000 meters in dust changing in seconds as the jet flared to land to 100 meters in a sand storm to the point that I had to shut down on the runway.

All the different challenges and cultures you see flying through Africa and many more which leave memories which are priceless so many memories.But I have been lucky.

But you must always move forwards as nothing in life is static and if it is static it becomes boring and life has a habit of changing that for you for better or worse

I remember reading a theory about memory pointers in life. I bet you cannot remember what you did on March the 22nd 3 years ago? You will remember pointers like weddings, Births and funerals or specific things which are memory pointers but on the whole each day runs into another day quickly forgotten.

This theory was that the more pointers you had the more rich and varied your life would be. Also remember that pointers can be bad events or memories too.

flying is like that! Many flights we do we cannot remember but specific flights or pointer flights we do so fill your flying with as many pointers as you can and if they are not there create them :ok:hopefully NOT the bad ones :ok: :E

Pace

[thing]

I got my PPL in 1964 By my maths that makes you at least in your 90's. Well done you, I hope I'm still flying at that age.

[Maoraigh1]

Born 1941. PPL at age 23. Regained in1987 at age 46. Hope to still have EASA Class 2 in 2031.
This year is still 2015 so not quite ?? yet. I'll leave the maths problem to Thing.

[thing]

Apologies, I've never been good at sums.

[mary meagher]

Maoraigh1 -( sounds a bit Irish, with that spelling!)

Dear me. people running out of money, getting bored, losing confidence, quit flying. Well, I was born in Jan. 1933, and didn't climb into a glider until I was 50, when my first husband went off with another woman....

Best thing I ever did. Ever since 1983, belonging to a gliding club, going through the training to solo in 3 months, and then cross country, and then flying in Wales, Scotland, French Alps, and sitting around in the gliding club yakking....doing my stint of helping at the launchpoint, becoming an instructor, translating the gliding into the PPL with only 18 hours needed to do that, and then becoming tug pilot, each step another challenge. Never forgot the elation of that first solo, of being able to say I am a pilot! love it!.

Sensibly, I now fly with a safety pilot, and this very day, 18 January, 2015, when the fog finally cleared, took an airtow to 2,000', the air smooth as silk, seemed to be gently rising everywhere. That poor instructor sat in the front seat and never protested, endured my takeoff, 2 spins, 3 negative gravity humpty bumps, and my thoughtful circuit, followed by a precision landing exactly where planned.....havn't lost it yet, ho ho! and my only problem is climbing out when its over, knees a bit creaky. Then back to the nice warm clubhouse, and more gossip. Plans for next summer. I am still able to say in my heart I am a pilot. And I am exceedingly proud of that.

[thing]

Ah, hang on I'm getting Mary and Maoraigh mixed up, sorry Maoraigh. Still Mary, flying in your 80's, got to be good. Pal of mine is 77 and still a display pilot.

[FANS]

Threads like this remind me why there will always be GA...people love it!

[Rocket2]

I got my PPL in 1978 (silver C conversion from gliding) so that I could become a tug pilot & SLMG instructor - only needed 5 hours of circuit bashing & GFT etc to get the licenses, then my confidence took a pounding the first time I set off on my first X-country in a powered aircraft, I rapidly became "unsure of my position" (navigating in a slow moving glider was so much easier in those days) & had to revert to getting a fix off D & D, seldom have I been so embarrassed & nearly gave up at that point.
Took some navigation lessons & still fly every weekend that I'm able to resulting in many 100s of hours towing gliders & a few less flying tourers in some beautiful parts of the world (Hawaii was probably the most memorable) & having fun looking around the UK, soaring amongst the clouds & realising that we live in a truly green & pleasant land.
Why do I do it? I love that short lived freedom & the people within the flying world, we are a special & very lucky bunch!
Will I ever give flying up? Not as long as my heart is still beating, yes it can be darned frustrating, even frightening at times but there's nowt else like it

[The Old Fat One]

As an instructor at a pretty elitist military establishment I had a number of students quit immediately on passing the course. All of them offered the explanation that they knew it was not for them, but they were dammed if they we going to quit before they had passed. It's called human nature and it will account for some (but not all) of the statistics.

also, enjoyed your post Mary.

[AN2 Driver]

One version of that story (PPL and never again) will go along the lines of the applicant trying to fulfil his "life long dream" with a resigned wife tolerating the training in an "if you must" attitude with the clear idea that the same guy who can't hang up a picture straight or fix the broken toilet flush at home will anyway never graduate.

Then he does... shock, horror. And she will go and fly with him after having nervous breakdowns each time they fly airline to the canaries and come back down a nervous wreck, doing a JP II on the tarmac and voting with her refound feet never on the pain of death coming close again to one of these infernal machines. Followed by nagging on cost, "time you could spend with me", e.t.c and that was it...

Seen it in variants, over and over again. So before folks should start spending serious cash on flight instruction, a good idea will be to get their partners on board, possible organize a flight with friends or other people to see if once they have their ticket, they will share the passion. If not, walk away (either from flying or....)

I'm lucky that I never had this problem in my life. My former relationship got into flying herself eventually, my wife enjoys our plane and even my mother enjoyed the few times she flew with my then ride (C150).

On the personal side, getting the PPL should be a means to an end, not an end to the means. Getting a license for the sake of that, well, the result is predictable. Getting it in order to fly, to travel, to do things, they may look differently.

[FANS]

There is little logical about spending £hundreds of pounds on a morning to risk your life in a battered 30 year old spamcam, waiting hours for the weather to be suitable, and following checklists that the un-initiated would think would be excessive for space flight.

And then you take off!!

[flyinkiwi]

The thought of quitting after I got my PPL never occurred to me, and even now I find it incredulous that someone would pour a significant portion of their time, effort and money into such a venture only to walk away. I see flying as part of who I am, and while I know there will come a day when I will have to surrender my medical I will still fly (with an instructor next to me) until I cannot get into the aircraft any more.

[Victorian]

Something I've not seen referred to here is the very high probability of getting shouted at as a low time PPL flying in UK. I'd say that a single event of this type chokes off quite a lot of new PPL's who never come back as a direct result. My evidence is as follows:

a) It's perfectly possible as a high time PPL in UK to get shouted at, so heaven help the low timers!

b) Shouting at PPL's is a UK national trait that can be seen and heard clearly, not just at airfields, but on the radio and on this and other forums***.

My personal solution to this negative mentality, the high costs and the suffocating bureaucracy was to start flying in the States once I had a PPL and about 60 Hrs. Without this, I would probably have given up as well. With it, I had no trouble keeping current each year in an environment that was hassle free, exciting and capable of limitless reward. That's why I still do it, more than 30 yrs later.

*** by "shouting at" I'm referring to all the kinds of intimidation that is dished out to PPL's by instructors, ATC, FISO's and various assorted airfield hangers on, all too often in front of the poor sop's passengers. Just look at the endless cases of 'infringements' every month in the UK where the pilot should have been helped by a flight following service, not reported to the authorities.

[Dr Jekyll]

Something I've not seen referred to here is the very high probability of getting shouted at as a low time PPL flying in UK.

Especially at Elstree 10-15 years ago. There were two FISOs who seemed to alternate, first question on arriving to fly was 'Which one is on duty today, the nice one or the grumpy one?'

[Simon T]

I am more than happy to take feedback, from anyone, but if someone starts shouting, or being rude they will get more than they bargain for. I may be a novice pilot but I am not a novice person ;)

Simon

[AdamFrisch]

Something I've not seen referred to here is the very high probability of getting shouted at as a low time PPL flying in UK. I'd say that a single event of this type chokes off quite a lot of new PPL's who never come back as a direct result. My evidence is as follows:

a) It's perfectly possible as a high time PPL in UK to get shouted at, so heaven help the low timers!

b) Shouting at PPL's is a UK national trait that can be seen and heard clearly, not just at airfields, but on the radio and on this and other forums***.

My personal solution to this negative mentality, the high costs and the suffocating bureaucracy was to start flying in the States once I had a PPL and about 60 Hrs. Without this, I would probably have given up as well. With it, I had no trouble keeping current each year in an environment that was hassle free, exciting and capable of limitless reward. That's why I still do it, more than 30 yrs later.

*** by "shouting at" I'm referring to all the kinds of intimidation that is dished out to PPL's by instructors, ATC, FISO's and various assorted airfield hangers on, all too often in front of the poor sop's passengers. Just look at the endless cases of 'infringements' every month in the UK where the pilot should have been helped by a flight following service, not reported to the authorities.

I have to agree here. When I flew in the UK there was a lot more aggressiveness-to-flying-ratio than here in the US. A lot of busy bodies telling you off, basically. From the rude A/G at Goodwood and Elstree, to the unhelpful and short tempered radar services. Or the time I got chastised by London Ctrl for about to break into some airspace when I was nearing the edge and had good GPS (I was clearly out). Tell me off if I'm busting it, not because you think I might.

[rnzoli]

'Which one is on duty today, the nice one or the grumpy one?'
Already during our theoretical training, we were told that bad behaviour on the radio can be a serious safety issue, and we should always take this with cool attitude, and just ignore for the sake of safety, if needed.

Case in point: back in year 2000, a C-172 crashed and burnt on takeoff from our airfield, killing 3 and seriously injuring 1 person. The AFIS was provided by the glider operations in progress that day, and the person on duty was a grumpy one. He shouted twice at the low time pilot preparing for his takeoff, first when the pilot wanted to take off opposite to the glider winching direction due to recent change in wind direction. Second time the AFIS shouted at the pilot when he was in the middle of his take-off checklist, testing the flaps. The grumpy voice was asking why was he such a turtle, and urging him to hurry up now and start the take-off roll immediately, due to incoming gliders that want to land soon.

The effect was predictable, the poor guy took off in a rush, with flaps forgotten in landing position, against a slightly rising terrain. He didn't have the experience to realize this and solve it somehow, even with a controlled crash landing ahead. Instead the landing flaps were retracted in one go and the aircraft entered a low-level turn, stalling and falling from about 30 meters.

This was a sober reminder to us, that safety is first, angry shouting to be ignored at all times, and if necessary, handled after landing with a phone call or a personal visit.

[thing]

They only shout at you because you're flying and they ain't. It's perfectly understandable.

On a more serious note, just ignore them or come up with a pithy reply. There is a well known club in a flat bit of the country that has an air to ground guy of superb ill temper. I was inbound once and and gave 'G*** inbound request airfield info.' To which I got the usual garbled

'You are unintelligable', this from a guy that gives mumblers a bad name.

My immediate reply,

'Does your life have any purpose?'

'G*** say again?'

'G*** downwind to land'

:E

[rogergps]

So I'm a current PPL student. Dabbled a bit 10 years ago after being made redundant and getting a chunk of cash. Thought of training full time for CPL and flying as a change in career, but chose to carry on with existing career to get to a point where I enjoy it as a hobby. Fast forward to now - everything has come together very nicely and I have the money and the time to do just that.


I am now loving every minute, having recently restarted. Whilst I cannot for one minute imagine getting my licence and then stopping, I am perfectly accepting of the fact that at some point it may no longer grab my interest and I may well get to the point where I have satisfied my lust for learning a new skill. If so, I have no problem in that whatsoever, but as I say, right now, I cannot imagine that happening. Every time I think I can't get more excited by the whole experience, it just gets better and better.

[m.Berger]

It could have been me but for a Minimax I could afford. Next month it is all mine and the summer beckons. No range, no speed, no passengers but SSDR and a pretty thing that flies. A small aeroplane can cost as little as a ten year old sports car or a year's membership of a golf club so if you can handle the fear, you can do it.

[piperpal]

So, I see where you're coming from and having done my PPL here in Perth some 15-20 years ago I flew around the local areas out of Jandakot with friends and family. Did trips over to Rottnest Island and enjoyed interacting with ATC to fly into Perth Airspace for views over the city. I even flew up and down the coast to Bussleton and Dongara/ Geraldton.

As time went by I still enjoyed the flying but found I was going less and less frequently until latter years really only flew 1 or 2 times a year. At this point and with the ever increasing prices and also with my less frequent flying leading to less confidence in the busy area that we are in I finally didn't bother at all.

In the early days I always wanted to Instruct just for the pleasure of instructing but could not justify the CPL and Instructor Course costs that I would have incurred on top of the PPL and so didn't peruse it.

Skip forward and now I have converted to a far more cost effective form of flying? It is both challenging and fun and also allows me to not only own my own aircraft but take it and fly it just about anywhere on a trailer... Yes Microlighting (flexwing). On top of this I am now embarking on gaining hours and experience to get an Instructors rating and get involved in promoting this affordable and fun form of aviation.

Don't get me wrong, flying GA was fun too but I can justify my Microlights easier :ok:

[condor17]

Local club down this way encourages the new , or not so new pilots ; by having a '' flying buddys '' page on 't web . To intro like minded people to encourage each other to get airborne with a buddy . Likewise 2 new guys have today formed a group and bought a less ''expensive'' a/c .
The link to the LAA can encourage , interesting flying .....

Welcome to the Light Aircraft Association (http://www.lightaircraftassociation.co.uk/)

'' Blue side up ''

condor .