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Old 28th May 2010 | 14:24
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Genghis the Engineer
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: CPL
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A bit more general advice:

- Join the BMAA now, you'll need them, and the magazine is worth it alone.

- 3rd generation aircraft with 2-stroke engines will cost you around £3k and cruise around 40-50kn, later higher performance flexwings with 2/4 stroke engines around £6k, high performance newer 4-stroke aircraft will cruise around 65-70kn, and cost you around £10k-£30k.

- A trailer is something you really want, and obviously a towbar on your car.

- Get somebody to train you up in rigging and derigging as well as flying, it's not intuitive!

- Buy a really decent thermal flying suit / combo - you won't regret this! Also good motorcycle gloves, ideally something like moped gloves that don't have too much armour and thus allow you to operate radio buttons.

- Lots of people will tell you about cost, but my rule of thumb for a regular-flying microlight owner is that if you about double the fuel spend for a 2-stroke aircraft, or treble it for a 4-stroke, you'll be about right.

And yes, it's every bit as much fun as you think it will be.

G
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