Thanks for the post, gasurvivor. I think you hit a few good points. I'm not personally so sure that the bookwork is such a GA dis-incentive to many but the cost often is. That "only 20%" cheaper in training is worth a lot to a young person struggling to afford flying lessons (for example), and the ability to see Australia at half the hourly gas cost is not bad, either! After a lifetime of GA flying, even "mature" folk like me can enjoy beetling around the patch at 95 kt on 15 lph of premium mogas. In my case I do still fly (and enjoy) larger GA aircraft, and my puddle-jumper is actually GA registered, but it is certainly possible to enjoy aviation for usefully less than the hire rates of traditional offerings at the local GA flight school.
Last edited by tecman; 31st May 2013 at 11:59.