Is it time to surrender?

[TotalBeginner]

I've been thinking a lot about the future and it seems I've come to a bit of a crossroads. I'm 26 years old and have been living with my parents. I'm working on the ground for one of the handling agents, which is not particularly well paid and along with being single, staying at home has seemed like an easy option.

Gaining my pilot's license is all I've ever wanted to do, and I'll never forget the feeling of Euphoria when I shut down the engine and the examiner told me that I'd passed my GFT! Since obtaining my license I've put every penny of spare cash into remaining current and enjoying my (expensive) hobby.

But, I'm worried about the future. My parents split up at the beginning of the year and there's some uncertainty about the security of the house. I think this is my warning sign that it's time to tighten the purse strings because I'll soon be out on my own. I'm a realist, and I'm trying to think of ways around this problem. But, I think it's time to face the reality that all good things come to an end and it's now time to adios the yoke and throttle :( .

It feels as though I'll be like a "starved dog" if I can't fly, but maybe I'm just overreacting? Will the desire fade away if I focus my interests on something else?

[Flyin'Dutch']

Don't surrender.

Marry someone rich.

:}

[charliegolf]

Total,

Absolutely not! I'm ex RAF rearcrew (had the bug, but not the smarts for pilot), and due to family committments when I left, could only start to learn in my early 40s. You're miles ahead. Just keep in touch, and as your circumstances change, pick up the pace.

CG

[Scottishflyer182]

Hi,

Note very pleasant reading.:(

Why not try and share your flying cost's with friends or other pilots. It's becoming very popular and keeps the cost's down. It would be a shame for you to let all that hard work gaining your PPL to let it lapse.

I don't have any answers about your living circumstances but am sure your parents are aware of your situation and would most likely want to help you. Even though they have there own difficulties presently.

Good luck.:O

Scottish Flyer 182

[Zulu Alpha]

Look around for a job with more money or see if you can take on more responsibility where you are and then try and get a raise. Just sitting where you are isn't going to produce your own home and enough money for flying.

You could also think about what you really would like to do and then work out how to do it. Maybe a training course etc.

A wise man once said to me that the only person looking after you is yourself.

If you really want to fly you will find a way. If you don't then you won't

If you don't make a move then no one is going to do it for you.

ZA

[airborne_artist]

Only two things you can do - reduce your costs and increase your income. So, you might look for a promotion/change of career path, and also find a cheap-to-run aircraft group that allows you to do more hours with less cash.

[Pilotdom]

What about cheaper flying? Why not see if you could fly a microlight, something like an Ikarus C42? I dont know what you fly at the minute,but see if you could do something like that to reduce your costs.

[J.A.F.O.]

Only two things you can do - reduce your costs and increase your income.

There's a third thing, get paid to fly.

Okay it's going to take time and money but you're young and have no ties - if you don't go for it now then you never will.

Go on.

[Pilotdom]

Yeah, you could think..... b***s to it, and enroll on an Course at Oxford or similar, get your ATPL, have £70,000 of debt, but hey, you'll have an ATPL, and a career as a pilot.

[TotalBeginner]

But where will I get the 70,000 from in the first place?

[BabyBear]

Can I pose what I would argue is a more difficult question to deal with?

How are you going to deal with looking back in years to come wondering what if, or if only?

There are two ways to look at it:

a) I can't raise the money

b) How can I raise the money

With a) the attitude is negative and an acceptance of defeat follows, with b) the mind is encouraged to be creative and find a solution.

Be positive you are already with option b).

[stickandrudderman]

I wanted to fly when I was 16 and pennyless.
It took me until I was 40 to finally realise my dream and looking back I know for certain that if I'd committed myself I'd have been a profesional pilot instead of a mechanic.
Alright so now I own a moderately successful business that can just about support aviation as a hobby, but oh how things could have been different if I hadn't been so slow to realise that in order to succeed in life you MUST stick your neck out, and the sooner you do it the better.
Once you decide on a goal you can then decide on the path to get you there.

[RollNow!]

I am totally in the same boat as it were. I work for a handling agent too.

I started flying when i was about 15 but was way too young to realise the commitment and of course have the finances to support learning. I now have the drive to do it its just the bloody money thats kicking my wallets ass. I have figured out that im going to be able to do about 3 hours a month maybe four if i have a good month.

Im getting rid of my expensive to insure sports coupe, cutting my mobile down to a cheaper contract + lots of other things to get that extra 100 quid to get another hour in.

When it comes to making the big push for CPL / ATPL hours, learning etc ... well i will have to chew that food when i get to it but the "stick you neck out" thing its bang on right but i didnt really realise until now either. Shame when i think about it and go back to thinking i could have at least started when i was 18 - 20.

[mstram]

On sort of a sidenote, what are the currency requirements in the U.K. ?

Here in Canada, you can go up to 4.999 years without flying, then a checkout with an instructor will regain your currency (another 5 years .... of course medicals have to be kept current). Flying clubs generally require 30 days currency or a checkout with an instructor.

Mike

[bad bear]

TotalBeginner, which part of the country do you fly in? If there is a good, and I stress good, gliding club near bye it might be worth thinking about joining. A winch launch can cost as little as 2 pints of beer and renting a glider can cost around £30 per hour and sometimes free after 2 hours. Once you get in to gliding cross country you will see how challenging and rewarding it is ( stuff local soaring). Many gliding clubs have a tail dragger as a tug and that too is a fun way to spend an unsoarable day. Many people underestimate the challenge and fun of flying a glider cross country for 4-500 kms on a not very good soaring day.
BB

[mothflyer]

:{:{:{ What ever you do dont give up... personal experience is the pain gets worse the longer you dont fly, but there are ways and I found alot of different ways to get in the air for reduced costs in many different periods of my life so far, I too passed my PPL when I was young and was only earning a low wage at the time.

Get involved as much as you can with a flying 'club' more than school where the emphasis is on the social side, given a little time and elbow greese, helping out in your spare time (assuming you have some), the rewards are worth it. There always aeroplanes to ferry for maintenance or repositioning flights or favors to do for private owners in need of a second pair of hands! 9 times out of 10 your efforts result in time in the air.

Also try applying for all the sponsorships you can to 'further' your license. Air League, GAPAN etc etc, they all advertise and are worth a shot, nothing ventured sort of thing!

Please please please stick with it, you were blessed with the gift of flight and what an amazing gift.... :ok:

[stray10level]

Try applying for the unpaid job elsewhere on this forum. You will probably get a caravan thrown in, thereby solving your flying and living requirements in a stroke:ok: Flying buddies and taking your friends are also good ways of reducing the cost.
Stick at it as the bug never goes away!

[polskipusher]

Know how you feel as nearly hung up my headset. I developed cash register eyes when training and it totally screwed me up as my silly mistakes were costing me a fortune. Flying Spam cans is burning expensive holes in the sky just to stay current. I too was on a budget and was running out of money fast. I then discovered Motor-gliders. Ok, they arn't fast or fashionable, but they are cheap to fly. I have a share in a SZ45, has two seats, 400lb cockpit load, cruises at 70-75kts and costs £25/hr plus £35/mth. I have had my licence four years and got over 350hrs in the logbook, been to Le Touquet and back in a day and also flown it to Cologne for a weekend. Would not have done that in the schools 150 or PA28. They are a duel purpose aeroplanes, you can play at being a glider or go places, plus if you have an engine failure it is not a problem as they are designed to land in fields! I do have a SSEP rating so do venture aloft in Cessna's etc, but prefer my "Big Winged Bird" as I can enjoy my hobby without destroying my wallet.

[davidatter708]

I do stuff to help at the club like Fire Driver and I get paid a tiny amount of flying time for a shift helps alot. But I suppose i dont have a penny to my name im 18 and i still burn holes in the sky. The unfortunate thing is the people I do know wouldnt trust me with the aircraft as i have so few hours the insurance would be huge and yet again im only 18. But im hanging in as I dotn have a clue what I would do if i didnt fly, I suppose i would end up doing all my other hobbies of which they are all about as expensive.
David

[englishal]

Go to the bank
Borrow £30000
Go to the USA and do FAA CPL ME IR CFI CFII MEI
work there for 2 years as an instructor getting paid (~$35,000 pa)
Convert to JAR
Come back to the UK
Get a job as FO or assistant pilot on a turboprop, part time (typically £100 per day)
Get a type rating paid for by your employer
Fly from the LHS as captain (by virtue of your 1700 hrs or more) earning > £50,000 pa.

I've seen a few people go down this route.....

[Squeegee Longtail]

I was 20 and used to take two buses and walk the final 2 miles to the airport for a flying lesson on a Saturday, because I had sold my car to get a PPL. Flying after that was when I could save enough for a half hours rental.
I made lots of sacrifices just to fly.

Now I am 40, can afford to fly whenever, but cannot renew my medical.

Life's a bitch.

Make your choices, but stay away from the debt route - it hangs around your neck.

[G-BHEN]

Hi there

Apologies in advance for the life story!

I have been in exactly the situation that you are in currently. My ambition got the better of me when I was 18 and I took out a loan for £4500 for my PPL that took years to pay off. I rushed headlong into completing my PPL ASAP, with no thought whatsoever about how I was going to afford to keep current when I finished.

My successful flying test just so happened to coincide with meeting my now wife and moving into our first house. Not the ideal time to pay £100 per month in flying, plus associated costs! I had a strict budget of this amount for flying, meaning I would either squeeze a few circuits in once a month, or take family up for sightseeing trips, even managing a flyin at Hucknall on one occasion. This was all we could afford, just once a month, and if the weather was bad on that date then I had to pay extra to get current with the school again.

Inevitably, after a year or so it was just so expensive and it was easy to give it up, giving us an extra £100 per month (an awful lot when you're in your first house!).

To start with it was nice having the extra cash, not having to worry about the weather. After a year or so I started to regret giving up, and now a few years later have decided to start again. This was after hunting high and low for cheap rental, and differing options. I tried the gliding route, but not really practical never knowing where you're going to land next. I seriously considered Microlighting, but not being able to hire them made it an expensive outlay to purchase one.

Last month we moved further north within 15 mins of cheap flying at Netherthorpe, at £75 per hour and no annual membership. I have taken a better paid job after searching high and low, giving us more money per month. Converting to an NPPL will save on medical expenses, and I'm hoping to cost share with somebody there to allow further trips.

No more family outings, but I learned to fly for my own enjoyment and that's what I intend to in the future. I have my first revalidation flight on Saturday all being well! :-)

So I will say please please please look at the options before giving up. I seriously regret giving up in the first place and am glad that with everything as it is I am able to revalidate before the 5 year threshold. You probably won't miss it initially but given time you really will regret it.

Cheers
Noel

[gsora]

Hi total beginner, the suggestion to try Gliding may work out, once converted to gliders most Clubs with tugs (towplanes) will allow you to fly them, my club requires 100 hrs P1 and tail dragger experience.

You could then find yourself in a Piper Pawnee, more power than most PPL`s get their hands on and it`s free!

good luck

[expedite08]

Enjoy your flying. As`has already been mentioned its a gift, a fantastic gift that not all of us get to do. And way things are going in this country savour every minute of it as in 5 - 10 years there will be no such thing as a private pilot over here. ( no one will be able to afford it!)

And also as mentioned do not get in to debt for it! I was going to, but have seen very differently now, and have managed to stop before I would have financially crippled myself for the rest of my life. I still cant believe the people who blow 70k plus away! To do that in todays economic climate might as well be suicide!

Best wishes