How did you justify the cost of the PPL?

[Roooob]

I have recently secured a job which will enable me to take one 1 hour flying lesson a week, and have a little left over at the end of the month.

The problem is it's around £150 a lesson. That's incredibly high- it would keep petrol in my car for 3 months, or it would pay for my phone contract for a year.

I'd love to learn to fly, but i'm wondering whether I should wait till I get a better paid job (This is my first full time job, as I am 18) or if I should just go for it now.

I know it costs around £7-8k for the PPL, but this would eat up the majority of my salary.

And once I get my PPL, i'd have to hire a plane for £120/hour.

It seems like a very very expensive hobby. How did you justify paying for yours? (Assuming you were not on a big salary when you started)

[bigfatchris]

If you are UK based, try the Air League for a Flying Scholarship... They can help with some or all of the cost of a PPL. Good luck.

[Blink182]

A number of less expensive options are available.

Flex wing Microlight is probably the cheapest
3 axis Microlight . Modern well built and very practical aircraft....as long as you are not too lardy.:)
Qualify for NPPL

Another option is to learn to fly Gliders....possibly the best form of flying and lessons learnt are invaluable when flying powered aircraft.
Qualifications earned on gliders can be used against hours needed for PPL...although you would have to check the latest rules on this now EASA are the overseeing authority.

Post PPL , join the LAA and be in a group owned aircraft.

[Roooob]

Thanks Blink182.

I looked and my nearest Gliding centre is about an hours drive away, and my nearest microlight centre is 25/30 minutes away.

I think the gliding one is a bit too far to travel (IMO)

The microlight one is more reasonable, but it's still £110 an hour.


....



....


But I just realised you only need 25 hours to get the licence... that's just under £3k, which is much more appealing. I'll look further into this, thanks!!!

[Piper.Classique]

Why should I have to justify flying? My money, my choice how I spend it.

['Chuffer' Dandridge]

I started off like you, one hour a month (but then it was £30/hr...). It didn't work well and I took out a bank loan and did it all in 2 weeks.

30 years later, it has cost me a lot of money, and no doubt I'd have a bigger house and a fancy car (and still have a wife) but I wouldn't have had half as much fun watching footie on TV. Life's what you make it and I chose to fly aeroplanes and sod the cost.:ok:

[Gertrude the Wombat]

Plenty of us didn't start until we realised that adding the cost of a PPL to our mortgage wouldn't make a significant difference.

[BackPacker]

I didn't justify it. That's what "disposable income" is about: The money you have left over once all the bills have been paid, is yours to spend without justification.

Justifying the cost of a PPL suggests that getting a PPL is somehow a rational, economical decision. "With a PPL, you can do X or Y cheaper, faster or more efficient." It's not. Learning to fly is about passion, just like most other hobbies.

So don't justify it. Enjoy it! You only live once.

[AdamFrisch]

I can't even remember how I managed to afford it when I was 19, but I did work two jobs most of the time. I couldn't afford to fly much up until my mid 30's and for many years didn't.

Now, as I've managed to build a better career for myself I spend far too much money on flying and airplanes. The numbers are frightening when you sit down and add it all up. But you know what? I wouldn't have it any other way - worth every pence. How do you put a price on fun, utility and the very special freedom aviation gives? The view from up there alone is worth the money, if you ask me. Priceless.

As an aside, I see all my friends buying new cars or boats trying to keep up with the Joneses - Audi's, M5's, daycruisers, whatnot - spending $50K+ (or at least borrowing for it) at the drop of a hat. And every time I hear that, all I can think is "I'd much rather drive my 17 year old Jag and spend that money on my aircrafts". To each their own.

[thing]

I had a small pension kick in a couple of years ago. I have no mortgage or any other debt so I said to the missus offhand one night that I might spend some of the gratuity on a PPL. She said 'Yeah, sounds good' and continued watching the telly.

I needed no further bidding....:}

Having the money upfront was great, I just flew all the time and had enough money left when I'd finished to do my night and IMC plus about 50 hours of random flying.

I budget £300 a month for flying fees (not landings, medicals, maps that sort of thing) which is either just under 4 hours in a 152 or three in a 28/172 on my own. I usually fly with friends who cost share with me so I'm getting about 6 hours a month in on average, although I've clocked up about 200 hours since I started just over two years ago with the training and what have you.

I've found that the most important thing to consider isn't how you fund the actual PPL but how you fund the flying afterwards. I've noticed some of the guys at the club virtually disappear once they have their license, flying the bare minimum to stay current.

I'm humming and arring about buying a share in an a/c at our club which would reduce the cost down to about £70 ph but I like flying the different aircraft and I guess you would feel obliged to fly the a/c you've got a share in.

[Maoraigh1]

What are you going to do once you get your licence? In 1964 I saved up enough to get my licence in a full time course - then let it lapse for over 20 years as I could not afford to keep flying. It'll cost you more at an hour a week.
I've now been flying for over 26 years, 1900+hours, since I could afford to regain it in 1987. I had to do almost the whole training again.

[flyinkiwi]

I didn't justify it. That's what "disposable income" is about: The money you have left over once all the bills have been paid, is yours to spend without justification.

Justifying the cost of a PPL suggests that getting a PPL is somehow a rational, economical decision. "With a PPL, you can do X or Y cheaper, faster or more efficient." It's not. Learning to fly is about passion, just like most other hobbies.

So don't justify it. Enjoy it! You only live once.

I couldn't have said it better myself. :D:D:D The only thing I would add is, it will never be as cheap as right now, so the longer you delay the more expensive it will get.

[Lokki]

How do you justify the cost of the PPL?

You can't.. You take it on the chin and get on with it.

[Pilot DAR]

It was not too difficult, as when I learned to fly, renting a C150 was $18 per hour wet! The instructor was the more expensive part at $22!

You fly because you have a passion. In addition to the rewards of being airborne, and the master of your fate - in three dimensions. You will also find that you meet and get to know amazing people, who share the passion. Flying has been its own reward my whole adult life, but all the splendid people I have the pleasure of meeting and knowing because of my choice of aviation, has been an even better reward. A couple of them have answered you here.....

[Padge]

I've seen some people take more of a hit from the depreciation of a new car.

There's always a perfectly valid argument against any material purchases, none of which are absolutely necessary. We do the justification bit internally to tell ourselves it is.

Someone once provided me with a simple rule of thumb which has proved correct over the years, which is that "If it flys, floats or 'ahem' :oh:..then it costs a fortune!"

[Ebbie 2003]

One doesn't "justify" it, one just does it.

There is cost but usually it's a matter of substitution - where I live cars are very expensive (200%+ duty!) It meant that I could fly and buy my own airplane for less thsn the cost of a new RAV4 every three years. I made that choice and choose to fly and have and old car - one added bonus was that I own the only four place fixed gear, fixed prop airplane available for rent in the country and so even with low rental levels I have found that my personal flying nets out at less thsn it costs me to drive to the airport.

The circumstances are unusual but overall it has cost a lot less than I expected.

In your situation if you can manage it I would borrow the money on a five year loan and get the PPL done quickly, then pay the loan on the drip for the next five years. If you have suppporting parents even bolt it on to their mortgage as suggested by another contributor (I assume at you age you don't have a mortgage of hour own), also there are some clever means of intetest free loans via credit cards if you know what you're doing (see moneysavingexpert.com).

It's never going to be cheap to fly but a group around a small permit type airplane should keep the cost down once you have the PPL.

Your GBP130 is a little under three times the price at Sothend about thirty years ago, so overall in "real" terms probably about the same. Seeing what match tickets and train fares are in the UK these days, a flying habit looks like a bargain compared to folloeing a football team - so if you want to fly and can scape the cash together do it.

One further 'justification', when you next apply for a job put flying on your CV and it'll make you stand out from the crowd - so it may have career/income boostingbenefits.

Good luck with it, you'll never regret it - airports the world over have car parks full of old men wistfully watching the airplanes and thinking "if only".

[ChampChump]

Via gliding, via SLMG, then Group A added on, it was doable on a very modest salary, in chunks. Justification? Well, everyone needs one passion, although I suspect a passion starts as a hobby. Mine just got under the fingernails and into the bloodstream as an addiction.

Unless you can divert into a cheaper route, as per suggestions that are coming at you left, right and centre, you merely have to tell yourself, or the significant other/family/dog, that it'll all be worth it when you buy a share in something economical or a whole something that runs on 2 litres an hour and requires next to no capital outlay for years on end.

Short answer is, you can't, if you want to persuade a brain that requires justification for every pound spent on things other than a roof or food.

But if you want to inhabit a diverse society of fascinating people, mostly benign or better, discover another dimension to the hours not worked or slept and have fun like no fun has ever been, you don't need to.

;)

[500ft]

My local aero club in NZ charges $175 an hour for a Cessna 152. But remember unlike a rental car that includes fuel so excluding fuel the cost is about $100 hour. I currently fly 30 or hours a year so that $3000 year

In the past I have done some calcs in regards to buying my own plane (estimates of costs only)

To buy a Cessna 152 around here would cost about $30-$40000 my mortgage is about 5% so opportunity cost of not putting that money on my mortgage $2000 year, Insurance $2000 year, Hangarage $3000 year (more if I want to be less than 1.5 hours from home), Annual inspection $2000, Engine fund $600 etc etc.

That is $9600 without any unexpected costs which will come up, so if I only fly 30 hours that is $320 hour. That also assumes no depreciation on the aircraft itself

So my aeroclub is an absolute bargain at $100, I am saving $220 every hour I fly, I should fly some more hours so I save even more. In fact my Wife calls that spaving (spending to save)

The strange thing is I still want to buy my own plane, how do I justify that? Easy I am going to lie to myself on my cost spreadsheet .

[BackPacker]

I would borrow the money

As a matter of principle I would not borrow money to finance something that's a hobby/passion.

Anytime you borrow money you're sticking your head in a noose, essentially gambling on future income to offset your current expenditures. That's OK for things that you need (like a college education) and even more so for things you need and have a tangible/resale value (like a house or a car), but I don't think it's OK for something frivolous, like pursuing an expensive hobby or passion.

Besides, borrowing money costs money, so at the end of the day your expensive hobby just got even more expensive. And because of the loan, it also becomes psychologically harder to "back out", if the future income doesn't materialize.

That's why I used the words "disposable income". That's the money that's left over once the bills have been paid, and what you can spend on something frivolous without justification. But if you can't pay the flying from the disposable income, you're going to pay it from funds that are really needed somewhere else. And that indeed requires justification. Which there really isn't, not for private flying.

For me personally, I have promised myself that if my disposable income ever falls below the limit where I can spend enough on flying to fly safely (which is about 3000 euros annually), I will simply hang up the headset and pursue a cheaper passion instead. No regrets.

[Grob Queen]

For me, learning to fly is a fulfilling a lifetimes ambition and love of aircraft. If one has to 'justify the cost', that is all the justification I need. Its an expensive hobby, but so is sailing, horseriding, skiing.....to mention but three.

I finally took the plunge when I moved jobs to an airfield and organisation with a relatively cheap Flying Club. I had waited until my mid-30s, settled, with a decent job and reasonable salary. So I understand you want to do it now, but maybe wait a few years....go through university, start your career.....then take up flying.....

Good luck whatever you decide :ok:

GQ

[effortless]

How did you justify the cost of the PPL?



How do you justify going on holiday?

[India Four Two]

As several posters, have pointed out, it's not just the cost of the PPL, but also the subsequent costs.

I was very lucky in that my training didn't cost me anything (RAF Flying Scholarship followed by joining a UAS), but when I was bringing up a family and money was scarce, I was still able to fly, almost for free, by instructing in gliders and flying tow planes. I'm sure that if micro-lights were available back then, I would have gone that route.

Now that my family is adult and I have more money to spend on (frivolous) hobbies, I am able to do more flying, but I would never be able to justify it in financial terms. The justification comes from the memories I have. Examples of recent memorable flights that will stick with me forever include being 16,000' over Mt. Cook in a Duo Discus, flying a Spitfire and doing a run-in and break in a Vampire.

When I was discussing (not complaining about) the eye-watering costs of warbird flying, a Kiwi pilot friend was quick to point out "Remember, there are no pockets in a shroud, mate."

So my advice to anyone who wants to fly, is find the money and do it. The experiences and memories are worth the costs.

[Heston]

As a hobby it cannot possibly be "justified" - as everyone has said.

It is no use trying to explain it to parents or partner or girl/boy friend either. If they get it, they get it. If they don't, they don't, and never will. (I personally still find it astonishing that not everybody has a burning ambition to be a pilot).

Another way to understand the OP's question is to think about how the costs can be justified in terms of "How on earth can it be that expensive? Surely I'm being ripped off?" Nope - it really is that expensive, and pretty much everybody in recreational aviation is in it because they love it, not to make money (me included).

Gliding and micros are a bit less expensive and are good routes if you want to get airborne and don't mind the restrictions that go with them.

[grafity]

I guess you've taken nice a step up in your weekly take home pay, I had something similar when I started flying, ended up with an extra €100 in my pocket at the end of the week. I decided that I'd spend that on flying, I had gotten used to living on the lower pay so just continued with the same lifestyle plus the flying.

Is there any cheaper options than £150/hr, I flew the Tecnam P2002 which is a fine airplane and on average cost me £85/hr. I'd recommend a flying club rather than a school, generally a lot cheaper and a nicer environment.

[Crash one]

Can you justify having sex whilst wearing a condom? There is no logical reason for it:confused:

[PA28181]

Ignoring gonorrhea, syphilis, aids, chlamydiae,etc there is no justification.

Anyway at your age of 73 are there any women you know who would worry about a french letter.

[Shaggy Sheep Driver]

Few people can afford it. I certainly couldn't when I did my PPL in 1978. But it's the best money I ever spent. It's given me decades of flying fun, doing and seeing things very few others get to do and see.

And post PPL get into a group. I was lucky in that my interest isn't touring but visiting farm strips and aerobatting, so a share in a lovely Chipmunk served well. If that hadn't been available, I'd have gone for an LAA aerobatic type - even cheaper than the Chippy!

[Pace]

How can you justify keeping a wife or for that matter loosing one :E
Will make flying seem like chicken feed !
You could always do what I do and go commercial then you get someone to pay you to fly their expensive business jets around the sky!
Life is short grab what you can and above all have a passion long winged or short skirted they are both expensive :{

Pace

[Piper.Classique]

What, no-one told you to fly a hot air balloon yet?
The only thing you know about the flight before you take off is the take-off site.
The most completely useless form of aviation, but it does have the best view.
Oh, and there are always sub 115 microlights, and let me see, powered parachutes, and helicopters
Have you actually tried a trial lesson yet? Might be a good investment to try at least a glider, a microlight, and an SEP.
Don't be fooled by the minimum hours for any of them. All licences take the time needed for competency.

[Crash one]

Anyway at your age of 73 are there any women you know who would worry about a french letter.

I don't recall many that were very worried at the age of 18, but it was a long time ago!!
At the age of 73 I am still in the camp of flying being dangerous & sex being safe. Or perhaps that's just my flying:cool:

[MacSki]

I didn't justify it, just set a budget for year 1 of what I could afford. I know that the things I regret most are things I didn't do, opportunities I didn't take rather than things I did which perhaps didn't work out. I have wanted to learn fly for 20+ years but never had the combination of time and money until recently, I do wish I had started learning a few years ago even though I knew I couldn't commit much time to it.

If it helps it is much easier to learn when you are younger than say when retired which for many folks is when they finally have the time and the money available.

I dont think you can justify it as such and if you are looking to maybe its the wrong approach. If its something you want to do and you have the money to do it then go for it. You can always stop if needed but just make sure its something you are doing because you want to and enjoy it.

Good luck whatever you decide.

[CaptainChairborne]

Roooob, don't do it.

The expense starts with lessons and just gets worse. If you have to fly you'll find a way. It's a drug. Driving an hour and spending money you can afford is the least of the commitments you'll make if you really, really need to fly. If it's just something you'd like to do, save your money and do something more sensible

[The Fenland Flyer]

If you want to fly start now, don't wait for some far off day when you may have more disposable income.

Learning is expensive but post licence flying costs whatever you'd like it to. I have a 1/6th share in a microlight (an Ikarus C-42) which keeps costs down and I also cost share by taking other pilots flying with me and in return I fly with them so I can spend twice as much time in the air :)
Pilots who want to spend less have smaller shares in cheaper aircraft, those who want to spend more are sole or half owners.

Owning a share doesn't mean flying less, 3 of us in our group do more hours than most of the sole or half owners at our airfield but I don't think that's due to cost reasons, for some people owning an aircraft is more important than actually flying it.

[piperboy84]

Every time I have the impulse to put pen to paper and try and pencil up the numbers to quantify or justify how much I spend on flying being the sole owner of a half decent spam-can who flies about 100 hours a years, i get a little light headed and have to lie down till the dizziness passes !!

The problem with flying is that it is more than a passion, vocation or hobby the damn thing is like crack cocaine, it is sheer unbridled addiction and once you are hooked your knackered.

So if you can find a way to afford to fly, go for it, but remember there is no rehab and the addiction will last a lifetime, but I truly cant think of anything else in my life other than family that has given me a good grounding in discipline and procedures that are useful in other aspects of life not to mentioned the best friends and business connections I have made that came predominately thru flying and being an airport/airport bar rat.

[sevenstrokeroll]

we are luckier here in the USA...renting a plane with gas is about HALF of what you pay in the UK

save up, come to the USA and take a few lessons here and you get a trip to America.

you cant' justify it...you can't make it make money for you...but you can't justify owning a boat, or even paying too much for coffee, or taking a girl out on a date.

read: stick and rudder by wolfgang langweische and that will save you some money.

[Roooob]

Thanks everyone, very helpful. I know I will be able to afford it at some point in my life, I just don't know whether to do it now when I can just about afford it, or if I should put some money aside each month and do it in a few years, when i'll have money saved up.

Just a few questions:

@grafity- I found a local flying club (which I didn't know existed till I googled it) but their price is the same as my local flying school. Are 'clubs' just as commercial as 'schools' ? (ie. Do they normally have websites and operate as a business, or are they more private and you have to ask around to find them?)

@sevenstrokeroll- I haven't thought of doing it in America. Do your prices include fuel? After i've paid for the flights, accommodation and training costs, would it work out much cheaper?

@ Anyone who wants to answer- How much are we talking for a share in an aircraft? I know it depends on how many people are buying it, but what is a reasonable cost to assume? (I don't know if it's £1,000, £10,000, £100,000 or £1,000,000 :O)

[rgsaero]

Justify the cost of learning to fly??? To whom? Either YOU want to do that or you don't!

If someone who is in control or influence over your income / wealth calls it into question you should wonder whether they are in control over your life.

In aviation there's a saying - "if there's a doubt, there's NO doubt - don't do it."

Either this is something you can afford to do and will afford to go on doing after you gain a licence, or STOP NOW! Too many gain a licence and stop flying within a year or so. That's a waste of money.

[sevenstrokeroll]

renting in the USa, we call it "WET HOBBS TIME". A meter, hooked to the oil pressure gauge, runs when the engine is running and the rental location pays for the fuel you use. If you travel far enough to buy fuel , you keep the receipt and the cost is deducted upon return.

you mentioned the price in pounds sterling, and it comes out to half that in US dollars...I think you can get a trainer for 120 dollars which is about half of your pounds...give or take.

our weather is better...you can tell the girls you went to the US, took some flying lessons, looked around and then came home for what you would have paid for a few hours in the UK...

mind you, if you want a british private pilot license...that might be different.

when I learned to fly, 12 dollars would rent a brand new piper cherokee with gasoline for one hour. but my pay was such that I had to work 8 hours for one hour of plane rental (after school job...so I saved up for a full course and got my ppl, went on to the airlines...but it costs!)

good luck...take a few lessons, don't make a big commitment. When I was teaching, there was a "special" for 10 hours of dual instruction...people paid money in advance and found out they didn't like flying and didn't get theirm oney back.

hard to believe, but some people are really not into flying!

[stevelup]

I haven't thought of doing it in America. Do your prices include fuel? After i've paid for the flights, accommodation and training costs, would it work out much cheaper?

Short answer? No.

Going to America is good if you want to do it quickly - as you can whip through everything without weather getting in the way, but by the time you have added all the incidental expenses, it rarely works out much cheaper.

Also, you will have had no preparation whatsoever for the crazy UK weather and our silly airspace, not to mention the different RT - so you'll be wanting some familiarisation training when you get back anyway.

@ Anyone who wants to answer- How much are we talking for a share in an aircraft? I know it depends on how many people are buying it, but what is a reasonable cost to assume? (I don't know if it's £1,000, £10,000, £100,000 or £1,000,000 :O)

As much or as little as you like. You could buy a share at any of your price points - or less, or more!

[Grob Queen]

Are 'clubs' just as commercial as 'schools' ? (ie. Do they normally have websites and operate as a business, or are they more private and you have to ask around to find them?)

Roooobs,
Thats probably a case of "how longs a piece of string"! However, I will answer it from the perspective of what I know - the club I belong to! We are indeed a Limited Company; however, that is more for convenience sakes and dates from 1960 when we were founded. We also have a website. However, don't run away with thinking we're commercial at all! We are a club run for the members by the members, and the one thing that unites us is a love of flying!

I guess it really depends on the individual club, and its worth asking around, visiting different establishments and seeing which you think you would fit into best, whose friendly? Who takes an interest in you? Who lets you look at their aircraft.....

Hope this helps
GQ

[cockney steve]

This Forum and the "Flyer"forum, contain a wealth of information. It's not necessarily where you'd expect to find it!.....answer,- have a read through all the sub-Fora, from Cabin-crew to Tech, Test-pilots, jet-blast.
you'll learn a lot and be entertained (saves on a telly- license!)

having done this for a couple of months, you'll have an appreciation of the who's what's and whyfor's of the CAA, LAA, BMA, BGC etc.

You'll understand that an airworthy flying-machine "can" be bought for under a thousand pounds!!!!
The licensing situation seems a bit of a jungle, right now,- but again, there are discussions on here, as to the most cost-effective route to pursue,- dependent on your ultimate goal, of course.
As long as your hours are logged in your newly bought log-book and properly signed-off, AFAIK, they will still count even iff your training takes a break.

there are certain fixed-wing aircraft that are also available as a Microlight....it's down to wing-loading and power....so the M/light version has a smaller engine and a bigger wing....of necessity, these aircraft are also built down to a weight-limit (wonderful what you can learn on PPrune!)
The regulatory and compliance cost is far lower in Microlight and Permit (LAA) aircraft.
You don't say what you spend on transport....A car is horiffically expensive for a youngster and even the "collector's classic" route to cheap, easily -maintained cars is closed.

Think Insurance group 1...or a scooter/small motorbike....or even a Microcar (Aixam or Ligier come to mind)....dirt-cheap on tax/insurance/fuel....but a glorified lawnmower-engine....huge advantage is, you keep dry and warm and they can be driven on a motorcycle-license.
Great if you're into DIY maintenance - it all helps to fre-up the cash for flying!

There's NO short, easy "Magic-Fix"...I'm assuming you've read "Flying Lawyer's" Sticky, re- FREE flying- Scholarships for young people ???

In short...If you want it enough, you'll find a way.

[Crash one]

The question "How do you justify flying?" Is impossible for anyone other than yourself to answer, there are far too many reasons that can be cited as justification.
Cockney Steve said it all, If you want it badly enough ie: you have the passion, then you will find a way.
Information is out there & is a lot easier to find in this day of internets than it was in my day of watching a/c fly overhead & being "lucky" enough to live 20 miles from an airbase.

[rans6andrew]

if you think about what it might cost you if you fly without a licence.......... then the PPL is pretty good value, especially an NPPL(m) :)

[gordonquinn]

It's the best hobby in the world

[EddieHeli]

Many moons ago I was in the Army, having passed the tests but failed the medical to be an RAF pilot, always wanted to fly but never thought I would be able to because of my eyesight problem.
I took up rallying as a navigator. Because the skills required were beneficial skills to Army service we were able to use Army Landrovers for the rallies. This essentially meant the cost of our weekend hobby was just our time and the entry fees. We had to do the modifications (Fit Rollbars and Lights etc, and do any repairs in our own time as well).
Anyway another squaddie in our unit used to rally in an NSU prinz, the rally car of the era (giving my age away here). When he wrapped it round a tree and spent the next few weeks burning the midnight oil rebuilding it I asked why he was spending all of his money on a rally car when he could use a landrover like we were.
"Because its my hobby. That's what we earn it for, to spend on hobbies."
"Another guy used to spend all his money and use all of his leave travelling to Formula One Races".
"So there's your answer - you don't have justify it, its a hobby, that's why hobbies exist - to soak up spare disposable income".
So when I did start learning to fly (It transpired that my eyesight problem is only a class one problem.) I didn't have to justify the expenditure because its my Hobby.

[Mariner9]

Justify to whom?

Mrs M9 loves flying with me, but even if she didn't, she knows not to risk the "flying or me" ultimatum ;)

[KNIEVEL77]

Interesting thread!

I'm busy selling my scooter, classic car, watch and artwork collection to fund my PPL(H). It was a big decision but sod it. It's something i've always wanted to do so i'm going for it and like Adam Frisch's reply said, instead of keeping up with the Jones's, i'm sticking with my 262,000 mile, 12 year old Alfa and putting the money into my training! This helicopter flying lark is a bloody expensive hobby but i'd just fritter the money away on more scooters, cars, watches and art!

[englishal]

I didn't learn to fly until I was 30, and when I was 30 I was single, had a well paid job in Oil and Gas, and plenty of spare cash. Had I not had the spare income I doubt I'd have learned to fly unless I REALLY wanted to do if for a job.

Save the money, work your way up the ladder until you have some spare cash, then learn to fly. There is no rush at all.

PS in the meantime, hang around airfields and get to know people with aeroplanes and you'll soon get offered rides. Offer to wash someone aeroplane and maybe they will take you up and give you a go on the sticks...for example.

[chrisN]

Many gliding clubs have cadet schemes which offer cheap or even free membership and/or flying.

In my club this applies to people up to the age of 25 if in full-time education. Such young people are expected to do a lot of running about, pulling cables ready for launch, helping to all pull gliders back from other parts of the airfield to the launch point, and running with the wingtip during the launch until the glider is flying fast enough for its controls the work. (Washing gliders is also an occasional chore which has to be done.)

We have several pilots have reached solo standard at very little cost in money to themselves. I added up what it would have cost for one of them, had he paid the full membership and other fees, and it reached over £5000 in terms of the subsidy we had given him.

Chris N