where can one rent a seaplane in the us?
 

I have recently got my faa cpl ases and am interested to find places where you can rent a seaplane to do a tour.

I would like to make a tour through washington or alaska.

You might do better posting in the canada or north america forum, and even with a cpl you may find you dont have enough p1 hours for the insurance. Suggest looking for places that offer extended courses that include p1 time, they will have the approprite insurance and therefore may be willing to rent. If you find somewhere, Id be interested to know where and happy to swop notes on my own research as soon as I get around to it. Sadly the place I was heading back to do my p1 time this summer suffered a loss of floatplane and instructor last autumn so Im looking too.

If you are opened to considering central Canada, I highly recommend Lake COuntry Airways:

Lake Country Airways: floatplane training, endorsements, float charters and rentals

I have done training with them, and very much like their way of doing things.

That said, "renting" a floatplane, and taking it somewhere is not a given. There are a lot of factors which make float flying much less certain that wheel flying. Remind yourself that EVERY place you take a floatplane to land it is NOT an airport, and very likely does not have the usual facility support, if any at all. Indeed, you can easily get floatplanes into places where even the most simple mechanical problem or accident becomes a very big deal. I know, I've flown in to take repair parts in, or to help get the wreck out.

Float flying is wonderful, but has a demand for skill and experience very much greater than the minimum skill requirements for the rating.

In Maine there is Twichell's. I knew a couple people who learned to fly floats up there.

Twitchells Airport and Seaplane Base - Turner, Maine

Bryan

good tips.. Any more?

How is canada in accepting faa licenses and ratings?

Concerning the FAA float rating, it has been discussed here:

http://www.pprune.org/canada/510321-...ed-canada.html

Unlike the US, Canada requires solo flight for the rating.

And does anybody have a nice itinary for a tour via nice lodges etc?