one of these classmates is not like the others

[cellio]

Folks on the mailing list for the Sh'liach K'hilah program have been discussing travel plans for this July's session (mainly, I think, so that those who are flying can coordinate airport transport). One person posted that he'll be flying his personal plane.

His what? *boggle*

Comments

[metahacker.livejournal.com]

There are an astonishing number of people who own small planes nowadays; you can get kits for the cost of a car ($15k, some go for!). And there are whole communities for people who want to live with their plane -- basically with a runway going down the middle of the community.

So while it's exceptional, it's not crazy-crazy like him arriving with his private wing of Lear Jets or something...

[cellio]

Wow. Ok, thanks -- I had assumed that the ante would be about ten times that. And building a community around a runway is new to me. (Do they have to file flight plans with the nearest regular airport or something?)

[dsrtao]

IFR (Instrument Flight Rules) need to file plans. VFR does not, but it is encouraged, and some airspaces will kick you out immediately without one. Your destination may not accept you without prior contact.

Joining a flight club and owning a share in several planes is about on the same order of expense as "I'm building a professional-quality recording studio in my basement" or "I'm living in a luxury gated community" or "I'm going to collect and rebuild classic cars". Expensive, but doable by a middle-class person with dedication or a rich person with a strong whim.

[cellio]

Thanks for the information.

I hadn't considered the model of joint ownership. That would make a plane much more accessible, yes.

[jducoeur]

FYI, I basically grew up in a plane -- my father has owned one for most of my life, and I learned to navigate by looking out the window and playing navigator for him starting when I was about ten. I knew that times had gotten hard in my teens when he had to sell it, and that he had his feet under him again when he bought a new one. I did a modest amount of work towards a pilot's license, and my stepbrother and Dad both still fly avidly and regularly.

I honestly don't remember whether Dad owns an entire plane at the moment. At times, he's gone down what you might think of as the "condo" route, owning a sixth or thereabouts of a more expensive plane. I think he's back to owning the whole thing again, though; far as I can tell, he enjoys having the right up keep fiddling with the instrumentation and putting the fanciest current toys into it. (And even a whole Bonanza doesn't cost nearly as much as the Florida condo he just bought.)

Mind, owning a serious plane still isn't cheap -- while you *can* get a plane for the price of a car, a decent prebuilt one will cost more like the cost of a very high-end luxury car. But it's a game for the affluent, not just the wealthy...

[zachkessin.livejournal.com]

You can also buy a used plane for 20K or so, and often folks who own planes will get together in groups of 2-4 and share ownership. So a $40k aircraft divided by 4 is not such a big deal. As for flight plans you just file them over the phone (1 800 wx-brief) and the majority of small airports in the USA don't have a tower anyway. Actually if you are flying VFR you don't even need to file a flight plan in the first place.

(I have a pilot's licence, but I'm not at all active in flying)

[cellio]

Thanks. I had no idea it was so easy for "just plain folks" to fly.

VFR?

[zachkessin.livejournal.com]

There are 2 "modes" of flight Visusal flight rules(VFR) and instrament flight rules(IFR). IFR lets you fly in and around clouds. If you fly VFR into a cloud it is really reall bad. IFR is much more complex as it involves a lot of procedures for aircraft to find their way without being able to see out the window and a lot of work from ATC. Airlines are always IFR. However small aircraft can fly without ATC just fine. You are responible for not crashing into other aircraft by looking out the window of the airplane and seeing them. A determined person can get a private pilot's cert in a few months for $5k, maybe a bit less if you work at it.

The FAA just aproved the new Sport Planes initiative, where it is even easier to build and fly very small aircraft. They are limited to about 115knots in terms of airspeed, and 2 seats (and a lot of other restrictions) but you may soon be able to buy a new 2 seat factory made aircraft for $50k.

[cellio]

Thanks for the information.

[zachkessin.livejournal.com]

No problem, I love talking about flying. Just wish I still got do it once in a while.

[aliza250.livejournal.com]

I know a number of my peers who have licenses and shares in planes...

[cellio]

I hadn't considered the shares option, which would make the problem much more tractable. From the comments here it seems to be fairly common (as compared to full ownership). It makes sense -- you aren't going to fly a plane nearly as often as you drive your car, most likely, so sharing can work.

travel plans

[brokengoose.livejournal.com]

Frequently, small plane pilots are quite willing to take passengers with the usual "road trip" rules: passengers are expected to chip in for fuel.

You need to fly a certain number of hours per year to maintain a pilot's license. Consequently, if you know a pilot, they're often willing to provide transportation even if they don't need to go where you're going. A friend of my father used to do quite a bit of travelling this way. Before the budget airlines appeared, it was often cheaper to find a pilot and pay for his gas and hotel for a few days than it was to buy a ticket on a major airline. And, from the pilot's perspective, "Would you be willing to fly to Florida for a long weekend if I pay for the gas and lodging?" was a pretty good deal, too.

Re: travel plans

[cellio]

That sounds like a good deal for all involved, yes. Well, maybe not with the budget airlines, but sometimes the schedules for the budget flights are inconvenient, so it probably still works out often.

[filkerdave.livejournal.com]

Depending on the size of the plane, it's not outrageous. A Cessna 150 or 152 (2 seat trainer; a 150 is what flew into the no-fly zone and caused mass panic in DC last month) can be had for under $15K (used, but they tend to be maintained).

OTOH, it's not all THAT east to get the license; it takes a certain amount of time and money.

[cellio]

Thanks. I hadn't realized that private flying was as accessible as it apparently is.