Hi there,

I was just wondering how many of you guys are real life pilots? What does it take to become a pilot?

1 minute ago, ptr1959w said:

Hi there,

I was just wondering how many of you guys are real life pilots? What does it take to become a pilot?

Shed loads of cash 😉

9 minutes ago, ptr1959w said:

Hi there,

I was just wondering how many of you guys are real life pilots? What does it take to become a pilot?

In what country?

https://tsaviation.com/flighttrainingcourses/faqs-on-obtaining-a-pilots-license/#:~:text=A reasonable estimate range is,hours of dual instrument training.

United States

Yep. It can be expensive, but what it really takes is dedication to doing it. It’s not something you can do flying once a month, or stop-start - flying a lot and then stopping for a few months. As far as who can do it - anyone. I know doctors and plumbers who are pilots. Some guys and gals are naturals, plenty aren’t. 

In short, it’s just something you have to decide you want to do and then do it. And can flight simulation help? Yes. And don’t let anyone tell you different. 

Takes dedication, patience and continuity. 

I got my licence back in 1978.

Cost about $7,000.00 at the local airfield then B20 now called KIZG.

I bought a 150 after I got my licence for $11,000 flew it for a while sold for $13,000. After a few hundred hrs I started my instrument training etc so I bought a C177B Cardinal, a fantastic bird. Huge doors, easy to load bicycles in the back. I paid $23,000.00 for the C177 and put $10,000.00 more avionics in including Loran, that was really something. The AP could follow my Loran from waypoint to waypoint, fantastic. I had to manage the altitude though with trim.

I always figured it cost about 12,000 a year to keep a plane w/o flying at all if hangared back then, now it is more like 24,000. Or cost per hour back then was $60.00 per hour, now 120 or sp for a 177 class plane.

So it is not and was not cheap.

But it is incredible rewarding, it is a big challenge both for wallet and brain.

Go for it if you can. Simming helps a little, but it is nothing like real flying. Once you are a pilot then the sim is great for practicing procedures and IFR flying. But it will not keep you current for real flying, it is very different and much scarier at times.

Merry X-mas and Fly/Sim on...

3 minutes ago, ptr1959w said:

United States

The very first thing to do is look into medical certification. If you can’t pass a class 3 medical at least once, you’re out of luck (at least for becoming a private pilot). Potential problems: mental health problems, DWI, cardiovascular issues, diabetes. 

Also, as far as expense, look into local flying clubs. Just google “(your city) flying club” or “(your local airport) flying club”. Flying clubs make it way, way cheaper. And they can be great resources for you. 

6 minutes ago, ptr1959w said:

United States

It really depends on the airplane you want to get your Private Pilot Certificate. Some schools charge more than others. The best way to get an accurate idea is to go to your local airport;s flight school and ask for a discovery flight. Then they can give you an idea of the cost. My guesstimate is about 10K.

Thanks guys for the info and help and replies.

I have been a (private, although twin engine IFR certified) pilot and a controller. Two years ago I lost my medical certifications due to the medication I have been prescribed, after I was diagnosed a chronic illness. I miss very much both activities. One was an income earner, the other an income burner :-).

I still work at an ANSP (Air Navigation Service Provider, the companies which, among other services, provide ATC service) as a safety manager. I am still in close contact with aviation and ATC, and very close to the operation, but I miss the front line operation (which is not always easy, night shifts, big holidays as Christmas spent working...).

Flight sims are my scape valve, I am even thinking of spending a good lump of cash for the best computer I can find for just MSFS 2020.

Sims are not the same as real life. Some things are easier, but some things are more difficult (steering an aircraft or using throttle and trim to maintain an altitude were always much easier for me than they are in any sim I have tried). Of course, the sensations when you find a strong head wind in real life and start to doubt if your fuel calculations were right are much more powerful in real life when it is your real teeth that are inside the cockpit 🙂

Each year sims are closer to reality. Of course you need a movement simulator to get close to the real thing (I don't have one). When MSFS2020 is mature, it will be very close.

Aviation is my life. I am glad many people from different professional fields and walks of life can experience it closely thanks to flight sims (or ATC sims). I hope some of them become real life pilots or controllers and the rest gain an appreciation for an often miss-understood professional field.

 

48 minutes ago, ptr1959w said:

Hi there,

I was just wondering how many of you guys are real life pilots? What does it take to become a pilot?

It only takes the desire to do it. That's all really. It can be a bit expensive, but unless you are absolutely poverty-stricken, which since you are on the internet, I assume is not the case, then if you want to find the cash for it, you will.

When I was doing the licence, I came up with a good way to save a bit on the cost of it, not necessarily money-wise, but more in terms of time spent getting good at it - I bought a few of the best books on learning to fly, read them all cover to cover a couple of times, and then I bought a nice notebook and a nice pen, and over the following two weeks whilst on the bus to work and back home each evening and morning, I wrote out my own book on learning to fly, based on what I recalled from having read all those books on the subject.

If at any point I was unsure about something, I'd have a quick peek at them when I got home, to see if I understood things correctly, then I would carry on writing the next day. This was approximately three weeks before I went on a residential course I'd booked to do the licence all in one go. Because I'd essentially drilled everything into myself by doing all that beforehand, it all came pretty easily when I was doing the real thing.

speaking from private perspective:

Money aside, obtaining the PPL/LAPL license is not hard. It's like going to driving school for cars. Any regular Joe would be able to do it if they tried.

From my experience, it is not the money that the issue, but the time. I remember leaving at 07am and returning at 4pm and only logged 2 hours. You spend lots of time away from home.