How many of you guys are real life pilots?

[mtr75 653]

 

14 hours ago, sd_flyer said:

I got this question a lot. It really depends on location, airplane, instructor and student abilities/discipline .

As far as I remember in US average hours to get private around 60 (out of 40 minimum). I personally never had student who from 0 become private  at 40 hours. I instruct next to several bravo airspaces so it take much longer for student to learn bells and whistles. Often people get comfortable with airplane before they got comfortable with communication. It take some time for them to get to use to listen and talk especially when things get busy.

 

I took my ride as soon as I hit 40. Not that that makes me cooler than anyone else. I've realized since what a crappy pilot I was when I passed my ride! 😅 The most important thing is being able to fly safely, whether it takes 40 hours or 140, one checkride or two. 

Edited December 26, 2020 by mtr75

[sd_flyer 6,087]

1 minute ago, mtr75 said:

 

I took my ride as soon as I hit 40. Not that that makes me cooler than anyone else. Ive realized since what a crappy pilot i was when i passed my ride! 😅 The most important hing is being able to fly safely, whether it takes 40 hours or 140, one checkride or two. 

You are unique! It's of course not impossible but tough!

[mtr75 653]

9 hours ago, cmpbellsjc said:

If only we still had the pricing we had back then, although back then it still seemed expensive.

I started back in 1986 flying out of Tucson Intl. (KTUS) in a Piper Tomahawk and then moved to the high desert of California and flew out of Apple Valley (KAPV) in a Cessna 152.

The rates as I remember were about $30 an hour for the plane and $15/hour for the instructor. At the time it seemed like a lot but I was young and fortunate that my grandparents paid for my training fees as I was only a teenager at the time.

Now, here in the Dallas area a simple 152 or equivalent is around $120-130 per hour and I think instructors are ~ $40. 20 hours dual and 20 hours solo will cost a heck of a lot more that what we paid.

We have a 150 for $60 dry. I think it's the best deal in flying. Also have a Cherokee 180 with a 750 and dual G5's for $90/hr. Great little club in upstate NY. 

[mtr75 653]

7 hours ago, overspeed3 said:

CHOCK,

Only a desk-top pilot, plus a senior citizen.  I used to watch gliders take-off and land in a Wurtsboro NY airfield near my upstate summer home.  The one thing I always wondered about gliders:  You don't really get much of a chance to go-around - but I never personally heard of a fatal or near fatal glider accident in all the summers I spent there...

They still fly gliders out of there, by the way...

[mtr75 653]

8 minutes ago, sd_flyer said:

You are unique! It's of course not impossible but tough!

I had an excellent instructor, and I truly mean that. He's been instructing since the 70's and he's never had a student fail a ride. He's been a tremendous mentor. 

[snglecoil 1,828]

37 minutes ago, mtr75 said:

 

I took my ride as soon as I hit 40. Not that that makes me cooler than anyone else. I've realized since what a crappy pilot I was when I passed my ride! 😅 The most important thing is being able to fly safely, whether it takes 40 hours or 140, one checkride or two. 

I did mine right at 40 too. But now as a CFI...I don't think I would have signed me off for the ride 😂. License to learn is absolutely correct.

[mtr75 653]

2 hours ago, snglecoil said:

I did mine right at 40 too. But now as a CFI...I don't think I would have signed me off for the ride 😂. License to learn is absolutely correct.

Couldn’t agree more, sometimes I wonder who gave me a license! 🤣

[CFIJose 5,485]

40 hours to get your Private Pilot Certificate. That's impressive!

In the early 2000s, at KFRG, where I did most of my training, the average was 60 hours. Maybe because the cost of landing was so much that we had to travel to CT to practice or to do any pattern work & landings. LOL

It's almost impossible to be qualified to pass the practical test with the minimum number of hours needed (Part 60 or 141) in a major market.

Even here in FL (small market airports) there's a shortage of DPEs. It will not be that easy to pass the practical test and certainly not cheap.

Even the knowledge test preparation and the ACS have changed. You really have to know your stuff.

[Patco Lch 1,479]

I'm a 68 year old retiree and have often toyed with the idea of just taking a few lessons for the experience of it with no goal of getting a license. With the meds I take for various ills of the aged I , probably couldn't pass the physical anyway. I guess I'M afraid no FBO would want to waste their time on me knowing I'm just a bucket lister and only want maybe ten hours of lessons and that's it, or stick me with the lest senior kid who my not be too proficient himself.

When approaching an FBO are there any subtle clues which might tip me off as to the maintenance, safety consciousness or general competence of the staff?     

 

Edited December 26, 2020 by PATCO LCH

[Chock 17,769]

You are the customer, and so you can ask for what you want, and if that means you'd like to talk to a potential instructor about those concerns, then any decent flying school will facilitate that.

A big part of training in the more modern era is the ability of an instructor to communicate adequately; it's all very well having thousands of hours and tons of knowledge, but if an instructor can't convey that knowledge well to people, then it's all for nothing. So give some places a call and see which one is keen to do that and you will be a lot more informed on matters as well as being better able to make a choice.

Oddly enough on this subject, when I was first beginning work as a teacher (of movie special effects, not flying), I made a list of all the people who had ever taught me anything at all, and listed their bad and good points, so this included flying instructors, school teachers, driving instructors and all kinds of other things. Then what I did, was try to adopt the techniques of the ones who had made a good impression on me and never do what the crappy ones had done. It was very helpful in turning me into a good teacher.

The best kind of instructors are the ones who can connect with all kinds of people, be enthusiastic with them, and tailor their style to suit the person or people they are currently teaching, using the traits and techniques necessary for each individual person, be that patience, or humour, or drawing little sketches of things to explain stuff, or talking things through a lot, or giving you enough rope to almost hang yourself before stepping in to correct you, or any combination of all these different ways to go about teaching people stuff.

[ptr1959w 8]

Hi there,

How often do you renew your license? Thank you all for your input.

[jon b 2,055]

6 hours ago, mtr75 said:

Boy would I love to have a few pints with you and hear your stories. What kind of flying do you do in MSFS?

I’m currently being downsized to the 787 so the last couple of months I’ve Been exclusively flying the quality wings 787 in P3D for familiarisation.

When I get some leisure simming time I normally fly the milviz T38 or justflight hawk low level around orbx TE in VR. (P3D and XP) or something from A2A around TE California.

Ive not used MSFS much recently but I was flying the modded 152 around.

 

[MartinRex007 390]

1 hour ago, ptr1959w said:

How often do you renew your license?

A private pilot's license technically never expires, although to be legally current you need a flight review (every 24 calendar months), current medical exam certificate, and if carrying passengers, three takeoffs and landings within the last 90 days (daytime and nighttime currency are tracked separately). 

https://airplaneacademy.com/how-long-does-a-private-pilots-license-last-how-to-maintain-it/

Edited December 26, 2020 by MartinRex007

[mtr75 653]

3 hours ago, ptr1959w said:

Hi there,

How often do you renew your license? Thank you all for your input.

Hey, 

We got somewhat sidetracked from your original question. What kind of flying are you interested in? Pursuing a flying career, private pilot/just for fun? And whereabouts are you located?

Edited December 26, 2020 by mtr75

[ptr1959w 8]

Hi there, I would really like to fly as a career but I  wouldn't be able to pass the medical exam , due to having diabetes and having not great eyesight.I am in the United States, Florida. I appreciated all the feedback.