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Apparently being from the UK will have an effect, too, as many people who
respond here may be speaking from the U.S. perspective.

So, since Im also from the U.S., heres mine. You can add your cost
differentials, because your fuel and ATC services are known to be
significantly higher than ours.

Firstly - expect to spend about 70-80 hours to get your PPL. You may very
well get it sooner (or later). About 20 those will be soloing, so calculate
the aircraft rental charges for the 80 hours, then add the differential for
the instructor time when you are flying dual.

Secondly - once you get the license, it becomes more like a drug than a bug.
You just want more, more and more. Youll find any way you can to get in
the cockpit and head for the skies. Beg, borrow, steal (maybe not). You
get the idea. So, if you expect to fly 30-50 hours/year in VMC, then
calculate the solo rental cost of the airplane(s) youd likely use. Then
add for any ATC costs you have in the UK. Thats about as simple as renting
gets since you bear no mainteance costs.

Lastly - ownership CAN be very fulfilling. Im a fortunate owner. My 140
purchased in Jun-97 has performed perfectly. Ive put a lot of cosmetic
work into it (paint, interior, avionics) and even had the engine overhauled
last year. But as far as unexpected maintenance squawks, there have been
few. So, after I poured over 5 years of numbers I looked at the necessary
expenses that its incured (tie down, fuel, oil, inspections, necessary
maintenance, etc.) and looked at my average number of hours/year over the
period. My operating costs have been about $75/hour. Not bad, in my
opinion, because I would have paid $85/hour to rent from my FBO and those
planes arent nearly as nice condition as my own pride and joy. That
doesnt take into account the bank payment of $400/month. But thats not an
operating cost, either. So, that $75 figure would go up, but the bank
payment also goes towards equity, unlike any of those other costs.

So - I recommend "YES" buy your own plane, but only after very careful
research, inspections, etc. I went through 4 such PA-28-140s, paid about
$200 to have each of them given a thorough pre-buy inspection. Im glad I
did because it helped me weed out the bad apples for a relatively minimal
cost(compared to what Id have paid long term to fix those problems). Itd
help, of course, if you can get a partner or two but make sure you know them
well and the two/three of you have a good trusting realtionship.




"Wolfman" wrote in message
news:addtp2$9nd$1@newsg4.svr.pol.co.uk...
> Id be grateful for all your input on this:
>
> I am feeling myself being slowly bitten by "the bug" but am a little
> apprehensive about the long term costs of flying.
>
> I have flown several times with a good friend who has a PA-28 and had an
> introductory flight with an instructor in a C-150. I have arranged an
> appointment with an AME to make sure my slightly non-standard eyesight is
> not a bar to my PPL (nor any other medical condition). I have been quoted
a
> total cost for attaining my PPL(A) to be in the region of £4500 to £5000,
> based mainly on aircraft time @ £90 per hour. This isnt a problem as a
> one-off cost, neither is a "reasonable sum" per annum to keep flying
> post-PPL.
>
> The reason for my post is that I can not get any real idea (even a
ball-park
> figure) for what the continuous, long term costs of flying are likely to
be.
>
> These are what I _think_ the options are:
>
> HIRE: Starting at what appears to be the base-line: I understand that I
> would need to fly at least 12 hours per year to keep my licence validated.
I
> understand too that I can hire a C-150 for approx £75 per hour solo so
that
> makes an annual expense of £900+. This figure is easily within my idea of
a
> "reasonable sum".
>
> I would obviously like to fly more than the absolute minimum required and
> would like to use the plane for short and medium cross country (VMC only)
> flights to see friends and relatives as an alternative to using the car,
> etc. I figure I would like to fly 30 - 50 hours per year and I guess if I
> continued with the hire idea I can get an annual cost of flying by
> multiplying the hire cost per hour of any particular plane by the number
of
> hours I would wish to fly per year.
>
> SYNDICATE: Have seen the adverts in the UK GA mags and therefore know the
> sort of figures being asked for a part share plus fixed monthly outgoings
> and per hour rates. I was surprised that the per hour (wet) rates were in
> some cases only a little below the hire (wet) rates offered by training &
> hire companies. Does anyone with experience know if these syndicates are
> normally designed to run at a "profit" so that there is always something
in
> reserve for nasty bills, etc. or do they often require lump- sum topping
up
> ?
>
> OWNERSHIP: Again I have seen the ads for aircraft for sale so know the
> initial purchase price. What I can not get a feeling for however is the
> ongoing cost of ownership i.e.. annuals, 3 year inspections, typical
service
> and repair costs, insurance, hangarage or tie down costs, etc., etc. My
> experience is that small aircraft owners are rather reluctant to tot up
all
> these sums of ownership and pass on the figure (especially in front of a
> spouse :-) ). Is anyone with experience of costs of ownership of a 30 year
> old C152 or 172 for example with average airframe and engine times, etc
> willing to give me some indication of costs year on year?
>
> If anyone has been in a similar position (I guess that is most of you)
what
> decisions have you reached regarding the above 3 alternatives?
>
> Sorry to have rambled on, but any responses you guys have will be
gratefully
> received.
>
>
>

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