While listening to Ch9 have you ever thought of becoming a private pilot yourself? I'm sure most FTers would dream to one day fly their own plane.

I'm also sure some FTers believe this is an impossible dream and very difficult to accomplish. In the US, at least, the private pilot licence can be had for $6-7K with an average of approx 60 hours of flying time (FAA legal minimum is 40) on average before cerfication. You will then have the privilege of flying single engine airplanes such as Cessna 172s in visual conditions (basically good weather with good visibility).

Cessnas and other single engines then run about $100/hr to rent at smaller airports, but you only pay for the time the engine is actually running. These planes usually cruise around 120 knots.

Then one day, maybe someone on a UA flight hear you on Ch 9

I'll be happy to answer questions on the private pilot certification process. AOPA has a ton of information as well.

http://www.aopa.org/learntofly/index.html

I hope this is OK to post here as a UA1K with love for flying both as a passenger and pilot!

Probably not..... maybe OMNI or newsstand?

I am going to move this to TravelBuzz! and let the Mods ther decide to keep it there or not.

iluv2fly
Moderator, UA

Oh, don't bump it to OMNI, please... I'd love to read more about this, and I'm about 24,731 EQ miles away from being able to see OMNI.

Becoming a private pilot is something I've long dreamed of doing, but seriously thought I lacked the cash. Maybe I don't, based on reading this!

The cost is directly proportional to how much flying time and ground time you need with an instructor. Most flying school web pages will quote the minimum requirements which is down to $5K, that is 40hrs total time in the plane and the minimum ground instructor time. If you have the aplitude/money and time to take your lessons on a short period of time (3-4 months) then it is possible to spend down to the mimimum $$$ but it is rare. In my case, I had gaps in my training and I had to repeat lessons.

I would recommend everyone to call their airport and ask for a "Discovery Flight". This is a concept where you get to sit left seat, usually for 1/2hr engine/flying time and, for cheap. I paid $45. The Discovery Flight is meant to give a prospective student a quick intro and get them hooked and continue training. The instructor will take/off land and maybe ask you to "feel" the controls. After takeoff you get to make turns, decend, play with the power setting etc. Cheapest $$$ ever spent in a plane

Wow, I need to make a quick pass by DTO in the coming months and see if someone offers that service...

Do you have to have 20/20 vision natively, or do glasses or contacts count? There's no way I'm getting LASIK. How much farther do you have to go to be able to fly bigger planes, like a VLJ (Eclipse 500, Citation Mustang or similar), or in something other than "clear, sunny day with no clouds?"

And, of course, the big question: any hope of a private license turning into flying for one of the Big Boys(tm)?

Before you solo (some people do it after 10 hours of flying, but average around 20) your instructor will ask you to go to a doctor who is authorized to issue a medical certificate. 20/20 vision is NOT required. I'm not sure at which grade/"vision" level this kicks in, but your medical certificate will contain a note "must wear corrective lenses". Simple as that. A fellow pilot just had kindney transplants. He will go though a series of test and most likely get his medical certificate back.

Oh, the BIG question This may take a while, but OK

Your first licence will be a PP-SEL, Private Pilot Single Engine Land for visual conditions. That means, you cannot fly into clouds. And-- you are not allowed to fly planes with retractable gear and engines over 200HP just quite yet.

So, PP-SEL pretty much means a Cessna 172 type plane (150-190HP, yes thats all they need to get off the ground!), fixed gear in nice weather. Virtually all of these planes have 1 to 4 seats. You can also fly at night, but no flying at all for commercial purposes like air-taxi. But you can commute to work with a plane and get reimbursed on it. (there are lots of details and regulations on this I won't get into here right now).

Then, most people get High Performance Endoresment and Complex Endorsement. Either of these can be done in a couple of days, no tests required, just a signoff from a certified instructor after training. Then you can fly a plane with more horsepowers and retractable gear. Now you are talking about more expensive planes to operate.

On to the big one, getting Instrument Rated. This is the rating that will allow you to take off in "bad" weather (such as into the clouds with zero visibility) and totally depend to ATC and your flightplan to get from A to B. The instrument rating is considered to be more demanding than the first private pilot licence itself due to theory and several new strict rules to follow.

Then you need to take additional ratings to learn how to fly a multiengine plane. You mostly learn what to do if one engine dies, since this changes the flying characteristics of the plane quite a bit.
Now, if you want to fly for hire, you need to get your commercial licence. This is like the private pilot certificate training on steroids. You need to show them that you have a high level of flying skills. Edit to add: ...and a high level of theoretical knowledge.

Now, if you have all this and you want to fly big/fast jets you're not there yet. You need "Type Ratings" for big airplanes (i.e. over 12,500 lbs empty weight). For instance, a 737 captain has all the ratings/certificates above pluss special training and checkride (practical flying test) for a 737. On top of that, airline captains must get a ATP (Airline Transport Pilot Licence) which in the US is required to be had for the captain (left seat) of airliners.

Most recreational pilots are happy with the basic Private Pilot Certificate and work towards getting instrument rated once they get some more experience flying.

As this really is for OMNI, yet the key posters aren't OMNI-qualified, we'll close this thread. Those who have posted to this point are welcome to continue a dialogue via e-mail/Private message. Ocn Vw 1K, Moderator, TravelBuzz.