FLYER Club Member
Sat Mar 19, 2016 11:33 am
#1443978
I've just opened the new magazine and the annual Learn To Fly Guide.
What a pity that Leia's 'Flying On A Budget piece' is tucked away, when 'Buy All This Stuff' is spread over two pages. Is this the right emphasis? I suggest it's completely the wrong way round. Whether deliberate or accidental, that spread perpetuates the idea that Pilots Are People With Big Watches. Not a big draw, in my opinion.
Firstly, buying all or some of that stuff is absurd for students; instructors will suggest what you need and when. Secondly, it implies that you have to have a flight bag (really?), a tablet (really?) a kneeboard (really?)... I doubt I'm the only one who learned without any of these. I bought my headset as a PPL reward to self and a few other things as needed/desired.
If we want to encourage people to think flying is still affordable, Leia's piece needs to be far more prominent and the 'how to spend additional money' in a sidebar, somewhere else, if anywhere.
When I pass this guide on to someone, as I will at some stage, the first thing I will do is put a sticker on p16 saying Ignore All This. Read Page 12. Or, more likely, I'll pass them the LAA version, which has felt far more accessible to the likes of me .
Rant mode Off. I'm going to the airfield.
What a pity that Leia's 'Flying On A Budget piece' is tucked away, when 'Buy All This Stuff' is spread over two pages. Is this the right emphasis? I suggest it's completely the wrong way round. Whether deliberate or accidental, that spread perpetuates the idea that Pilots Are People With Big Watches. Not a big draw, in my opinion.
Firstly, buying all or some of that stuff is absurd for students; instructors will suggest what you need and when. Secondly, it implies that you have to have a flight bag (really?), a tablet (really?) a kneeboard (really?)... I doubt I'm the only one who learned without any of these. I bought my headset as a PPL reward to self and a few other things as needed/desired.
If we want to encourage people to think flying is still affordable, Leia's piece needs to be far more prominent and the 'how to spend additional money' in a sidebar, somewhere else, if anywhere.
When I pass this guide on to someone, as I will at some stage, the first thing I will do is put a sticker on p16 saying Ignore All This. Read Page 12. Or, more likely, I'll pass them the LAA version, which has felt far more accessible to the likes of me .
Rant mode Off. I'm going to the airfield.
Life is short but I still fly slow