Group flying opportunities & questions
#1826680
This year my ambition is to find a share in a simple permit aircraft near to me. On the basis that daily checks of Afors, Flyer etc seems to be yielding blanks, I'm now thinking about going back to the drawing board.

As a first step, I'd like to ask if there are any other people in the same boat who might like to put brains together and join forces, or at least group together for moral support?

    Located mid/north Kent (Headcorn, Rochester, Stoke, similar)
    Looking for something simple, low-cost VFR flying in a microlight or something LAA/permit type.
    Open to pretty much anything that falls in the above category

Ideally, I would be able to find and buy a share in an existing group, but I just can't seem to find anything.

So, if by the summer the search is still fruitless, then I'd like to see if there are others who might be in a similar position and location to me who would be interested in joining forces to buy something directly and form a group ourselves.

I am incredibly open-minded as to 'what' (other than it can't be EASA under my licence, yet), in all its various guises: happy to buy something resale, or something new...basically, whatever can get me flying outside of club renting at a reasonable rate, based somewhere with a hard surface that's accessible to where I live.

If interested (or if you know of a share available!) please do DM me.
Last edited by flyingearly on Thu May 20, 2021 2:36 pm, edited 2 times in total.
#1827449
Hi Scott,

Thanks for your post. It doesn't HAVE to be Redhill but I'm in Sevenoaks, Kent, so that would be a good 90 minutes' drive for me sadly. But good luck finding a 4th member!

But if you and your syndicate ever fancy moving to Kent, let me know (it's a lovely place, great neighbours, cheap beer etc) - I'm at that stage where I think it might be easier to beg for people to relocate to help me find something! :)

In seriousness, I'm looking at Redhill because of proximity and also (for now) the option for a hard runway/taxiway. I'd be open to Rochester, Old Hay, Laddingford or any of the small strips near here if anything came up, but my thinking is that Redhill keeps opens option for more people.
#1835345
Just bumping this one up. I've had a few nibbles from people, but it's clear that people are spread far and wide and location is difficult!

Just in case it wasn't presented as an option, I am very flexible and very happy to consider lots of different options to get a group/share going, including joining forces to buy something collectively, either new or resale.

Genuinely open to anything....so, if anyone else is thinking of buying a share, forming a group or selling a share - and you're based in and around the Kent/Sussex area, please let me know.

Locations within reach for me would be Redhill, Rochester, Headcorn, Deanland, possibly Damyn's Hall (doesn't look that far on the map, but would require crossing the bridge)....Shoreham is really just too far and Goodwood would be further still.
PeteBC liked this
#1848155
Thanks @PeteBC - replied via PM.

Just replying to this thread to provide a broader update in case this is of interest to others too (please note I've just edited the title and original post to reflect the below):

Since I started this thread, I've made some good progress in getting a group established and have managed to recruit a small group of 4 (including myself) who all share similar ambitions. We're all based in and around Kent, although as you know Kent is a big county! Between us, we have a decent fund ready and available to buy the right aircraft and get the group going.

We began by keeping a very open mind on aircraft types and have been monitoring AFORS etc as new listings come in. We've viewed a few things: Skyranger, Jabiru UL-D but nothing quite right so far: nothing wrong with the aircraft themselves, but more that they didn't quite fit the 'risk appetite' of the group: we're looking for something with mid-hours on the engine and something 'gentle' for us to get our teeth into as a first aircraft.

We have - not sure how - found some hangarage for the aircraft in North Kent, although our preference for location is really Rochester/Headcorn or any of the Laddingford/Old Hay quieter strips (not that there is any space!). But the point is, we have options for location and this has enabled us to look for aircraft with a slightly more relaxed sense of compromise: obviously our preference is to keep the aircraft hangared and indoors, but we recognise that this might limit those who want to join the group and so we would be happy to keep something appropriate outside if that means a more accessible location for others. But - for the purposes of updating the thread - Redhill is very much out (it works perfectly for me, but not for the others) and Kent is in (with a bias towards the top half of Kent rather than anywhere darn sarf).

In reality, as our search has progressed, we're starting to appreciate that different people want different things and so - depending on what aircraft we find - the group of 4 might not stay as a group of 4. If we find a Skyranger microlight then we'll probably retain all 4 (plus any new members); if we find something SSEA then we'll likely be a group of 3. I think our preference is microlight at this stage - and Skyranger top of the list.

In terms of attitude/approach, this will be our first aircraft ownership and so we are treading cautiously and carefully. We are ideally looking to form a group of between 4 - 6 people as we think that this will result in good accessibility still, but also a reasonable distribution of risk if something did go wrong and we found ourselves needing a cash call. We are, however, trying to avoid this by a) looking for something with a reasonable number of miles left on the clock (not that you can predict it) and b) ensuring that whatever we find, we establish and build a healthy engine fund as quickly as possible, which might mean an extra £5 on the hourly rate above what it should be, but the flipside being the reassurance this gives us.

Anyway, waffle over. The point is: if you've got £5k to spend, looking for something Skyranger-ish and based in or around Kent/Sussex, please let me know. We're all a really friendly bunch and what I've been most pleased about (talking quite selfishly) is the great sense of camaraderie we've created in the group, given we're all in the same boat (renting), all want the same thing and all have the motivation to try and find something. We've got a WhatsApp group and very happy to add people.
cjrpaterson, Liemarzac liked this
#1850102
Hello,

Thanks for your post. I’m glad to see other people in the same boat. I’ve been looking for an aircraft share around Kent for years now. I was based in Rochester during my PPL training but moved to Headcorn. Ideally, I’d love a share in a C152, C172 or Robin DR400. That would probably be the main difference I have compared to the rest of the group you are forming because it looks like you are going towards microlight. But who knows I might consider it as well at some point :)
#1850960
Hi all - just a quick update here, as lots has happened.

This weekend we are finalising inspection, payment and paperwork to take ownership of a rather nice Zenair 601-UL microlight*, which will be based at Rochester (for now, although unlikely to move far if it does).

Our plan in due course will be to issue 3 additional shares to create a group of 6. Monthly cost of £65 with hourlies at £12 dry, inclusive of engine fund contribution.

As a group of 6 there will be a very healthy engine/contingency fund established immediately so we are hoping to avoid, or at least limit, any cash calls.

Feel free to PM me if this is of interest; I'll likely post on AFORS once it's all gone through and it's sitting there in front of us (fingers crossed)!

*As @PeteBC has alluded to in previous posts, we're hoping that the CAA/LAA might be issuing some guidance soon as to what's happening with the microlight weight limits in a few edge cases, this being one of them. This particular Zenair model has a design limit of 478kg and we already have 2 people conditionally committed to shares assuming that, once things are a bit clearer, we might be able to apply to make use of that extra 28kg (and assuming some paperwork!)

So @Liemarzac, don't rule out microlights just yet!