[Fellsteruk]

Hey

So this may be a daft question and one that depends on location...

Let’s say I wanted to hire a plane to take a trip out somewhere grab some lunch and fly back.

Would I typically pay for the flying hours or the total time I have the plane?

Thanks

[Paul_Sengupta]

Flying hours. But if you want to take it over a longer period of time there may be a minimum charge. And if you're hiring from a busy school on a weekend you may not be able to get more than one slot.

[Wicksay]

After PPL I'd eventually like to do some over night trips. This way I think I can build some hours And take my wife somewhere she'd like to go. A thank you for her support and patience. Initially to visit friends and family and some nearby counties we've not been to and would like to visit. Then further a field and Europe.

Renting will be my first option until the right opportunity to join a syndicate arises or if I can liquidate an asset to purchase a permit aircraft, then I'll be on my way to add ratings.

OTOOLAAT
One Takeoff One Landing At A Time

[Paul_Sengupta]

You may find it easier to do overnight trips away on weekdays when there's not so much demand for the aircraft, except if your chosen "club" is a training organisation geared to commercial licences. For a weekend overnight, it may be possible to book the aircraft for the last slot on the Saturday and first on the Sunday.

Clubs/schools with lots of aircraft may be your best bet, as sometimes things can be moved around to other aircraft so you get one for a whole day/couple of days.

[Wicksay]

Thanks Paul. I'll start the conversation soon with my club I'm learning at. I'm almost 20hrs into my training and already thinking ahead.

[cadoganpier]

Hi Wicksay. Where do you fly from/based?.

[Wicksay]

Headcorn. Weald Air Services Club & School

[cadoganpier]

Ah, ok a bit far from Blackbusche Flying Group then.

[David Wood]

As @cadoganpier hints at, if you plan to do longer trips away rather than the normal £100 hamburger run then you'll soon be better off buying a share in an aeroplane which you then co-own. Bear in mind that most flying schools have a fleet of aircraft that represents the minumum necessary to delivery the training, with private hire taking up the slack. They tend not to be enthused by someone who wants to take one of their aeroplanes off the South of France, have it sit there for a week and then fly it back.

On the other hand a syndicate means that, subject to balancing your needs with that of the other syndicate members, you can take the aeroplane off when you want to without being so contrained, yet the costs of owning and operating it are divided between you. Syndicate flying is the way forward unless you're flying more than about 50-70 hours per year, when sole-ownership becomes more cost-effective. But private hire only really works for the short hamburger runs, unless you are very lucky.

[Wicksay]

How did you arrive at the 50-70 hours for sole ownership? Is there a previous thread or spreadsheet setting this out?

[David Wood]

How did you arrive at the 50-70 hours for sole ownership? Is there a previous thread or spreadsheet setting this out?

It's a wild approximation. Traditionally people tended to say that 50hrs pa was the watershed point, but it really depends very much on the sort of flying that you do, the costs of running the type of aeroplane etc. Then there are the intangible benefits such as how important it is to be able to take away the aeroplane for trips, use it at short notice, the pleasure (and pain) you get from owning your own aeroplane etc. So there is nothing hard and fast about it.

At an extreme end, a fairly well-heeled guy I knew owned a Spitfire. He told me that owning such an aeroplane gave him two days of unadulterated, unparalleled joy: the day he bought it, and the day he sold it . In between the two was endless financial pain.