It's important to say that the general aviation population has gotten much smaller over the last few decades. It was a lot more popular 25 years ago when I flew much more than I do now. A number of aircraft manufacturers have stopped building small general-aviation planes for a number of reasons including liability and a reduction in public interest.<p>I started flying about 1980. By 1992, 12 years later, about half the pilots I knew in 1980 (instructors as well as students) had been killed in flying accidents. That's another reason for the decline in activity.
I don't like all this talk of risk and death. While it's true that more accidents happen with small GA aircraft, it isn't really the dangerous activity non-fliers make it out to be. When accidents do occur, it's almost always due to some very poor decisions made on the part of the pilot - taking off over wight, bad weather/icing, shoddy maintenance, etc.<p>I started out with GA flying and later became a flight instructor, then moved on to flying small turboprops (into some very treacherous airports), and now fly jets with an airline. I've never known anyone personally who has been killed or injured in an aircraft accident. Even flying for an airline, I'm baffled by the sense of danger some passengers feel by going up in a large jet.<p>Here's a startup that's trying to reverse the decline of GA flying - OpenAirplane.com. They launched last year and have caught on pretty quickly. It's a universal rental checkout for GA pilots, such as the OP. Get checked out in, say, a Cessna 172 in Detroit, and you're set to rent a similar Cessna 172 in Florida. The requirement for a checkout at each operator from which one wants to rent can be a roadblock for would-be renters, and this solves the problem. The company has the backing of most major aviation insurance providers and even Cessna Aircraft Company.
For those wondering how much it costs to get your private pilot's license...<p>You'll need to study and pass a written examine so you'll have to either purchase self-study books or take a ground school class. (This is relatively cheap, a few hundred dollars.)<p>You need to log 40 hours of flight training time. Depending on locale, anticipate paying $100-$150 per hour for a flight instructor and $100-$150 per hour for plane rental and fuel. So that's $200-$300 an hour times 40 hours so a ballpark estimation is $8000 to $12000 MINIMUM. Depending how quickly you get to flying solo (with your instructor on the ground) and how well you do will determine if your flight instructor will sign off after the minimum 40 hours.<p>EDIT: You'll need to pay for the examine and I forgot, you'll need to get an "FAA physical" and an okay from a physician which you'll also have to pay for (unless you can get your health insurance to pay for it as a yearly physical examine).
Here's a question:<p>Tell me about single engine (what you appear to have) vs. multi engine (twin, I guess) ?<p>Should I be thinking about redundancy in plane engines the same way I think about redundancy in ... say ... kidneys ?<p>It seems to me that I would really, really want a twin engined plane...<p>edit: I found this [1] but I'm not sure I buy it. I am all about simplicity in systems, but redundancy in a critical component is a different thing. Further, Perrow speaks of fortuitous surpluses (or whatever) as an unalloyed good in [2]. This seems like just the kind of surplus I'd want...<p>[1] <a href="http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?AirplaneRule" rel="nofollow">http://c2.com/cgi/wiki?AirplaneRule</a><p>[2] Normal Accidents (run, don't walk, to buy and read it)
I would love an app that matches passengers to GA flights going between airfields, essentially a ride-sharing option for small aircraft. Pilots could offload a bit of the fuel cost and passengers could go between short range destinations very fast if they're lucky.
> <i>I don't need to file a flight plan, I just go</i><p>Always (ALWAYS) file† a flight plan, and <i>stick to it</i>. If (when) something happens this will save you. Countless experienced pilots went on their own, had a trivial issue, landed at various vertical velocities and died because they were known to be missing but no clue where to be searched for. Also a proper flight plan includes <i>timestamps</i>, because it is not just a matter of position in space. Don't assume people will know, make sure of it.<p>BTW this is not just valid for airplanes but for any remote adventure you're undertaking, even on foot. A bruised ankle can mean death in remote areas.<p>† although preferable, it might not be to an official/local authority but to whoever cares enough for you to be trusted with your life.
There are a couple of websites for airplane pooling around:
<a href="http://www.skypool.com/" rel="nofollow">http://www.skypool.com/</a><p>Like ridesharing / carpooling, just with airplanes. They are clearly not as successful as the car variant, but when flight destinations / times match they might offer a little adventure on the route (and one could avoid some of the traffic jams around the Bay Area).
Hey, I own your plane's sister (N8550W).<p>I'm surprised you didn't mention "Can you fly at night?" That's one I always get.
I've been toying with the idea of getting my pilot's license (eventually) partially for the sake of avoiding the TSA when I actually have to travel. What I'm curious about is how difficult/expensive it is to rent a plane that can fly further than stated in the article? (say, TX to CA, for instance) I imagine it wouldn't make much sense to buy a huge cross-country jet for the occasional long trips, although I am kind of surprised it's only ~$30k for a smaller one!
Don't get me wrong but I do not get what's so exciting about flying yourself or owning a plane. Flying is for getting from point A to B. Flying just for fun missing any purpose might be fun the first couple of times but then it's like driving a bus from A to A.
A bit more info on the SFO question: <a href="http://www.quora.com/How-difficult-or-unusual-would-it-be-to-land-a-Cessna-172-at-SFO" rel="nofollow">http://www.quora.com/How-difficult-or-unusual-would-it-be-to...</a>
The first time I flew in a plane, I never Landed..because I parachuted out, using the 'old 18'ft Army round parachute'pulled both toggles down the whole way 5+min descent...great fun!
The most startling thing about this to me was how much costs have gone up.<p>In 1990-91 I was working on my Private Pilot's license. I lost interest around 38 hours or so and never finished, but it was fun while it lasted. Last flight was my long solo cross-country. Costs were around $50/hr for a Cessna 152 and about $45/hour for the instructor. This was flying out of BDR in southwestern CT. Looks like prices are averaging more than double now. Whew!
Is there a site where you can find other people that want to fly from somewhere specific too somewhere specific to share fuel costs with? I'd love to go up in a private plane for a few hours if it only cost me $200 or less.