I just completed Private Pilot ground school at the local community college. I even passed with a high enough grade so I can take the FAA test. The classes were excellent with enough anecdotes to keep even the less interesting subjects interesting. Everyone in the class both taking and giving it were engaged and enthusiastic. All around a great experience.

However it was a complete failure. I was hoping that taking a class, studying, calculating, learning regulations, etc would put me off the whole idea of flying as a hobby and save me a bunch of money. But alas no such luck, I'm still hooked.

Anybody have a plane they don't need?

I knew going to Private Pilot ground school would just be a gateway drug. I'm only halfway through the class and already planning my justifications for taking flying lessons and maybe even buy my own airplane.

Earning a private pilot's license costs somewhere around $5,000-$7,000. It's hard to nail down the actual cost as there is no way to know exactly how many hours of flying and instruction anyone will need. The FAA requires a minimum of 40 hours flying but the national average is 70 hours. That is quite a large variation. There are many things that cause the variation but the main ones are likely how often you fly (less time between flights the less you forget) and aptitude.

The main cost of the flying lessons is the rental of an airplane. A typical cost is $100/hour for a Cessna 172. So I started to wonder why not buy an airplane and save some of those costs? Opinions are varied on whether that is a good idea but it really isn't a crazy idea. It's actually possible to buy a serviceable small airplane for $20,000. It will be 30+ years old but with the tight FAA maintenance regulations that doesn't seam too bad. It seams possible to pay the loan on that plane and all the fixed costs (maintenance, storage, etc) for $500 a month.

$500 Per Month? - You can own an airplane on a budget

Sounds like a reasonable idea. Especially when you add in the fact that airplanes don't seam to depreciate. A $20,000 airplane you buy now was probably about $8,000 new. So that takes out a lot of the risk. Worse case you just sell it for probably the same you paid for it.

This is the point where I caught myself saying very similar things I had done a few years back. Why not buy a house, the values keep going up, what could go wrong? So yeah, maybe I will shelve the buying a plan idea till I can really pay for it. Having another loan secured on something that could depreciate doesn't sound like a great idea right now. Renting sounds like a much better idea.

There are many things the motivate me but the number 1 thing is just 3 miles away from my home. There is an airport neighborhood where houses have hangers instead of garages, streets are wide taxi ways, signposts are short to avoid the wings and the runway is right there. What is especially attractive is that the people that live there are not necessarily super rich. Many are just normal people all be it with slightly different priorities.

What is surprising is that a very functional small airplane can be bought for the same price as a luxury car. Of course it will be 30 years old but the tight regulation on maintenance is comforting. A pilots license can be yours for about $6,000 and at least 40 hours of flying time.

One part of my dream is commuting from my home via plane to the Bay Area. That way I can get that fun tech job and not have to suffer the living expenses of the Bay Area.

Sound crazy? Many people that live there are already doing that. One-plane garage with a view

In a couple of weeks are start my first steps. I'm doing pilot ground school at the local community college. There I should learn all the necessary theory for a private pilots license. I can hardly wait!