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flight schools in Michigan

Discussion in 'Aviation Chat' started by kalabula, Oct 11, 2007.

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  1. kalabula

    kalabula Rookie

    Oct 11, 2007
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    #1 kalabula, Oct 11, 2007
    I am looking for an inexpensive flight school in Michigan. I dont want to make a career out of this but would love to be able to fly ti get to hunting land etc.

    I dont know anything about aviation but figured this site would be a good place to start. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
     
  2. Bob Parks

    Bob Parks F1 Veteran
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    #2 Bob Parks, Oct 11, 2007
    I don't believe that there is any such thing as an inexpensive flight school. To get your private, it is expensive... just plain expensive.
    Switches
     
  3. kalabula

    kalabula Rookie

    Oct 11, 2007
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    #3 kalabula, Oct 12, 2007
    Expensive is relative. How much money are we talking here, roughly?
     
  4. Bob Parks

    Bob Parks F1 Veteran
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    #4 Bob Parks, Oct 12, 2007
    Forgive me. Things aren't like I remember. I don't know what money you're talking about now in the cost of getting a private license but I guess it is around several grand.
     
  5. GrigioGuy

    GrigioGuy Splenda Daddy
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    #5 GrigioGuy, Oct 13, 2007
    I'm chasing my license right now too.

    Avgas is making flying very expensive right now. $4/gal * 10 gal/hr for a VFR 172 == 40 bucks an hour just for the gas. Tack on the 35 for the CFI, 75 for the plane itself, and you're looking at $150/hr in the air -- and you won't even be in the air all that time, thanks to the hobbs.

    You can cheapen it a bit by choosing your plane carefully. The Sports Star that I fly runs ~5 gal/hr, so I save a little bit. I fly from an airport with no long queues, so I don't burn 15 minutes waiting for takeoff.

    Best bet for the cheapest way is to find out who the local independent teachers are that teach with their own planes, rather than going through a flight school.

    My local flight school tells folks to expect 5-6K just for the PP
     
  6. kalabula

    kalabula Rookie

    Oct 11, 2007
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    #6 kalabula, Oct 13, 2007
    ya that is a bit steep.

    I wasnt expeting $6000.

    I was going to buy a new dirtbike, maybe I'll spend that $ on flying lessons. I don't know.
     
  7. GrigioGuy

    GrigioGuy Splenda Daddy
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    #7 GrigioGuy, Oct 14, 2007
    Well, it will only get more expensive from here.

    I kept putting off flying for decades because it cost too much, and it just kept rising. Finally just decided to bite the bullet
     
  8. kalabula

    kalabula Rookie

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    #8 kalabula, Oct 15, 2007
    Since I have your attention, what are you planning on doing once you get youre license, are you going to buy an older plane or rent one. What do most people do? Also about how long does it take to get a license?
     
  9. GrigioGuy

    GrigioGuy Splenda Daddy
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    #9 GrigioGuy, Oct 15, 2007
    Rob started his in March and had his license by July, but he's an unusual case with lots of cash and free time :)

    See http://aviatorchat.com/forum/showthread.php?t=521 for his journal

    I figure 6-8 months to get my license, due to time and cash restraints. If a student can't fly often, the number of hours required to get a license rises because you get rusty.

    What people do with planes depends on what their goal is.

    Me, I'm just planning on putting around the area low and slow, and head over to random airports for $100 hamburgers. I do intend on buying a plane. As of this time I don't know if I'll do that during the training, or afterwards. There's advantages either way.

    For others, the plan is to be able to haul family and gear to other states quickly. That's going to require a different (and more expensive) plane than the type I'm interested in. Right tool for the job.
     
  10. kalabula

    kalabula Rookie

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    #10 kalabula, Oct 15, 2007
    I have my winters off so I could do it in a shorter time. But Im not sure if I want to buy hunting land first.

    My plan was to (first win the lotto) get a license to fly a rented plain to land that was too far to drive to. But I didnt know it would cost me $6000 to get a liscense.

    I still need to find an instructor im Michigan. I guess I could just check the yellow pages.
     
  11. GrigioGuy

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    #11 GrigioGuy, Oct 15, 2007
    If you're just planning on flying from a rural airport to a remote property, then you may get away with a Sport Pilot license. There are significant restrictions on the type of planes you can fly and where/when you can fly them, but the flight hour requirements are about half that of a Private Pilot certificate.

    See http://www.faa.gov/licenses_certificates/airmen_certification/sport_pilot/ for the legalese, or http://www.sportpilot.org/ for a bit clearer explanation.

    It may be hard to find a LSA aircraft to rent. If you want to buy, you'll have to either buy an old-and-slow plane for cheap or a new-and-slow plane for 100K+ (or an experimental, but you really have to know what you're doing buying those)

    Also, be aware that many (most?) places that rent planes won't let you just set it down in the middle of a pasture somewhere.
     

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