What do people do with a PPL?

[Condi]

I had a first flying lesson today, go up, fly around, learn what the aircraft does etc. Good fun, really enjoyed it. Wondering what to do next. Im not sure I can really justify the money and hours to get my licence, to do nothing with it? As much as flying might be an enjoyable career, at 29 and without enough money to fund a commercial licence that door is kinda closed. In heinsight then joining the forces at 22 would have been more sensible, but whatever, all your choices are half chance.


So, people with PPL's - what the hell do you do with them?! Do you have to buy a plane, or just rent one and go pottering around in the sky for a while visiting different places? Or is there something Im missing? A mates dad flew as a passenger to Scotland in a few hours rather than driving for 6, but that is hardly an excuse to spend £7k in the first place!

[Condi]

fishermanpaul said:

Buy a share in a 'plane rather than a whole one to yourself (I had a 1/13th in a PA28 for £1500 and now have a 1/8 in a F172 for £1200 - both £100p/m standing charge and £100 p/h wet).

You can do the £100 burger thing (fly somewhere with a mate/gf, have lunch, fly back) and there are some great places to go (I of Wight, Channel Isles and Le Touquet being a few you wouldn't do on a day trip in a car). Or you can take it for a few days and plan a trip around Ireland, Scottish Islands, France or further into Europe as you want.

It's also fun, if you have a share, to pull the aircraft out of the hangar on a summer's evening after work and make £100 worth of holes in the sky for an hour.

fp

I dont think I have that many £100


But thank You, some interesting responses

[Condi]

fishermanpaul said:

Buy a share in a 'plane rather than a whole one to yourself (I had a 1/13th in a PA28 for £1500 and now have a 1/8 in a F172 for £1200 - both £100p/m standing charge and £100 p/h wet).

When you say wet - does that mean fuel included presumably? So if you fly somewhere and need to refuel, do you pay for that or is it all somehow covered by the hire charge even at away airports.



Also - how would one go about going commercial at 29, and ideally not having to finance the whole £100k myself!

[Condi]

Dr Jekyll said:

This guy did something useful with his PPL

http://www.pprune.org/aviation-history-nostalgia/5...

scroll down to post 7 for the full story.

Bit serious. Sadly I have no young maiden to rescue from across borders.

Thanks for all the replies. Wont hurt to apply to a few commercial schemes and see what happens.... if Im going to get paid well for sitting behind a desk better that the desk goes somewhere interesting rather than stay in one place.