Originally Posted by
Motosaki
...He said loans for flight school are hard to get, and if I do get one it will likely be very high interest. He suggested I pay as I go out of pocket... but being a 22 year old that installs car stereos I would be 50 by the time I came up with the money myself...
Ah... you're getting your money's worth out of me.
Don't get a loan is my emphatic recommendation. Your flight training will not drag out all that much without one. Your instructor today was right. I did most of my tickets as a hobby while taking a full load of classes in college, and I worked off the cost driving trucks. I did have to quit for a few months at one point due to dental bills, but generally I stayed in flight training the whole time. I never took any loans. It does drag it out a bit but no more than twice as long as with loans.
Originally Posted by
Motosaki
...I know there are plenty of pilots that went through all the training and did not have the money to pay for it out of pocket, so loans have to be considered as an option...
Yeah that's true for some, but there are others out there like me who are saying it is necessary or prudent. The ones who generally are good fits for loans are airline track professionals that wait until the hiring market is good, which it isn't now. AllATP's is one of the schools, and ATP is firing instructors at this point.
Originally Posted by
Motosaki
Debt sucks and I know the pitfalls that it can turn into, but I am thinking I will have to have one. Right now my mentality is to take out loans as needed as I progress through all the different stages, all while pinching every penny possible and selling everything I don't need. Which I am more than willing to do...
Do this
without any loans and you will be debt free when it's all done.
Originally Posted by
Motosaki
...I am 6'6" 180 and fitting into the planes was a concern I had originally. I have flown the C-172S, and been in a 152 (which was on the ground, stationary). The 172 I have no problem fitting in. The 152 feels a little tight, but still do-able. The only problem was when I pulled back on the yoke my knees got in the way. I can get into the habit of moving my knees if it means I am going to save several hundred dollars (or any other habit for that matter) but from a safety standpoint, do you think the 172 is the best option? He suggested once I pick a plane, to ONLY fly that plane until I get my private. So I want to make the right choice from the get go...
He is right, you should pick a model and try to stay with it. However 6'6" is too tall for the 152 I think. I am not going to make a judgment on that but I was a tad uncomfortable in 152's during my own training and I was 6'0"- 175 lbs at the time.
Originally Posted by
Motosaki
...I still will do a few more discovery flights before I make any decisions, but I really did like Aero Atlanta. The flight school at Gwinnett is my next stop so I can get an idea of what is good by knowing what is bad. Gwinnett and McCollum both do everything by the hour, whereas Falcon Aviation and Aviation Atlanta at KPDK were all fixed prices and you were told what they include. I like the option of going by hour and having a choice in the matter to save some money. Would you say it is better to go to a flight school that does it this way, or am I better off with a fixed rate so I know what I am getting myself into...
That fixed rate will go out the window if you don't learn fast enough to fit their syllabus. In addition, since I recommend you work and not borrow, you are going to need some flexibility in terms of pace.
Keep an open mind about Flight School of Gwinnett. They can save you a lot of money. They have some good instructors at times and a fairly reasonable reputation in the area. Any flight school that minimizes cost is going to have an old fleet of Cessnas. You do not need a fancy airplane to learn to fly one. Tell you what, if you go there to look at it and take a discovery flight, and decide it is a possibility for you, I will call an old friend of mine who runs an air taxi business on the field there and ask him what he thinks about it.
Originally Posted by
Motosaki
...
The rates for Aero Atlanta were:
Rental
C-172SP Club: $125 or Non Club: $132
152: Club: $75 or Non Club: $82
With a fuel surcharge of 6% of the posted rate
Pre Paid amounts of $2000+ gets a 4% discount, $4000 gets a 5% etc
Instruction rate:
Basic/Ground: $42
Senior: $49
Club Membership
$55 initiation with a $20 monthly fee
As usual any advice or feedback is appreciated-Dustin L
Those are reasonable rates for newer Cessnas, but you can save a lot of money by using older Cessnas and Pipers. Flight School of Gwinnett is advertising a club rate of $76 an hour for an old well maintained 152.
FSGwinnett I agree flying is a great thing but you have to shave down the costs in every way you possibly can. Debt is really not what you want in addition to your flight tickets these days and a little hard work and patience will do the trick.
-Cub