Aerobatics
 

alright well needless to say, i got the aerobatic bug.

the unfortunate thing is, my aerobatic instructor costs about $270/hour (with the plane, obviously, a pitts s-2a)...

now is it worth spending that much money to become good at something that isn't really necessary for my career? or is the fact that its a hobby which i enjoy and will also make me a better pilot make it ok?

should i just stop the aerobatic training and wait until later in my life when i can afford it, or should i stick it out and pay out the butt while my learning curve is still relatively low and my hours are relatively low so it will still influence the way i fly "normally"?

Or, you can choose from behind curtain 2!

How about this...change career goals...get good in the Pitts and perhaps do Aerobatic instruction yourself. If you buy a Pitts right, you can make enough off of the plane and instruction to afford a nice living. I would imagine a LOT of people on these boards would trade being a regional pilot for flying a Pitts all day.

If you want to do any serious acro on a line pilot's budget you're gonna need some help from friends. That may be the only way to do any until years later when you have the money. The good news is there are people out there with airplanes who are willing to teach & share what they know. I spent 30 hours in a Cub with one and learned to do loops and spins. He made me pay for the gas.

A little acro experience might help your flying skills a bit, but if money's tight I'd spend most of it on ME time.

Coming from a training background where ACRO was automatically part of the training program I am a big fan... personally I think it makes you a better stick and rudder pilot all around. Multi time is important, but i dont think a couple hours to learn the basics are gonna to change your ME time that much.

where do you live?

I am an acro instructor in MA flying a super decathlon and an extra 300 and we have an aerobatics course that runs around 10 hours and the decathlon is 154/hr. After the course you have your tailwheel endorsement and are ready to compete in local contest in the primary category.

If after that you want more we do advanced all the way up to the unlimited category

for the basic course you will learn unusual attitude recovery
spins
loops
immelmans
hammerheads
half cubans
slow rolls
and a few other maneuvers thrown in there.

any questions let me know, there are great aerobatic schools everywhere and I would reccomend starting in something cheaper, maybe even a citabria because it will make you a better aerobatic pilot and save you money in the long run

Agree with that statement. I really appreciate when I see someone that is not flying a fire breathing Pitts, Extra, Zivco, etc. because you know they are working HARD to make the stuff look good. There is a guy on the airshow circuit doing a routine in a stock, 220hp Stearman...and he does a beautiful job - really smooth, nice looking routine. Most people watch and because there are no tumbles, and no vertical penetration, they are bored...the pilots who watch are in awe, because they know how hard he is working to do what he is doing.

I live in Kansas City, Missouri.. my acro instructor is John Morrissey(great planes aerobatics), which I'm sure if you know anything about pitts, you've probably heard of him.

if that is such a favorable seat to sit in, why dont more people do it than?


... and another thing i thought about. once you learn enough acro to solo and actually have fun with it, how do you even do it? haha... its not like you can just go out and rent an aerobatic plane? its almost like even then you have to BUY one.

I would say initially doing some "upset recovery" type of training is a good idea. My college did it and it was a great couple of lessons(flew in a Dehaviland Chipmunk). Now if you really get the bug, flight instructing in acro I'm sure is just like regular, you can't count on income, so finding some 2nd source of income would be a good idea if you were to do that on a full/part time basis. I'd love to do it myself, but it's a lucrative market and you really got to do a lot before you can bring any income back out of it.

how long does it take to get an aerobatic rating?