Crude is now 59.33 a barrel. Gas averages at 2.22 a gallon again (Under 2 dollars in some states! Awesome!). Yet my FBO still charges 13.99 per hour for fuel surcharge, and 135 an hour on top of that for a 1999 Cessna 172... The price has probably almost doubled in 4 years, yet now when fuel is cheap again, it doesn't change? What's up with that? I understand that the airlines buy their fuel at a set contract price (they pay 1 amount of what the fuel is worth at the time, regardless of what it will be 6 months from then, or something like that) But do FBO's do the same thing?

I'm at a point right now where I want to get on with my life... I'm working in IT now and make decent money, but want an adventure/learn new things, see new places, meet new people, fly planes... This whole color vision thing I'm working on getting behind me by taking the MFT, and the other setback is money... It just makes me angry that 4 years or so ago, the same school that was like 25 grand is now 60 or 70. Yet my income doesn't even grow at the rate of inflation. (Housing and rent costs have risen even faster than inflation)

I guess my question is... do you see the cost of training going down any time soon if the fuel prices stay low?

While fuel might have gone down a tiny amount; rent, maintenance, parts, insurance (especially), wages (somewhat), and paperwork expenses have gone way up. In many cases, insurance has doubled or tripled in cost for less coverage. Most FBOs can't afford to hedge fuel like some airlines do. Their entire piston fleet of 50-100 airplanes won't suck as much fuel in a year as a single Boeing or Airbus airliner product does in a month.

See if you can get the CFI to work for free, that oughta cut costs by a few cents. You can claim that they'll be saving money by not having to pay taxes.

So yeah, learning to fly is expensive, even if you do it at the cheapest, dirtiest, ugliest operator you can find. But there is hope, if you save up a ton of money then pay for flight training, when you get a flying job you'll be able to afford eating. And if you get one of those CFI jobs where the clients demand you work for free, you'll be able to buy a box from another homeless person.

So in other words, I should just give up, and submit my soul to the office for the remaining 61 or so years of my life? (Considering I live until 85)

I'll tell ya, it does sound tempting... To give up the dream, so I can finally get my own place, and life... But then I'd never be in a career that I enjoy... or feel proud of... Only one that pays (sort of... Transit costs and taxes allow me to clear maybe 1/4 of my paycheck...) and one that people can say whatever they want to you, demand whatever unreasonable request from you, but you have to act like a good little customer service person and remain calm even tho they are only about 1/4 as smart as you... yet make 5 times as much as you...

But at least I'd have 6 waking hours per day to spend in the apartment that I would pay just about a mortgage price for rent on...

It seems like either way, the middle class is screwed.

I feel your pain. I've been working in Korea for nearly 4 years, saving up as much as possible so I can hopefully pay for everything in cash. Unfortunately for me, the Korean currency has lost more then 30% this year, so my savings have taken a huge hit, especially in the last 4 months. I think if oil can stay right around $60 for at least a few months, then you may start to see some flight schools lower their prices.

I know Ari Ben just lowered their 200 hour course by $5,000 and ATP came out with a new program for somewhere near $25,000. I'm looking at going to a place like Star Bright Aviation in Kansas, where I can go from PPL-MEI for right under $40,000. The other alternative is to buy my own plane, hire a CFI, and then sell the plane once I get all my ratings.

FYI...Aviation as a whole has ALWAYS been expensive...why should that change with the price of oil??

I'm in the same boat you are in right now my friend, just a few years before. It is going to be one of the hardest things both of us will ever do. If you want it bad enough, you will make it happen. If not, you could always pursue the office gig and buy a house/start a family etc, and fly on weekends.

As you know the industry isn't the most stable as far as job security goes, and the pay is mediocre unless you're at the top level. I think it is something that only those who dreamed of being a pilot as a kid should pursue. But if you get a good bit of luck on your side and things work out, then in my opinion there is no better way to spend a lifetime than to be a pilot. Either way, good luck to you.

Instead of lobbying here, go talk to lawyers, weeping widows, etc. Get them to stop suing for 1M if someone dies because they were stupid. Thats a HUGE reason this stuff is so expensive. Look, you need a:

100 hr inspection
annual inspection
overhaul when an engine reaches a certain tach time. (up to 40K)
ELT inspection every year
static every 2 years
transponder every two years
airplane needs insurance
CFI or flight school needs insurance
fuel (10 GPH average * 4 bucks)
hanger rental

and the list goes on. See why its so expensive? The school I went to had to pay over 70K a year on insurance on 6 planes.
Go to airnav.com. , and you will see avgas is NOT what mogas is for us.

AVGAS is special. It comprises only a tiny fraction of the gasoline sold in the US each year, and must be specially formulated. Of course a rise in price of the raw material (crude oil) is going to cause the price to jump, but I would never expect it to come down much.

We are lucky that anyone even makes the stuff anymore. As more airplanes convert to diesel/jet A engines the demand will drop further, resulting in decreased production and even HIGHER prices. The refiners don't need GA or AVGAS...they almost do it as a public service.

But there are many other costs associated with GA...Mx and liaibility are the biggies. I wouldn't expect the cost to come down...the transition to diesel engines will drive costs even higher (the retrofits will be expensive).

If you're gonna do it, may as well get started because it's not going to get any cheaper...

I've seen avgas in some places come down a good $1.50 to $2/gal. Other places not so much. I agree with Rick that avgas is a niche market.

On another note, if we could get auto fuel without ethonol in it, quite a few of the "older" era training aircraft could burn car gas.

It's not as simple as you make it sound. Everybody else here chimed in with the biggest reasons.

Avgas comprises less than 1/10 of 1% of the gasoline refined in the US annually. Refineries don't like to shut down, retool and produce a small batch of unprofitable fuel which is why the other aviation fuels have gone by the wayside. Add to that pressures from the EPA about the lead content and it's becomming even more scarce. Even when Gas was around $1/gallon 100LL was selling around $3/gallon.