Hello A.Netters,

I have been Member on A.Net since 2005 and have been a huge aviation fan ever since (my gradfather flew the C-160 Transall, my father was a Luftwaffe ground crew officer), but I studied law and work in a electricity company as a company lawyer.

2018, I started to realise a long dream and started with the PPL-A in my hometown (EDLH - we have an airfield in the middle of the city). In June 2020, I had my first Solo Flight (Cessna 172).

Have you tried something like this, too?

I'd love to but unfortunately flying lessons, even as a hobby, is prohibitively expensive here in Malaysia. It costs around $10,000 - $15,000 to get a PPL, which for the average Malaysian making $7,000 a year, is not feasible.

The pricing is an issue in Germany as well. You can count arount 10.000 EUR in a club.

In germany you can also fly microlight airplanes, which need another licence (if you have the PPL already this is pretty simple, the other way around is not), which are considerably cheaper. Until now, however, flight hours in the microlights did not count for the 12 hours you need to keep the PPL current (this shall change soon, however).

I plan to finish my PPL next year, and then I want to get the microlight licence as well. In our club, you pay 180 EUR/hour wet for the C172, and the microlight planes (Ultraleichtflugzeuge) are around 60 to 90 EUR/hour).

TheSonntag wrote:

Hello A.Netters,

I have been Member on A.Net since 2005 and have been a huge aviation fan ever since (my gradfather flew the C-160 Transall, my father was a Luftwaffe ground crew officer), but I studied law and work in a electricity company as a company lawyer.

2018, I started to realise a long dream and started with the PPL-A in my hometown (EDLH - we have an airfield in the middle of the city). In June 2020, I had my first Solo Flight (Cessna 172).

Have you tried something like this, too?

Of course.

The reward is always the greatest when you see the fruits of your own efforts.

Okie

I'm a commercial pilot, but I keep flying privately in my spare time. It is a nice and free way to fly, completely different from commercial aviation.

For those that are cash restricted, I can recommend looking into gliding or ultralights. The prices are way lower than a Cessna 172, and in many cases the new ULs are outperforming bigger PPL aircraft. Most gliders are aerobatic, something few PPL aircraft are. Neither are a lesser form of flying.

I started my training for a glider pilot license. On my 7 starts now

VSMUT wrote:

I'm a commercial pilot, but I keep flying privately in my spare time. It is a nice and free way to fly, completely different from commercial aviation.

For those that are cash restricted, I can recommend looking into gliding or ultralights. The prices are way lower than a Cessna 172, and in many cases the new ULs are outperforming bigger PPL aircraft. Most gliders are aerobatic, something few PPL aircraft are. Neither are a lesser form of flying.

I agree. Since I want to visit German and dutch islands with my family, I need 4 seats, though. I will strive to get the SPL licence for microlights later one. Our club got a new one, and it is technologically light years ahead when compared to the Cessna. I like the Lycoming O-360 though, but to me it is a scandal that new Cirrus SR22 and C172 still get delivered with engines that demand leaded fuel.

If you live in northwestern New Jersey, USA, the flight school at Aeroflex Andover offers lessons in a Piper Cub. Those lucky pilots also get a taildragger endorsement.

Absolutely flying as a hobby.

Got my private at 17 at FMY and wanted to be a corporate or airline driver. Well Viet Nam had just ended so my chances of gaining one of those jobs was slim and not at all. So went into U.S. Army for ATC which proved to be a four year stint and then 32 with the FAA as a tower and approach controller. Flying was a huge hobby of mine and enjoyed many many hours in single engine aircraft, a few in twins as second in command as well as a few hours in a BE90F.

Some 1,500+ hours later I have finally stopped flying as my wife prefers me not renting planes, now owning one would be different though not something I'll be doing. So now I simply enjoy the banter on A.net and a few other aviation sites along with friends I have who are you recently retired from corporate jobs and/or airline jobs with two of them who still fly, G550 and A319/320 dudes.

I started out flying Gliders in the NCC in India and that got me hooked to aviation. Graduated to flight training in a C172 as soon as I could afford it.

The thing with aviation as a hobby is that once you are hooked you keep wanting more and more. You want to keep adding endorsements to your license! Keep building up your skills as a pilot and exploring new aircraft. And i love it!

But the thing that got me really going was my introduction to this thing called Back country flying. Honestly I didnt even know that there was something like this when I first started learning to fly. Related to backcountry flying is Plane camping. Again, I had no idea that this kind of thing was possible! Warning - This shit is addictive! Just take your plane and fly out into the countryside, touch and gos in remote places. Landing and Taking off from mountain tops or river banks with no runways requires skill and is LOADS OF FUN! Flying out in formation with your flying school gang to remote locations and camping out in the wild is loads of fun! In the US/Canada, a lot of these flying school "gangs" tend to get inspired from the biker gang culture sometimes - guns, matching jackets et-al - but thats only a minor negative point! Once you go backcountry, you will never go back to just doing circuits around your GA base airfield - Boring!

My original plan when I got my license was to time-share with 3 other friends on a second hand C172. But then we realised its shortcomings as an aircraft and quickly outgrew it! I HATE that plane now though i do fly the min check flights just to stay current. C206 was the next upgrade for me - an absolute dog to fly but I love it! Much much more capable than a C172. Was recently introduced to an aircraft called Maule-7 and BOSSS! Like the Xcub, it is built for the backcountry, just more capable. M-7 can take off with 4 people and their baggage in under 400 feet and fly a 250 mile sector easily! Cant find one easily to train though! But THIS is the plane to save up for!

TheSonntag wrote:

In germany you can also fly microlight airplanes, which need another licence (if you have the PPL already this is pretty simple, the other way around is not), which are considerably cheaper. Until now, however, flight hours in the microlights did not count for the 12 hours you need to keep the PPL current (this shall change soon, however).

I am not sure of the rules in Germany. But if you already have a current PPL, then you dont need to do another 40 hours to get a Microlight endorsement. Just 10 hours/aircraft type in most places.

Its a great idea to get Microlight endorsement. Honestly, i find Piper Cub and its modern avatar XCub series much more fun to fly than a C172. And it is much cheaper! Also, You CANNOT do backcountry with a C172 but you can with a C206 if you have the skills as it has much better STOL and rough field capability. The XCub ultralight is fantastic for this job - damn thing gets off the ground in under 100 ft!

Make sure you get your license endorsed for FAA/CAA so you can fly in USA and Canada. Lots of backcountry flying opportunities here. Idaho is my personal favorite for backcountry flying!

Congratulations on the milestone @SonnTagg! Cheers!