lid wrote:

Buying vs. renting is not an apples-to-apples comparison, just as
flying vs. driving is not. There are many factors for each that don't
apply to the other.

you also get a different set of benefits, which is what most of us
think of as the "joy of ownership". For most people the joys far
outweigh the risks.


Right on point.

Attempting to justify ownership on dollar costs alone doesn't tell the tale.

Owning is expensive, no ands or buts about it. But there are
intangibles, like always knowing the airplane will be available, and
knowing you'll be able to fly the airplane you expect to fly, and
knowing what condition the last pilot (you) left the airplane
in....there's no way to put a price on that stuff.

Showing up at the airport to fly somebody else's rental piece of junk
would never get it for me, I've been there, done that, and I've been
willing to pay the piper (pun intended) for a long time now, for the
privilege of flying my OWN plane.