Under the heading of "culture," I would also add that the "wonder" of flight
has been diminished somewhat by technology. Photorealistic flight
simulators, free online satellite photos, internet video sharing, and
increased accessibility of commercial flight have all limited the uniqueness
of the appeal in flying your own (or rented) aircraft.

That being said, it can go the other way too. I was a flight-sim junkie for
years until me and a fellow sim-junkie I worked with had a conversation
about the latest flight sim that progressed into the feasibility of flying
for real. We're both now private pilots.

Marco Leon

"pittss1c" wrote in message
...
Cost isn't the only thing. The culture has changed.
A lot of the old farts I fly with got started because they were the kid
that used to hang out at the airport... willing to wash an airplane for a
ride.
These days, it seems like a young kid riding his bike to the airport to
hang out all day and take rides from strangers is a rarity. How would you
handle the situation?

Second, modern old farts are mostly intolerant of the mistakes and
misjudgements of youth. They do not accept anything they consider to be
reckless or foolish.
(and would be the first to get you kicked off a field for it)
These are the same people that looped their cubs and rolled their
luscombes in there day at my current age.
There is no doubt (and I have seen it happen) where that type of behavior
has had a youngster kicked off an airport. I am not saying it isn't the
right thing to do, but it was different in the old days.
In my area, the interaction between the public and the local airport has
diminished. We don't have the flyins that the public is welcome at as
often (if we do, we try to keep the public roped off from our planes and
consequently us...)
The culture has changed.


Mike

Mike Rapoport wrote:
The biggest problem is cost. The future of GA is homebuilding.

Mike
MU-2


"Jay Honeck" wrote in message
oups.com...

Here's the average age of pilots, comparing 1993 to 2003:

....................1993 -- 2003
Student ........ 33.7 - 34.0
Rec ..............45.5 - 51.3
Private ..........42.7 - 46.5
Commercial ...41.9 - 45.6
ATP ..............44.1 - 47.0

Here are the number of private certificates issued:

1971-49,000
1976-55,000
1981-45,000
1986-34,000
1991-49,000
1996-24,000
2001-25,000
2004-23,000

Both of these are a one-way trips, ladies and gentlemen. What the heck
kind of GA are we going to have in 25 years, at this rate? What can
we do to arrest this rate of decline?
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"








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