On Oct 20, 11:10 am, 309 wrote:
On Oct 20, 9:45 am, "Bill Daniels" bildan@comcast-dot-net wrote:

I don't think any tow plane ever pays for itself once all 'hidden' costs are
considered. Operating an old rag and tube airplane of any kind is fraught
with 'nickel & dime' costs that add up. The last time I took a hard look, a
Pawnee runs about $150 USD/hour. With rapidly escalating costs of fuel and
insurance, it will probably be $200/hour by next summer. You don't operate
small airplanes to make money, you do it because you either need to or want
to. Tugs are cost centers not profit centers.

I think any club interested in lowering operating costs should be
investigating winches.

Bill Daniels

I forgot to add my "turbine tow would require winch launch
authorization" punch line. ;-) Thanks, Frank.

If somebody made a twin-turbine-taildragger tug, you could get the tow
pilots to PAY for that time (building time for th airlines...).
Turbine Beech-18 gets logged as Complex-Multi-Taildragger-Turbine-High
Performance time...worth $200.00 per hour for training to be a line
pilot. Yeah, I'd go back to the club and put up with the politics for
that!

Since AUTO fuel will quickly be over $4.00 per gallon (it already has
"traded" above that in Beverly Hills), the winches aren't going to be
a hell of a lot better -- if we must insist on suckering, er I mean
recruiting teenagers into our dying sport. (Flame away, guys...I'm
trying to get my kids interested -- _I_ have a hard time competing
with video games, even when I shut the power off).

I suspect we'll soon be back to hilltops and bungee cords... Quick,
we must assemble a protest march to SAVE TORREY PINES (Gliderport)!!!!

-Pete
#309
(I just donned my flame retardant suit).

P.S.: For the record, I agree with Bill -- EVERY "club" should have a
winch. And I think winch launches COULD compete with video games.

Actually, a winch launch to 2000agl uses very little fuel. Getting to
the gliderport will use far more.

Frank