Cost to earn a glider certificate?

Just a quick note:

Don't overlook the "supplies" category.

Charts, learning materials, study guides, etc. will probably add up to
about $500. It'll happen in $20 - $50 increments, but it adds up
fast. And there's no such thing as "too much studying" in the world
of piloting!

BTW for training materials, I'm a big fan of Bob Wander's books. He
has some great "Package Deals" on his website for around $100 - $150
that include all the books you need for training and basic soaring
flight. Good stuff! I'm not associated with him, but like his
writing and his lecturing style (if you ever get a chance to hear him
speak, he's pretty good): http://www.bobwander.com

Take care,

--Noel

ContestID67 wrote:
It appears that this club is slightly different than the norm (aren't
we all?). They have low yearly dues ($164 including SSA membership),
$10 per flight glider rental, $50 per 3000 foot tow and $30/hour for
an instructor. Let's assume it takes 30 rides to solo, each ride to
3000 feet lasting 30 mins (with ground school) over the course of one
year. That adds up to 164+30x10+30x50+30x30x0.5=$2414. So the $2500
was a pretty good guess.

Based on your estimate and those provided by others, I'm guessing somewhere
between $2500 and $5000 seems the most probable cost range, when everything
is factored in.

But I probably wouldn't spread the cost over a year. If I had fun for that
length of calendar time without sharing the results of it with my wife it'd
really cost me! :-)

My club is $650/year dues, no rental, no instructor fees, and $30 per
3000 foot tow. That adds up to 650+30x30=$1550.

Wow. That's not much!

Anyone have the numbers for a commercial operation?

However, you need to add in materials, FAA test fees (private), sweat
equity (it is a club after all) and the inevitable cost of the "I-need-
to-buy-my-own-glider" bug.

I-need-to-buy-my-own-glider? Better not feed that bug! I haven't even
gotten off the ground and the idea of owning a motor glider sounds
appealing. That would make the training costs "inconsequential". ;-)

"Jim Logajan" wrote in message
.. .
wrote:
For the record, here's my background:

I'm 52, have essentially no previous experience (Okay, I did have a 3rd
class medical and student pilot certificate in 1991, but while I passed
ground school I got almost no stick time! Mark it up to "life happened".)

I started out as an ab-initio student glider pilot at about that age. I was
not/am not a natural pilot. Learning to fly a glider was one of the hardest and
most satisfying things I have ever done. I found learning the tow to be the
hardest part, and that is one of the first things you need to do. There were
times when I honestly expected my CFI to gently tell me to find another hobby.

After I finally passed my checkride, I kept learning. I even got my
Commercial and CFIG and then spent a few years as a part-time glider rides pilot
& flight instructor.

If you have the desire, go for it! That said, don't expect it to be quick or
easy at your age, but you can expect a continuous stream of satisfying
experiences as you finally overcome each obstacle on the path to your
certificate.

Since I am self-employed I could probably dedicate a concentrated effort
for two to three weeks. But I suspect the trick to making that happen would
be finding a quiet zone between work projects (I find it tough to put off
clients) that also coincided with presumable good weather and instructor
availability.

Why rush it? Take the time to do things right and savor the entire process.
You are only a new student pilot once. Oh yes, also take all of the time you
need to absorb the knowledge and experiences necessary to fly safely. Flight
training is not a race.

Vaughn

"ContestID67" wrote in message
...
...
Anyone have the numbers for a commercial operation?

A lot of them put numbers up on their web pages - some random samples (no
endorsement of or experience with any of these..)

http://www.soaringnv.com/instruction.php

http://www.caracolesoaring.com/learn2.htm

http://www.skysailing.com/pages/lessons.html


--
Geoff
The Sea Hawk at Wow Way d0t Com
remove spaces and make the obvious substitutions to reply by mail
When immigration is outlawed, only outlaws will immigrate.

On Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:36:27 -0500, Jim Logajan wrote:

Yes, I understand the training cost is just part of a continuum of ongoing
costs. But I'm assuming (perhaps incorrectly) that I'll be doing more
flying in a short span of time than I would once I earn a certificate. So
it's a spike in discretionary spending that needs to be planned for.

You may be surprised. I fly in the UK and learnt here, mainly on a winch,
but I think the pre-solo hours are similar to the typical US
aero-tow learning experience. The main difference is that winching
provides more, shorter flights with a considerably lower launch cost. A
side effect is that learning on the winch means you are likely to have
more landing practise because you will have done at least twice as many
launches and landings as an aero tow student by the time you solo.

But I digress: in my pre-solo year (6 months to solo flying weekends, then
a month in the club SZD Juniors before thermals stopped for the year)
I accumulated about 25 hours flying. For the next four years I averaged
around 70 hours per year and assumed that would be my norm. However the
last two years have really dropped that figure thanks to changed weather
patterns, last year I didn't quite touch 40 hours and this year looks
set to be worse. But then, we ARE a weather-dependent game.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. |
org | Zappa fan & glider pilot

Think of it this way; except for the investment in your own glider, the
costs are about the same as playing golf.

The instruction part will be as much fun as the later solo-flying, well,
almost. And, as an investment, a glider depreciates less that most
anything you can buy. Most people regain their original purchase price
owing to inflation. Try that with a car or boat.

At 22:04 07 June 2008, Martin Gregorie wrote:
On Sat, 07 Jun 2008 13:36:27 -0500, Jim Logajan wrote:

Yes, I understand the training cost is just part of a continuum of
ongoing
costs. But I'm assuming (perhaps incorrectly) that I'll be doing more

flying in a short span of time than I would once I earn a certificate.
So
it's a spike in discretionary spending that needs to be planned for.

You may be surprised. I fly in the UK and learnt here, mainly on a
winch,
but I think the pre-solo hours are similar to the typical US
aero-tow learning experience. The main difference is that winching
provides more, shorter flights with a considerably lower launch cost. A
side effect is that learning on the winch means you are likely to have
more landing practise because you will have done at least twice as many
launches and landings as an aero tow student by the time you solo.

But I digress: in my pre-solo year (6 months to solo flying weekends,
then
a month in the club SZD Juniors before thermals stopped for the year)
I accumulated about 25 hours flying. For the next four years I averaged
around 70 hours per year and assumed that would be my norm. However the
last two years have really dropped that figure thanks to changed weather
patterns, last year I didn't quite touch 40 hours and this year looks
set to be worse. But then, we ARE a weather-dependent game.


--
martin@ | Martin Gregorie
gregorie. |
org | Zappa fan & glider pilot

"Jim Logajan" wrote in message
:

ContestID67 wrote:
It appears that this club is slightly different than the norm (aren't
we all?). They have low yearly dues ($164 including SSA membership),
$10 per flight glider rental, $50 per 3000 foot tow and $30/hour for
an instructor. Let's assume it takes 30 rides to solo, each ride to
3000 feet lasting 30 mins (with ground school) over the course of one
year. That adds up to 164+30x10+30x50+30x30x0.5=$2414. So the $2500
was a pretty good guess.

Based on your estimate and those provided by others, I'm guessing somewhere
between $2500 and $5000 seems the most probable cost range, when everything
is factored in.

But I probably wouldn't spread the cost over a year. If I had fun for that
length of calendar time without sharing the results of it with my wife it'd
really cost me! :-)

My club is $650/year dues, no rental, no instructor fees, and $30 per
3000 foot tow. That adds up to 650+30x30=$1550.

Wow. That's not much!

Anyone have the numbers for a commercial operation?

However, you need to add in materials, FAA test fees (private), sweat
equity (it is a club after all) and the inevitable cost of the "I-need-
to-buy-my-own-glider" bug.

I-need-to-buy-my-own-glider? Better not feed that bug! I haven't even
gotten off the ground and the idea of owning a motor glider sounds
appealing. That would make the training costs "inconsequential". ;-)

Jim, let the idea of a motorglider go for a while. You need to
experience the simple pleasures of quiet flight, comraderie, and
becoming one with your machine.

You would likely spend more time than you could possibly imagine
fiddling with and maintaining it. Time you really need to be soaring
quietly and freely and learning what it means to use your brain and soul
to keep a motorless craft in the air for hours at a time.

My $0.02.

Larry

On Jun 7, 1:51 pm, "noel.wade" wrote:
Just a quick note:

Don't overlook the "supplies" category.

Charts, learning materials, study guides, etc. will probably add up to
about $500. It'll happen in $20 - $50 increments, but it adds up
fast. And there's no such thing as "too much studying" in the world
of piloting!

BTW for training materials, I'm a big fan of Bob Wander's books. He
has some great "Package Deals" on his website for around $100 - $150
that include all the books you need for training and basic soaring
flight. Good stuff! I'm not associated with him, but like his
writing and his lecturing style (if you ever get a chance to hear him
speak, he's pretty good): http://www.bobwander.com

Take care,

--Noel

Unless I missed it, none of the previous posts mentioned the club
initiation fee which can be easily a one-time expense of $500-$1,000
or more. Clubs put up that entrance barrier to make sure applicants
have well considered joining a club and to provide a (non-redeemable)
"share" of the very expensive club equipment. When entering the sport
this amount needs to be added to the already stated costs.

Herb, J7

Right! About the amount of a good set of golf clubs.

At 13:44 08 June 2008, Herb wrote:
On Jun 7, 1:51 pm, "noel.wade" wrote:
Just a quick note:

Don't overlook the "supplies" category.

Charts, learning materials, study guides, etc. will probably add up to
about $500. It'll happen in $20 - $50 increments, but it adds up
fast. And there's no such thing as "too much studying" in the
world
of piloting!

BTW for training materials, I'm a big fan of Bob Wander's books. He
has some great "Package Deals" on his website for around $100 -
$150
that include all the books you need for training and basic soaring
flight. Good stuff! I'm not associated with him, but like his
writing and his lecturing style (if you ever get a chance to hear him
speak, he's pretty good): http://www.bobwander.com

Take care,

--Noel

Unless I missed it, none of the previous posts mentioned the club
initiation fee which can be easily a one-time expense of $500-$1,000
or more. Clubs put up that entrance barrier to make sure applicants
have well considered joining a club and to provide a (non-redeemable)
"share" of the very expensive club equipment. When entering the sport
this amount needs to be added to the already stated costs.

Herb, J7

In article "Vaughn Simon" writes:

"Tony Verhulst" wrote in message
...
... your real question (IMHO) should be "what does it cost to participate in
soaring?".

Well said! Since much of soaring is done solo anyhow, and much of your
student flying is also solo, the cost to actually earn your certificate is not
terribly relevant. Flying is flying...certificate or not, and flying is a
wonderful thing.

Vaughn (CFIG)

Much the same was true when I got my power license -- flying is flying.

However, now I wonder about what sort of flights to expect while getting
the rating -- how many useful flights and how many wasted ones? Does it really
take 15 to 20 flights of dual before solo? What is covered in those, and how
can one take control of the process to make it more efficient?

How many more dual before "high solo", and how many more before the check ride?

How many of these flights actually get into lift and give a good learning period,
and how many are just a ride back down from release?

yes, I know, "ask the local group's instructors". I am asking here first so I
am better equipped to evaluate their answers when I do so.


Alan