We're getting old, folks...

Ken Hornstein - CONTRACTOR wrote:
So, I think that when I learned, the 152 the school I had was something
like $79/hr (I see that it's up to $89/hr now). My instructor rates
were $30/hr. That's pretty reasonable, considering the difference in
cost-of-living between our locales.


I learned how to fly in 1978. Back then, a C-152 went for $24.50/hour and an
instructor was $15/hr. C-172s were $31/hr, IIRC.



You say it takes 55 hours to get your private. But I scheduled two
flights, every week, and it took me around 80. According to some of
the web pages I've seen, 75 is the national average, which means I'm at
least within a standard deviation. So I don't think 55 hours is a fair
amount of time for the _average_ person.


I got my private license in 44 hours, flying 2-3 times a week. I started in
10/78 and finished in 2/79... flying through what passes for winter weather in
the Carolinas. When I hear of people taking 75 hours, all I can think is that
they waited too long between flights and had to spend the first part of every
flight going over what they forgot from the one before. And if I had to assign
a cause, I'd blame it on money. It cost me about $1100 to earn my license,
which sounds pretty cheap these days. What you have to remember is that a nice
new car could be bought in 1978 for $6000 or so. What would you spend today?

I remember an old fellow scoffing at my $1100. "Hell", he said, "I paid $600 to
learn how to fly". Of course when he learned how to fly you could buy a brand
new VW Beetle for around $2500. It's all relative.



--
Mortimer Schnerd, RN

VE