What percentage have a power pilot license?

Power flying will require more attention to aircraft management. Engine
management, radio/VOR management, etc.

Soaring first will eliminate the "management" aspect and let you focus
on perhaps the most important thing which is flying skills.

Without looking at accident statistics and then back tracking to find
whether a pilot was "glider then power" or "power then glider", I don't
think you can say one way is better than the other.

My personal opinion would be to start with soaring first, then
transition to power. You will get to learn formation flying (with the
added bonus of having a rope tied between you). Learning how to land
when you only have one shot at it will force you to excel at energy
management. Rope break training at 200' might come in handy if you ever
lose power on departure later in power flying.

Once you master the flying part, if you're drawn to power flying, then
add the other aircraft management items into the mix and enjoy.

wrote:
Hi all, I decided to take the plunge (no pun intended) and start
flying. I thought about going straight for a private glider license.
But, I do have the option of going for the powered pilot license first
- then the glider license second. Any thoughts? How many here have
both? Did you get your powered pilot license first?

cheers, Victor

I soloed in gliders first (and flew locally for a season) ... then got
a power ticket ... then came back to soaring and immediately started
going XC. Glider instruction focuses on energy management and
coordination (i.e. pure flying) ... and skills and a decision making
process that is specific to flying an engineless airplane. (I loved it
when my power instructor did simulated engine failures). Power involves
more training in airplane systems, airspace/airports, navigation and
ATC (all good knowledge)... but is particularly great for getting you
accustomed to going places, with emphasis on navigating by dead
reckoning, which makes the transition to Soaring XC easy. The cheapest
way is probably power first ... however, some might argue that your
will have to unlearn some things to become a glider pilot ... (-8

"KK"
Ken Kochanski

Learning to fly in either a powered aircraft or a glider is equally exciting
and rewarding. Asking the question in a glider forum may yield a different
answer than in a powered aircraft forum. Skills learned in one can be used
in the other.

Learning to fly in a high density, tower controlled environment can be more
demanding than flying in the country, often with minimal radio.

There are other factors to consider, aside from which aircraft to use.
Glider instruction may be more distant than a powered aircraft, and may have
more limited operation hours. Also, in some areas, glider operations shuts
down in the winter. But, you can fly a powered heater all winter long.

Glider clubs can be more demanding. Often, you must spend time working at
the field. With a powered aircraft, however, you generally pay your money
and go flying.

If you have enough money, do both.

Even helicopters are fun to fly.

One problem with a power plane rating is that the glider club will try to
suck you into being a tow pilot.

Colin

wrote:
But, I do have the option of going for the powered pilot license first
- then the glider license second. Any thoughts?
cheers, Victor

Did glider first then power, BUT...
I suggest (for FAA ratings):

Achieve proficiency at takeoffs and landings in power. Easier to do multiple approaches.
Get to solo (a few of them) in glider. You will learn 100% more about flight controls and weather.
Finish Private in SEL. This includes cross-country.
Add glider rating.
Get cross-country instruction in glider.
Have fun.
You only take only one written test, and get the best of both.
Presently I fly 95% glider and 5% power.
Jim

I liked what Mike Goulian (the noted aerobatic pilot) said at a WINGS safety
seminar I attended several years ago. As a first step in safety he told the
300+ crowd of power pilots and 4 glider pilots to go take glider lessons to
really learn how to fly and learn energy management.

It made me smile.

wrote:
Hi all, I decided to take the plunge (no pun intended) and start
flying. I thought about going straight for a private glider license.
But, I do have the option of going for the powered pilot license first
- then the glider license second. Any thoughts? How many here have
both? Did you get your powered pilot license first?

First, I have yet to obtain any rating at all, so take this with a grain
of salt.

My first flight (aside from airline stuff) was in a glider when I was
maybe ten years old. I loved it, but I was too afraid to touch the
controls when offered.

A bit later on I started taking powered lessons. I was probably 11 or so
at the time. I took it very slow since I couldn't afford the time or money
to go often, plus there wasn't much of a point in going fast as I was
several years away from soloing or getting my license no matter what.

I kept it up at about once a month for years, soloed at 16, lost interest
in the whole thing and quit.

Fast forward ten years, I'm done with school, have the money to go flying
and realize I want to get back into it. I'd been playing with flight
simulators for a very long time and had recently become interested in
gliders in the sim, so I decided to try them in real life.

This past July I took my second glider flight, and I was *hooked*. It was
amazing. Then I came back for my next lesson and it was even better. Every
day I fly feels like it's the best it can ever get, and every day I fly I
prove the previous day wrong. I soloed in September on my 26th flight and
I'm loving every minute of it.

I love how connected you are with the airplane. To me, a glider feels more
like something you put on than something you get into. It's easy to forget
that it's even there and become almost one with the machine, something I
never even had an hint of in powered planes.

I also enjoy the club environment. Yeah, I spend a lot more time on the
ground doing stuff so other people can fly than I spend actually flying,
but on the other hand I'm constantly surrounded by really great people who
almost universally know way more about flying than I do, and their
enthusiasm is deeply contagious.

My advice, for what it's worth, is to try both and see how you feel. There
are a lot of people who appear to enjoy flying powered planes a great
deal, even though I never really figured it out. I think it's more
important to do the one you really feel great about first. Learning to fly
is hard work and you need to be able to stay motivated. This counts for a
lot more than minor details like not having to take a second written exam
if you get your powered rating first.

--
Michael Ash
Rogue Amoeba Software

Glider Rating: 1982
Power Rating: 1992
Got Glider: 1994

Fly glider as much as I can.
Fly power plane once every two years. With instructor.
For Flight Review.

Thought I would get checked out to tow, but insurance
won't even consider it unless I have at least 200 -
250 hours of POWER time. I've got about 100 hours
in power. At our local airfield, a somewhat less than
almost pristine Cezzna 172 goes for US$105/hr (wet).
(Far less than pristine...) So, let's say I would
need 150 hours of additional power time to get the
insurance people to consider me eligible for towing.
$105/hr x 150 hours = a lot of money that I don't
have and if I did, I would spend it on soaring.

It would be nice to be able to make a trip in a GA
aircraft, but it sure is more fun to fly a sailplane!

Plus, I'll never get tagged to fly the towplane...

Ray Lovinggood
Carrboro, North Carolina, USA
LS1-d

I had always wanted to fly sailplanes but when I had the opportunity to
learn to fly, I opted for power since I lived in Mesa, not two miles
from Falcon field. I added on the glider rating two years later out at
Turf Soaring. The only advantage to this sequence wat that I was able
to get a lot out of the way in the power training, airspace, charts,
radio, etc. that I did not have to worry during glider training. While
I definitely learned more about "flying" getting my glider rating, I
did not feel that I needed to "unlearn" anything. It's great to have
both ratings, but you need to work to stay current in both. I have not
flown power in the last two years, as I have been spending all my time
(and money) on soaring. It is definitely more fun. My intention is to
fly power during the winter and soar during the summer.

If you can afford to do both, I doubt that the sequence is all that
important. It has more to do with your personal situation, time and
money.

Ever try flying a helicopter? I truly have not had the fun meter
pegged as far to the right by anything else, including gliders!
Imagine lanidng on a rock in a river as that is the only landing spot
and stopping for a skinny dip : )

On Oct 31, 1:34 pm, "fcnorton" wrote:
Hi Victor,

Power Pilot since Dec-1976 (ASEL/Ins)
Glider Pilot since May-2006
VERY Happy 304CZ Owner since July-2006

Nothing has ever pegged my "fun meter" like soaring. It is honestly
the most challenging flying that I have ever done....and the most
rewarding.

IMHO: Get your glider license first and then power - I believe you will
be a better over all pilot.

Just my 2 cents.

FC Norton

wrote:
Hi all, I decided to take the plunge (no pun intended) and start
flying. I thought about going straight for a private glider license.
But, I do have the option of going for the powered pilot license first
- then the glider license second. Any thoughts? How many here have
both? Did you get your powered pilot license first?

cheers, Victor

Hey guys thanks a bunch for the comments and your experiences! Really
appreciated.

I'm going to call up the Puget Sound Soaring Association to see if they
are flying this weekend. Assuming it doesn't rain! they operate at
Bergseth Airfield in Enumclaw, WA. Only about an hour from Seattle
where I'm at.

I used to fly scale RC sailplanes decades ago. Had a Glasflugel 604
with a 12ft wingspan, custom winglets, flaps and modified airfoil cross
section. Time to do it for real.

Victor