GA is priceless

Ron Lee writes:

I have seen the St Louis Arch, Monument Valley, Antelope Canyon
(twice), Devil's Tower twice, Mt Rushmore, Death Valley, Saguaro Natl
Monument, White Sands, Carlsbad Caverns and more in the last four
years while flying only VFR.

Aviation is good for sightseeing.

Sounds pretty useful to me.

Useful for sightseeing, not for transportation.

When I drive a car, I do so to get from point A to point B, not to
admire the sights along the way. That's what makes it transportation.
Similarly, I don't book a seat on a commercial flight so that I can
admire the Rockies outside the window.

Can you claim to have driven to a
similar number of sites (same distances) in the same period?

Why would I want to?

--
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Sure you can! That's what floats are for.

But the pilot can't down a sixpack while out there.

Jose
--
He who laughs, lasts.
for Email, make the obvious change in the address.

Jay Honeck writes:

Actually, if you're talking cross-country, I'll take the Warrior.
True, it's not as spacious inside, but it's plenty comfortable, and
it'll get you across the country in hours, rather than days.

Do you sleep inside the aircraft, or do you land it inside the parking
lot of the hotel?

--
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Mxsmanic wrote:

You said "the incredible utility and convenience of GA," but GA is
neither convenient nor useful, specifically because of issues like
weather that make it impossible to depend on GA.

I fly my Warrior in any type of weather that's thrown at me. I've flown
in the worst icing conditions and terrible thunderstorms and I've made
it to my destination every single time. Don't give me that crap about
GA not being useful. If it get's too bad, I just hit "P" to pause
everything and rethink my options. When it gets really bad (or if I
just don't have the time), I use the all-powerful "Go to Airport"
function from the top menu bar and viola! I'm there with nary a
scratch. Sometimes, when I'm really up for an adventure, I even switch
to my trusty Pilatus and the icing becomes a cakewalk.

Sheees, these amateurs should learn how to fly their airplanes and use
basic Microsoft Windows skills before putting down GA.

Actually, if you're talking cross-country, I'll take the Warrior.
True, it's not as spacious inside, but it's plenty comfortable, and
it'll get you across the country in hours, rather than days.

Do you sleep inside the aircraft, or do you land it inside the parking
lot of the hotel?

Personally, I have never slept in my plane(s). I know guys who do,
however, routinely.

It's not as uncomfortable as you might think. Interestingly enough
(and slightly OT), I can fit MORE stuff in our Pathfinder than I can in
our Subaru station wagon with the seats folded down. It doesn't *look*
like it should all fit, but it does.

We've got plywood sheets (from a previous owner) that have been cut to
fit from behind the front seats, all the way to the baggage compartment
bulkhead. (You take the back seats out to do this, obviously.) The
end result is a mini-van-sized area that would easily fit an air bed,
if desired.

Anyway, flying cross country will get me to Reno, NV by suppertime, or
to the east coast of the United States by mid-afternoon. Or, I can be
in Florida in six hours, and to Canada in three.

With GA, there is little need for too many intermediate en route
hotels!

:-)
--
Jay Honeck
Iowa City, IA
Pathfinder N56993
www.AlexisParkInn.com
"Your Aviation Destination"

Mxsmanic wrote:

Naturally ... but that is a tacit acknowledgement of the fact that GA
cannot be depended upon for transportation. Cars and buses and
commercial airlines can be seen as modes of transportation; GA is
still largely a fair-weather hobby. If GA allows you to actually
travel in a useful way, that's just a happy (and occasional)
coincidence.

If one wants to be a spoiled little robot to whom all things must be
guarenteed, GA isn't for him. It is for me and my wife.

Just took a 4 day trip where we visited family in two states and
brought home a plane load of merchandise we had purchased on the
internet. Saved 8 hours over driving. Useful? Yes. Did we have a Plan
B? Yes. But still, in the middle of winter we had a great GA trip.

I work at home but travel to remote sites a couple times per month to
work, using either GA or commercial aviation depending on
circumstances. In the last year about 2/3 of such trips have been by
GA, and were usually faster and more convenient than commercial would
have been. Usually I could land closer to my destination and could
choose my own schedule. And it was all VFR. In only two cases did I
have to cancel a trip I had planned by GA and in each case I simply and
easily shifted to Plan B. Once I drove and once I went commercial. The
worst experience was sitting in a passenger terminal for two days when
commercial flights were grounded by ice.

We have learned and experienced more interesting and memorable things
when our plans have been challanged than we ever would have if our
every move was planned and results guarenteed. This is simply the icing
on the cake of the useful thing called GA. I am not a robot. I
experience life. GA gets me what I want. You can't convince me
differently because I'm living it.
--
Gene Seibel
Gene & Sue's Aeroplanes - http://pad39a.com/gene/planes.html
Because we fly, we envy no one.

Marco Leon writes:

I fly my Warrior in any type of weather that's thrown at me. I've flown
in the worst icing conditions and terrible thunderstorms and I've made
it to my destination every single time.

There are bold pilots and old pilots, but no old, bold pilots.

If it get's too bad, I just hit "P" to pause everything and rethink
my options.

That cannot be done in real life. Even in simulation, pausing the
simulation may only delay the inevitable.

--
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Gene Seibel writes:

If one wants to be a spoiled little robot to whom all things must be
guarenteed, GA isn't for him.

If a person wants reliable transportation on demand, GA isn't for him,
either.

The worst experience was sitting in a passenger terminal for two days when
commercial flights were grounded by ice.

How many GA flights were departing at the time?

--
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Mxsmanic wrote:

The worst experience was sitting in a passenger terminal for two days when
commercial flights were grounded by ice.

How many GA flights were departing at the time?

Actually in that case I had planned on commercial because of the length
of the trip. If I had gone GA I'd have left a day earlier and gotten
out before the storm. The first day I spent in the airport was because
of ice. The second day was because of the incompetence of the airline
as they ran out of deicing fluid. The sky was blue and aircraft of
every description were flying. Commercial over GA was the wrong choice
that time.
--
Gene Seibel
Tales of Flight - http://pad39a.com/gene/tales.html
Because I fly, I envy no one.

"Ron Lee" wrote

Sounds pretty useful to me. Can you claim to have driven to a
similar number of sites (same distances) in the same period?

Do you really want to be drawn into responding to this putz?
--
Jim in NC