WingsOfun.com BLOG #63: November 4, 2014
WELCOME PILOTS
The highly respected career coach and author Dan Miller was discussing how he decides on goals for the upcoming year. One major thing he does is to “throw out” one thing he has been doing and replaces it with another project. No matter how successful the original idea may have been Dan has found that consistent change fuels his passion. Under the guise of positive change I am happy to announce our first WingsOfun Podcast. For those of you that may not be familiar with the term podcasting, it's an audio recorded program that can be listened to from the comfort of one’s computer, mp3 player or smart phone. The format of the show may consist of interviews or simply the host talking to the audience on a topic of interest.
Our first podcast is an interview with professional aerial photographer and friend Marty Smith. Before his retirement (he's still a young man) Marty worked for the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) Photogrammetry unit for over 25 years. His earliest work is familiar to most sport aviators consisting of opening the window on a Cessna 172 and taking pictures with a handheld camera. Upon his retirement he was taking digital photos with the best million dollar equipment money can buy. Marty discusses his background, technology changes and how sport aviators can be safe when flying in the vicinity of aircraft on a photo mission or when taking their own pictures.
~TC FREEMAN
“Keeping the fun in flying!"
************************************************************
NEW PRESENTATION
“PILOT AND AIRCRAFT PERFORMANCE"
**************************************************************
Your opportunity to continue the dialog is on Facebook:
**************************************************************
WingsOfun Podcast #001:
Interview with Marty Smith, Professional Aerial Photographer
1) Listen via YouTube
1) Listen via YouTube
2) Listen via computer
3) Download to your mobile media device
wof podcast 001 marty smith audio 2.mp3
N/A
*Feel free to link our podcast and videos to your website or use at an upcoming safety seminar.
********************************************************
Need a Speaker for your Next Event? We Can Help. See the Article;
How to Afford a Speaker for Your Group
*******************************************************
I WANT TO BUY AN AIRCRAFT AND HAVE $30,000
By TC FREEMAN
A subscriber sent me the following question in an email, “I have $30K to spend on an aircraft, what should I buy?” My first thought was, “Wish I had $30K to spend on an aircraft....man, wish I just had $30K in general!” My second thought was that I should tell this guy to buy gold, silver, food and guns because if the government (and the Fed Reserve) keeps printing money (currency technically, but I digress) we will need a wheelbarrow of Benjamins to buy bread. All right, that's as political as I will get for the moment, back on topic.
$30K is an interesting figure because this pilot won't be buying a new aircraft at that price, unless it's a trike or ultralight, but there are some interesting options at that price point.
First things first, it is important to find out what kind of aircraft will fit the mission. When talking to folks about aircraft purchases my first question is, “What do you imagine doing with an aircraft?” Typical responses are, “I want to go to the beach with my family for the weekend,” or “Go for the $100 hamburger (now $350)” or “Airport hop to local grass strips as a stress reliever after a hard day’s work.” The answer is a good indicator as to the direction of conservation. A pilot can't take the family to the beach in a Light Sport Aircraft (LSA) or take a friend for the $100 hamburger in an ultralight. In this case our aircraft buyer is wants to take his wife and two kids to the beach for the weekend.
While options are limited at this price point they still exist. However, a lot of scary aircraft, like dement “ramp queens” that can suck mucho dinero out of your wallet. Many of the great aircraft that are available to this pilot are tail-wheel aircraft. While I personally like tail-draggers many of the pilots that learned to fly in the last 20 to 30 years learned in tricycle landing gear aircraft and should probably stick conventional landing gear aircraft. Additionally, most modern day pilots learned to fly in metal aircraft and much to my dismay is a difficult group to convince that fabric covered aircraft are cool too.*
Considering the parameters of selecting a metal tricycle landing gear aircraft it is hard to beat the tried and true Cessna 172 from the 1950's or 1960's (beginning in 1956). Other options can be a Piper from the Cherokee line. While many engine options exist, a family with two light weight children can get into a PA28-140 just fine. My favorite selection is a bit biased because of my great exposure to the aircraft, the Beechcraft Sundowner/Musketeer. To stay within budget go with the Musketeer line, the predecessor to the Sundowner.
1957 Cessna 172 “Fastback” (source: public domain)
Piper Cherokee PA-28 140 (source: public domain)
Beechcraft Musketeer “Sport” (source: public domain)
For any of the options a person’s buying power can be increased by considering taking on a partner. While partnerships are not for everyone the fact remains that personal aircraft are very under-utilized. A partnership can keep the aircraft flying more regularly, which is not only better for the aircraft but also for the bottom line. A reader of General Aviation News commented on the topic of aircraft partnerships by saying that the owners should, “...be from similar economic grounds.” For example when the GPS needs to be replaced a more financially well off owner might want to install a new “tricked out” G1000 when the less well-off owner wants to revert to a simple yoke-mount unit. Never-the-less, partnerships can work well if sufficient care is taken to ensure success.
In the modern world fuel economy has become an important consideration with aircraft purchases, just take a look at fire selling going on in the gas guzzling light twin market. It might be tempting to grab one of these high horse power monsters but I would guard against such a move. Let me illustrate, a friend owns a very nice 235 hp Piper but it uses a minimum 15 gallons of avgas an hour. At this rate of consumption many owners start to question the cost effectiveness of such ownership when compared to flying the airlines or simply driving. In my mind, an owner should be thinking, “I know it will cost a little more to fly to the beach but it sure is a lot more fun so it's worth the extra money.” The previously outlined aircraft suggestions can all operate for approximately 8-10 gallons an hour which is a more workable figure than 15 gallons an hour.
When looking for used aircraft remember that hours on the airframe and engine is not everything. An old aircraft salesman told me that he would rather buy a high time aircraft that has had a lot of wind going through the sails (fabric) than a low time aircraft that has just been sitting around.
While there is a lot more that is associated with aircraft ownership it's fun to explore the possibilities that exist in this buyers’ market. While $30K won't make aircraft brokers beat down your door, buying an aircraft can be done as an independent venture. Let me know what your favorite budget aircraft is (and why) and I will mention it in an upcoming blog.
*Please excuse my stereotype and didn't mean to offend my fabric covered tail-draggin' brethren. My recommendations outside of the articles scenario would be one from the Stinson line or the Piper Pacer/Tri-Pacer, two underappreciated used budget aircraft.
Piper Tri-Pacer (Creative Commons)
Stinson 108 (Creative Commons)
About the author:
TC Freeman has been flying since he was a teenager and is now an aviation speaker and author. Being employed as an Aviation Safety Specialist for state government, he has a passion for spreading the thrill of flying just for the fun of it via the website, www.WingsOfun.com.
*********************************************************
“We are excited to donate this segment of the WingsOfun BLOG to this great program that promotes; airport visitation, education and tourism.”
~TC FREEMAN
OPERATION: FLY NC NEWS
No new developments at this time but feel free to discuss OP: Fly NC with fellow pilots at:
*************************************************************************
Discuss OP: Fly NC with fellow pilots on our Facebook page at: http://tinyurl.com/opflync
Upcoming Events: Good for OP: FLY NC stamp/signature, most posted to: www.SocialFlight.com.
*******************************************************
IMPORTANT AUDIO PRESENTATION AVAILABLE:
“OPERATIONS AT NON-TOWERED AIRPORTS”
… for pilots flying just for the fun of it.
… for pilots flying just for the fun of it.
In this audio book TC Freeman discusses; straight in approaches, dealing
with aircraft on extended downwind and traffic pattern entries.
with aircraft on extended downwind and traffic pattern entries.
Available at: http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/tcfreeman
(Run time: 34 minutes)
*********************************************************************
NEWS FROM THE WEB
Brought to you by:
HOW TO SAVE MONEY ON FLIGHT TRAINING
eBook by WingsOfun Media
*INCLUDES SPECIAL CAREER PILOT SECTION!
Available at Amazon.com (click here) or
********************************************************
Note: Contact your elected officials to support pilot issues that matter to you at:http://www.usa.gov/Contact/Elected.shtml
OUR FAVORITE VIDEOS FROM THE WEB ~ Jet Engine History
OUR FAVORITE VIDEOS FROM THE WEB ~ Jet Engine History
*********************************************************
*Articles*Aviation Presentations (live)*Videos*eBooks*Special Event Announcements*Operation: Fly NC program
Questions? Contact: tom@wingsofun.com
No comments:
Post a Comment