"Odd-Ball" Q for an

[Brett_Henderson]

You know what's kind of funny, and comforting in its own way ?

[RitterKreuz]

we have a guy on the field who sells these light sport CTLS aircraft.

They are great little airplanes, fun to fly, but in hind sight im glad i never got one.

like Brett said... very few insurance companies will touch one, but he has sold two now to zero hour guys who have gone through sport pilot training, and found a couple of insurance companies who will... for about 4K a year.

their "mission scope"?

"pilot A" plans to use his to survey damage along the coast after hurricanes... he is in the business of making those repairs. he understands the difference between the PPL and the SPL but didnt care. All he wanted o do was leave his ranch which has enough land for a grass strip... fly an hour or so to the coast, survey the damage and maybe have his colleague take photos.

as long as the expenses of the flight are out of his pocket and are not counted as a deduction on his business... he is within the limitation of not flying in furtherance of a business.

"Pilot B" is simply an old man who missed the boat on getting a license. he is a 65 year old widower who also has a large ranch in the middle of nowhere with an unused grass strip on it. he plans to rehabilitate the grass strip, and use the airplane to fly around his central Texas ranch to keep an eye on his cattle.

about the safety of the sport pilot license... there is an instructor on the field who does sport training. his motto "flying is only as safe as the person holding the yoke" and for this reason he explains to students who intend to get a sport pilot license that they should expect to spend 45-55 hours getting the license despite the fact that 20 is the minimum.

the safety discussion i guess for some reason revolves around the training minimum of 20 hours.

its an unrealistic minimum, and unless you KNOW you cant get a medical for some benign reason you may as well get a PPL as you are going to train for that length of time anyway

... and in my opinion, just about any sport pilot applicant at check ride time, who has been training for 40 - 50 hours is going to be equally prepared for a check ride as a private pilot.

[beaky]

It's worth noting that you don't need a medical to hold a glider rating. You do have to sow you have no "medical defect", but your PTSD and the meds regimen may not disqualify you.
Maybe that's not the kind of flying you want to do, but you might like it. It's cheaper to get into and keep doing, and although it's challenging, it's

[New Light]

  Very good words of advice and wisdom Gents.

  I like the I'M SAFE acronym - that's really cool. And, it actually follows the same line of thinking in SCUBA, jumping, shooting/hand loading, motorcycle riding (some riders anyway), etc... I'm going to print that out and add that to my list of acronyms and checklists. I wish I could post that at all stop lights for the idiot drivers to read, but, they're usually too busy talking on their cell phones, doing their homework, etc... Or they just don't know how to read.  ;D

  Brett, I just went through that with SCUBA this past year and motorcycle riding about 4 years ago. And, I really only have a few more jumps left in me. D@mn! I think I might be growing up SHhhh!!! Don't tell my Mom I said that

  Here's a kinda sad but true personal story. I had turned 20 years old right before we shipped back from the Middle East. Although I felt like I was 120 years old, I stayed in the reserves for 4 more years and worked for the Postal Service as my "day job". (Fast-forward a bit) One day I was on a Marines-only website (young, old, war or peace time) where a thread came up posing the question "what would you do if you found out that you only had 24 hours more to live?" (We often speak about killing and death as if we were deciding what to have for lunch.) Well, a bunch of young bucks chimed in with "I'd hurry up and do 'this' and 'that'". And without realizing what I was typing at the time, my response was "I have done everything I ever wanted to do. If I died today, I will have lived a full life." -and I wasn't kidding, I'd made it into and out of a combat zone (and got more than I bargained for), jumped, dove, rode a motorcycle across the country a couple of times, got a few short flying hours, owned two homes, sport cars, worked 80-100 hour weeks for months on end, lost it all, and started all over again. Now here's the sad part, I was 28 years old when I typed that response. It took me about 3 years before I realized what I had typed, and it was the first jolt that made me realize that I might want to slow down bit before I either hit a brick wall or ride off the side of a cliff. Sometimes getting out of the pressure cooker and relaxing isn't such bad thing. I remember that most every response to the question after my post was by the more seasoned folks who spoke of hugging their kids and loved ones and those types of answers. So, I can recognize and appreciate words of wisdom. Thanks Gents...  :)

Semper Fi, Dave

[DaveSims]

Hammond should be a good airport for learning.  Last I knew, one of my college buddies was the airport manager there.  I moved north three years ago, after Katrina, so I believe the changes.  Everytime I go back to Picayune I can't recognize the town.  

[New Light]

[beaky]

I've never served, myself, but I've talked to many who have. You sound like you have a pretty healthy perspective at this point... believe me, from the air, especially when you're alone up there, it all makes even more sense.

[New Light]

[beaky]

Oops, I sort of forgot you're not exactly in soaring country.
Funny you should mention Katanas being glider trainers... have you seen Diamond's true motor glider....?

http://www.diamond-air.at/hk36_super_di ... 73ab0.html

Remarkable airplane.

[DaveSims]

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29440505

Since this was in EG 7s area thought I'd check and make sure it wasn't him.  

As for gliding, I don't know how much there still is, but there used to be a group in Poplarville, MS that flew gliders occasionally, I don't know if there are still there.

[olderndirt]

Believe all you need is a qualified 'pilot in command' in the other seat.  Since the FAA shredded my medical several years ago, that's been my requirement.

[flaminghotsauce]

Wow, what a good discussion.

First, EG 7, I'd like to thank you for your service. My hat is off to you and all those that put their lives on the line for our nation. You guys are amazing!

Second, I will agree with Brett's post. If you're medically unfit to get a real PPL, there's no point pursing a Sport pilot shortcut.

Third, your condition is likely not permanent, right? Focus on your health first, and take care of that! Flying for fun is merely recreation that will cost a lot of money and induce risk into your life.

I went to school to get my PPL, got my Instrument rating and several instructor ratings, but gave it up for money reasons. I've also given up most of my golfing for money reasons as well. It's all about life choices, priorities, and stuff. I have nine childred, and they're WAY more important to me than my selfish desire to golf or fly.

That's why I have spent lots of money on a good computer, simulator, yoke & pedals, etc. so I can fly. I've also bought a Wii so I can play some realistic golf without spending the family into the poor house.

If you choose flying as a serious life-long recreational passion, all your priorities will come into line, starting with your health. Get that handled and the rest will come. Good luck, sir!

[Ravang]

EG-7, awhile ago I was listening to a flight surgeon speak about getting into any sort of flight training, Air Force, Navy, Airlines, etc. He said a lot of people come to him saying, I have this, or take this so I can't fly. He said, "Until I say you have it, your fine." He also said, you can take a lot of different kinds of medication, including some of the "banned" ones, and a flight surgeon can still get the FAA to approve you for flight. So I highly suggest visiting a flight surgeon.

[DaveSims]

EG-7, awhile ago I was listening to a flight surgeon speak about getting into any sort of flight training, Air Force, Navy, Airlines, etc. He said a lot of people come to him saying, I have this, or take this so I can't fly. He said, "Until I say you have it, your fine." He also said, you can take a lot of different kinds of medication, including some of the "banned" ones, and a flight surgeon can still get the FAA to approve you for flight. So I highly suggest visiting a flight surgeon.

It also depends on the surgeon.  We have two in the area, one who firmly believes in the failure rate, and another that is a pilot and understands what that means to many people, and what would actually be disqualifing.  I'm betting most here can figure out which one is busier.