Author Topic: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?  (Read 2793 times)

larmando

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https://www.reddit.com/r/financialindependence/comments/64y6il/big_purchase_on_the_way_to_fi_how_to_approach/

Best part:
"Over the past 13 months I paid down 20k in debt (over and above minimums). Things were tight, but this tells me I should have the capacity to pay the 14k off in roughly 12-14 months time without too much disruption to daily life."

And nobody commenting "you're crazy". On a forum on financial independence.

sportse

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #1 on: April 12, 2017, 02:22:46 PM »
Here in the UK, the latest figures I had were that 80% or so of people who qualified as a private pilot... gave up flying less than 2 years later!

It's a fun hobby, but crazy expensive - if you want to have a go flying a light aircraft you can take a trial lesson without having to spend a huge amount.

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Spork

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #2 on: April 12, 2017, 03:25:52 PM »
Flying was the thing I begrudgingly gave up for FI.  I started doing the math and ... man, I just couldn't justify it.  I had my private and was very close to completing my instrument.  And I was seeing that to meet my own criteria of being safe, I'd have to be continually practicing instrument procedures/approaches.  I just wasn't seeing an end to the amount of money I was spending for filling lines in a logbook.

I think I put in about 4-5 years of pretty regular flying.  Some of that I had a "free" airplane.  (I had to pay half the hanger rental plus avgas.  Not exactly "free".)

BlueMR2

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #3 on: April 12, 2017, 04:02:47 PM »
I've got flying in my retirement budget.  Haven't flow in a couple years though.  The real killer is the time requirement.  It sucks up huge amounts of time just staying current!

Nothlit

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #4 on: April 12, 2017, 04:10:30 PM »
I really wanted to get my private pilot license, and flew about 15 hours of dual instruction several years ago, but a variety of factors caused me to abandon the effort. Partly the expense (even though I could afford it, it was a lot of money), partly motion sickness, partly a lack of connection with any of the instructors at my flight school. I am still kind of sad about it, as I still love the idea of flying, but I doubt it is something I will ever pursue again.

mjs111

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #5 on: April 12, 2017, 05:25:24 PM »
I got my private pilot's license and went about halfway through my instrument training.  It was awesome.  It was a life goal of mine ever since I was a kid.  Similar to some other posters, I flew regularly for several years after getting my license and then gradually lost interest. I got my training done in the mid to late 90's.  I think I spent about $6,000 on it.  Some of the best money I ever spent.

You do need to fly a few hours a month to maintain a safe level of competency.  That usually means flying once or twice a month.  Once you haven't done it for a few months you start to feel not so safe without a checkride with an instructor.  After a couple of years your flight charts, medical certificate, and knowledge of the local flight rules are out of date and your knowledge has slipped a bunch.

The nice thing is you don't pay all the money up front.  You pay by the lesson.  So if it interests you and it's something you'd regret never trying, give a few lessons a try.

Mike


larmando

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Re: r/financialindependence: should I get 14K in debt to become a pilot?
« Reply #6 on: April 12, 2017, 11:34:41 PM »
Note that I have no problem with flying as a hobby. But I'd expect it to be done once the basics are covered. A lot of the basics.

 

Wow, a phone plan for fifteen bucks!