Where are the private pilots..

[rushca01]

I did a quick search and didn’t see another thread already started, if there is please merge.

Back in 2016 my Dad was in the hospital unexpectedly with brain inflammation (never official diagnosed but likely Encephalitis), while in the hospital he said he wanted to learn to fly when he got out and wanted me to go to flight school with him. Well he passed after a short 4 week stay so I decided to go flight school myself. I started in 2018 and got 18 hours in a cirrus SR20 in before life/work stress etc. got in the way. Due to the current stress I put flying on the back burner as I didn’t feel it was wise to fly with all the stress going on. Well fast forward and I met with the manager of our flight school yesterday for lunch to decide on a path to get back to flying and get my license. Still have work stress but not near what I had in 18 due the project I was working on.

I had no issues flying or rather “aviating”, it was always remembering the calls/jargon ie not sounding like an idiot when calling our towered airport for flight following and to let them know we would doing maneuvers in the training area etc. The airport I fly out of is non towered but what we have airport in class c and we are right on the edge, so our pattern altitude is slightly lower to avoid entering their air space. I’ve been reviewing my old notes and POH so I can re-learn the particulars of the aircraft.

Anyhow, looking forward to getting back at it!

[OH58D]

You should get back in. I flew for the Army 18 years and have just under 8,000 hours. I also did some training in a Cessna 182RG for a while but didn't continue with it. Trained with a Southwest Airlines Pilot.

I do miss flying across Country for Army operational training in a group with 5 to 8 rotor craft and refueling at some podunk FBO and sampling the local cuisine. I kept a list of every local airport I ever gassed up at. Fun times.

[Adrenaline_6]

Sweet! Do it if it makes you feel good! I don't do it professionally but I do have my single and multi engine instrument and commercial license. Good luck to you on your training.

I am no longer current though. I started my training and education a couple years before 9/11...bad freaking timing. When I started, they couldn't train pilots fast enough. After, that, you know how it went.

I just fell back on my previous career field and have been there ever since. My pilot buddies urged me to get back in it awhile back when the hiring got better again, but I would have to make garbage money by completing my CFI trying to accumulate the hours to meet the minimums to get started. Only to make crappy pay and hours again with a regional to build turbine and PIC time to get a chance to move to a major. It wasn't worth it to me and my wife would probably not have been very happy with that decision either with me required to be away so much.

I could go get current again if I wanted. I live right where I trained so the familiarity would make it easier. Just not interested. I would rather spend money doing other things.

[Diamondback]

AOPA member, want to learn but may be medically DQ'ed. (FAA hates the autistic, especially the HFA misdiagnosed as ADD or ADHD early in life before we really understood the autism spectrum.) LOTS of simulator hours with sound ADM, though... aside from that one session where I tried to fly a ridiculously up-engined F-15 as a Single-Stage-To-Orbit. lol

[elephant]

I enjoyed flying. I as well have ADD/ADHD and a learning difference which makes some aspects of flying difficult.

[gunrunner505]

Commercial, multi, instrument. CFI and CFII. I flew professionally for a couple years, right seat on a Lear 36A. Then on day I go out to the airplane and there is a seizure notice on it from the US Marshalls. Everything went to hell pretty fast after that. This was in the early 90s where flying jobs were hard to come by. Oh, you want to tow banners? How much 747 time do you have as a prerequisite to fly this Citabria? Fell out of doing it for a living and never went back. I do it for recreation now. Take the family on a trip or something. If I were 20 years younger I’d go be an air traffic controller. I’ve been in aviation for 30 years. Anyone who asks me if they should get into this racket I tell them to be a controller. Screw this pilot or mechanic crap.


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[Det-Sog]

Honestly, I really miss the private pilot days. Some of the most fun I've ever had in my life. Nothing like hopping in a rental and going for a $200 hamburger at some small airport.

Driving heavy metal for the airlines now, the last thing I want to see on a day off is a plane. When I retire I plan to dabble in private pilot type flying again.

[Alex V]

I started flying lessons the summer after I graduated HS in 2000. I was doing really well, then my Instructor got a job for Continental Express :( He left abruptly, me and another student who were close to finishing got placed with another instructor and the school seemed to take their anger with our instructor leaving on us. All of a sudden they wanted us to redo a ton of stuff. Financially, that wasn't okay with me. I stopped flying for several months because of it. All of a sudden my original instructor called me up saying that on his days off he was going to start teaching at a different airport. Hell yeah!

I took my check ride shortly there after and passed.

Around 2009 I started IFR training, I was really good at it too but then my GF and I bought a condo and the disposable income was no longer there. I think the last time I flew was January of 2010 or 2011. I really miss it.

Once all this craziness dies down I really want to get back to it.

[lahunter57]

I have my commercial helicopter and I was working on my private add on before the COVID situation and the flight school I was using shut down temporarily. I love flying and can’t wait to share that experience with friends and family.

[ZGXtreme]

Despite it being the greatest of my dreams, I squandered every opportunity to achieve it to the level I would have liked.

Now with a family and kids with a third on the way it may not happen for many many years. Hopefully we still got manned helos in the sky at that point lol.

[chuckman]

I was in Civil Air Patrol in high school, had partial scholarship for lessons, got as far as soloing (Cesna 152), got no further. That was...34 years ago. Loved it.

[utahjeepr]

I have my license, but I am so "not current" that it's not even funny. I would have to dig out the logs to be sure, but I don't think I have piloted an aircraft in this century.