To seriously want to work towards a private pilot's license?

[Muddygreenfingers]

Perhaps AIBU isn't quite right, perhaps it's AIBCaUN? (Am I being completely and utterly nuts?)

I've been on a few flight experiences and I absolutely love being up there. It gives me a buzz I haven't had since my horse riding days.

I've always loved going on planes (as exciting as the actual holiday) and always track planes on an app/look up for them on clear days. I love being up there, love the view and the feel of it. I play flight simulator, I watch videos, follow pilots on Instagram etc.

Financially it's expensive (about 12k to train), but I can afford it comfortably.

My biggest concern is that the aviation world is full of men over a certain age.
Sexist and ageist I'm being perhaps, but it honestly makes me feel a bit uncomfortable.

I'm a 30 something female, and even though I haven't felt uncomfortable with any of the instructors I've had (all male), I just feel like I'd end up feeling a bit lonely and/or uncomfortable.
I know IBU but it's honestly how I feel.

Should I let that put me off? Do I go for it?
A long shot but any other female pilots out there ??

Planes don't just fall out of the sky if the engine fails.

True. I guess I'm just more of a 'more is more' type of gal.

Best of luck with whatever you decide.

In regards to planes losing engines in the sky....

https://simpleflying.com/gallunggung-glider-the-story-of-british-airways-flight-9/

It's a 74-200 which lost power to all 4 engines,managed to glide for a considerable amount of time then the flight deck eventually got a couple of them restarted. They had ash in them. The aircraft went back into service - I worked on it.

They definitely don't just fall out of the sky.

Do you mind me asking what an hour costs?

I have a few friends who are in a group bought a share in a plane between about 10 of them to get their hours up. They all absolutely love it.

Well there will never be more women in avaition if women don't become pilots because there are too many men.

I would also say it's a shame not to do something for that reason alone.

About £200.
It ain't cheap !

@Muddygreenfingers don’t let your perception of bloke-iness put you off. Frankly, once you are at the controls of even a little aircraft you are the captain of it, some random man on the ground or in another aircraft cannot change that. When I did my PPL over 25 years ago 😱 there were definitely lots of women involved then, although it is true they were outnumbered by men. Once I’d got my licence I bought a one-twentieth share in a Cessna 150 (owning a share is a good way to fly at a more affordable price and to have other flying geeks to talk to!) and 2 of the other members of the group were women. Another woman at the club had a share in a microlight and invited me to be her navigator in the Round Britain Airrace but I was accepted in the an airline training scheme and went off to become a commercial pilot before it took place. There were other women in the club who took part in aerobatics and air races very successfully. I now fly professionally with one of the pilots who won the British Women’s Pilots Association’s aerobatics scholarship, and another of my female colleague’s MIL is a famous world record holder in a number of solo single engined flying escapades.

Wrt one engine being dodgy, as @Butchyrestingface is worried about, as part of your PPL you will be taught how to deal with an engine failure and other emergencies in a single engined aircraft. It is not something that happens frequently but you have to know the skill and keep that skill current if you go on to fly on your own without an instructor. I know of several pilots who have had engine failures in single engined aircraft, and they have all dealt with it just fine, usually landing in a field. When I had my Cessna share, our club held a landing competition annually where we would pretend to land accurately without an engine (obviously engine actually running, but at idle) in order to encourage good engine failure skills. There are various complexities to dealing with an engine failure in a small dual engine aircraft, not least the fact that when one engine fails the aircraft swings as a result of more thrust on one engine than the other, which can lead to loss of control. An engine failure in a dual engined light aircraft needs more training and is not necessarily an easier thing to deal with.

As I said above, if you wonder what happens after qualifying, buying a share in a light aircraft group is a good way to carry on flying. I owned a 1/20th share in a C150, and the group members used to meet to discuss the running of the aircraft monthly, and I had a pool of people I could pair up with the keep costs down. We used to do things like set each other navigation or training challenges, or just go to the beach for an ice cream in the aircraft. Most of them were more experienced than I was at the time, and it was good to have access to this experience while I was still a relatively new pilot. Every airfield in Britain will have shared ownership groups, and some of them are not that expensive if you go into a group with a larger membership, but this obviously limits the amount of time you can take the aircraft out for. This was never a problem for me because ££s were in short supply at the time for me. Suffice to say and little aeroplane is cheaper to keep these days than horses are. 🤣🤣

It has been a long time since I flew light aircraft, but many of my friends and colleagues still fly them. If you have any questions I would be happy to pass them on. It’s thanks to the support of other women (and my lovely encouraging male flying instructor) many years ago that I fly for living and have done for quarter of a century. There is great camaraderie between women pilots and if it’s what you want to do, go for it!

In response to @Cuckoosheep’s post above too, I work with the captain of the Beijing Glider. 2 engines not much use there either!

Go for it! Dad always says the one thing he regrets not doing was learning to fly and now it's too late.
Go on!

Doesn't sound much fun for a commercial pilot. Spend 8 hours flying a real plane, then come home and fly a flight simulator for a further 5 hours

That is about the cost to hire an aircraft. Costs come down if you buy a share. Current rates seem to be about £1500 to buy in, £50 a month running costs and £125-150 per hour (including fuel but not landing fees) in a 1/20th C150 or PA28 - both good beginner aircraft. If you pair up with another sharer, obvious the hourly and landing costs are halved. Several shares advertised here

@junglejane66 I was also initially curious about this because that's exactly what happens! The attraction seems to be opportunity to fly a wider variety of planes than in RL and go anywhere you like, also to share a love of flying and traffic control through eg.vatsim. I was also really surprised about the level of sim use in pilot training and how so many build home cockpits using salvaged stuff from decommissioned planes with full motion systems. Very fun community!

Let's hope the surgeon community isn't the same, come home and have a bit of practice on the DC's

Pretty sure the multimillion dollar full motion simulator I am trained on everything from ditching in the Hudson to all the instruments freezing is nothing like a home built cockpit! I know a couple of pilots who have some salvaged bits of old aircraft they used to fly for sentimental reasons, and I know a few more who make their own cardboard cockpits in order to memorise lever and switch locations and to fix memory drills into their heads better, but I don’t know any who use a home simulator for practice or training. We have access to the big sims in our own time whenever we feel we want a bit of practice. We are very lucky in being able to do this!

If you can afford it absolutely. I had my first flying lesson recently which was fab but I can no way afford the cost of getting my PPL.

I follow loads of female airline pilots on Twitter- the industry is not anywhere near as male dominated as it was. And unlike a few years ago it’s very possible to get financial help from airlines to become a commercial pilot these days (basically by promising to work for them for a few years).

Sadly the days of sponsored cadet schemes have long since disappeared. The EasyJet Amy Johnson Initiative is the only one I know of. And 95% of pilots are still men. The proportion of pilots who are women has actually declined in the last 3 years.

If you feel like your desire to fly is more important than averting the worst effects of climate change (if you need reminding of them happy to help) go for it. Personally I think it would be an unnecessary waste of carbon and I’d feel too guilty about the harm being caused (recently wild fires in Spain, major floods in Italy, 1/3 Pakistan flooded last year…).

Do it! I used to read the learn to fly books (especially the one about meteorology) for fun. Once kids are out of nursery then I'd love to learn. I could pop to France for lunch!

DH has a PPL so I know something about it. He qualified in around 2004. You have to fly a minimum number of hours to remain current on your particular aircraft type. If he goes more than 6 weeks without flying, he has to do a check-ride with an instructor, which is more expensive than simply flying solo (aircraft rental/landing fees/club membership). He also has to do a minimum number of hours per year. Then there is the medical every 2 years which you have to pay for.

DH's club was taken over by another one and they sold the Cessna 172s he prefers to fly. He has more recently been flying a 150 but that too has gone as the club has moved over to Pipers. He will need to do some familiarisation with an instructor again before he can take it out.

Our DDs loved going up with us in the 172. We used to fly to a grass strip around 25 minutes' flying time away from our "home" airport which had a nice cafe and great cake. Taking off and clearing the hedge at the end had brought about the downfall of experienced people in the past so weight & balance checks were always done. I miss those days!

https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2023/may/22/global-heating-human-climate-niche

WTF? Why is everyone talking about flying as a hobby? Surely you know about the carbon footprint and the desperate need for us to cut carbon emissions for our survival? There is such a disconnect here. There is no excuse for ignorance. There is no excuse for flying for fun.

Why is everyone talking about flying as a hobby? Surely you know about the carbon footprint and the desperate need for us to cut carbon emissions for our survival?

I guess the claim is any emission is bad but for context:

"General aviation is estimated to contribute less than one percent of all GHG emissions. Piston powered general aviation aircraft contribute an even smaller amount; slightly more than one-tenth of one percent (0.13 percent) of total GHG emissions. Recent technological advancements such as full authority digital engine control (FADEC) and the use of composite materials in airframe construction are decreasing emissions even further."

https://www.aopa.org/advocacy/advocacy-briefs/regulatory-brief-general-aviation-and-greenhouse-gas-emission

https://www.greenpeace.org.uk/challenges/air-travel/

https://www.bbc.com/future/article/20200218-climate-change-how-to-cut-your-carbon-emissions-when-flying

There is NO doubt we (the wealthy few) need to cut carbon emissions. Flying is by far the most carbon heavy form of transport.

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamesphillipps/2020/11/17/the-wealthy-1-elite-generate-half-of-the-worlds-global-aviation-emissions/amp/

I started training, and then my life circumstances changed (basically, I had kids!) and I couldn't justify spending that amount of money on a hobby, but it was amazing, and I didn't experience any sexism. Once the children are adults, I want to go back to it.