When people find out that we own a
small aircraft, the first reaction is usually "What?"
followed quickly by "Isn't it dangerous and expensive?"
I can normally sum it up in one word:
Convenience
While it can be a dangerous activity,
it is no more so than driving down the highway in your car.
Weather and pilot error covers the vast majority of small plane
crashes every year. A smart pilot knows his limitations and
understands where to draw the line in taking risk, especially with
passengers onboard.
As for the convenience portion, here's
a perfect example of a recent trip we
took and why General Aviation (GA) is a great way to travel:
One-Way Trip to Cleveland, Ohio from
Kansas City, MO
|
By Car (814 miles)
Time: 16 hours
Stops: 7
Gas used: 34 gallons
Cost at $3.25: $110.50
Food: $45
Pain: Medium (miles of boredom)
 |
By Mooney (687 miles)
Time: 5 hours door-to-door
Stops: 1 (but not required)
Gas used: 41 gallons
Cost at $3.90: $159.90
Food: $0 (drinks & snacks from home)
Pain: Super Low
 |
By
Airline (750 miles)
Time: 8 hours door-to-door
Stops: Layover at Chicago O'hare
Gas Used: None
Food: $20
Cost (1-way): $550 for 4 tickets
Pain: High (think TSA)
|
Our
aircraft holds 52 gallons of fuel and travels at roughly 185 mph
while using 10.5 gallons per hour. That gives me an extended
range of about 750 miles with reserves to fly another 150 miles
if a problem arises with the weather en route (always a good plan to carry a 45-60 minute
reserve). We like to take day trips and the
Mooney gives us a lot more freedom to travel to places within an
hour of home. Our favorite destinations usually center
around minor league baseball
games in Iowa and Nebraska. These type of trips would take us
about three and half hours by car, but it's only 50-60 minutes by air. The map below gives you an idea of how far we can
get on one tank of gas and 5.5 hours of flight time. We
normally stop after 2-3 hours to get out and stretch. It's
also inevitable that one of the kids will need to use the bathroom
(okay, so there's a negative, no potty in our plane
).
So what
does it cost to become a pilot? The FAA has broken
down the different types of licenses and what it takes to get
certified on their website:
Become A Pilot
Cost: The average C172 will run anywhere from $95 an hour
for a
non-glass cockpit to $140 an hour for a
G1000 equipped plane. Both are excellent and
safe cockpits to learn in, it just comes down to your
individual preference. An instructor will add $30-$50
per hour to the rental rates. Expect the entire training to
cost somewhere around $6,000. Where you are located in
the country will also impact the cost. Part-time
students that fly on the weekends can get their license in
6-7 months. If you are dedicated, you can
accelerate that to only a few short weeks if you fly 5-10
hours per week. I've found it to be easier to reserve an aircraft
and instructor during the week when everyone is at work.
Flight School's normally offer introductory flights where
they will take you up for a short 30-60 minute ride and let you fly the
airplane. Prices are fairly inexpensive and this
allows a potential pilot to see what it's like before
spending large amounts of money on something that may hold
only a small interest for them. Stop by your local airport to see what
they have to offer.
So what
does it cost to own? Wow, were to begin with this one.
There are so many different variables that it is almost impossible to
break it down completely. A basic rule to follow is the less
complex an aircraft is, the cheaper it will be to fly and maintain.
Undoubtedly, the single biggest cost to owning an aircraft is
the fuel. Here is a snap shot of current fuel costs across the
country that was compiled
by AirNav:
Fuel price report
Summary of fuel prices at 3602 FBOs nationwide
| |
FUEL
TYPES |
| |
100LL Avgas |
|
Jet A |
|
Mogas (auto) |
| |
FBOs |
FBOs |
Avg |
Min |
Max |
FBOs |
Avg |
Min |
Max |
FBOs |
Avg |
Min |
Max |
| Nationwide |
3602 |
3509 |
$5.88 |
$3.90 |
$11.00 |
2501 |
$5.46 |
$3.88 |
$10.00 |
108 |
$4.49 |
$3.69 |
$7.40 |
| Alaska |
72 |
62 |
$6.73 |
$5.45 |
$11.00 |
58 |
$6.38 |
$4.71 |
$10.00 |
5 |
$5.98 |
$5.15 |
$7.40 |
| Central |
341 |
339 |
$5.73 |
$4.59 |
$8.14 |
202 |
$5.12 |
$3.88 |
$8.08 |
19 |
$4.38 |
$3.69 |
$4.99 |
| Eastern |
357 |
339 |
$6.08 |
$4.75 |
$9.61 |
250 |
$5.74 |
$4.05 |
$8.80 |
5 |
$4.18 |
$3.91 |
$4.91 |
| Great Lakes |
731 |
723 |
$5.86 |
$4.25 |
$8.93 |
470 |
$5.43 |
$3.97 |
$8.51 |
41 |
$4.41 |
$3.69 |
$5.04 |
| New England |
140 |
136 |
$6.11 |
$5.05 |
$8.19 |
79 |
$5.67 |
$4.73 |
$8.24 |
5 |
$4.66 |
$4.40 |
$4.95 |
| Northwest Mountain |
379 |
371 |
$5.84 |
$4.65 |
$7.79 |
263 |
$5.32 |
$3.95 |
$7.69 |
11 |
$4.45 |
$3.80 |
$5.25 |
| Southern |
659 |
646 |
$5.83 |
$4.59 |
$8.87 |
525 |
$5.46 |
$3.99 |
$8.12 |
12 |
$4.60 |
$3.99 |
$5.25 |
| Southwest |
557 |
550 |
$5.71 |
$3.90 |
$7.99 |
392 |
$5.35 |
$3.95 |
$7.57 |
7 |
$4.40 |
$4.00 |
$4.90 |
| Western-Pacific |
366 |
343 |
$5.96 |
$4.89 |
$8.40 |
262 |
$5.56 |
$4.11 |
$7.83 |
3 |
not available |
This report prepared by AirNav on 17-Sep-2011
Report includes prices reported between 29-Jul-2011 and
17-Sep-2011
At least 50% of prices are no more than 5 days old (12-Sep-2011
or more recent)
Copyright © 2011 AirNav, LLC
A smart owner will find cheap fuel along their
intended flight path. I'm lucky to have a few places
locally that offer 100LL below $4.00 per gallon. There are
several great websites that offer assistance in finding the
cheapest gas along your route. See the weather and flight
planning page for those links:
Aviation Planning
The next biggest cost might be a toss up between
the insurance and hangar. I've heard from pilots that pay as
much as $600 PER month for a fully enclosed T-Hangar with
electricity and heat. How much you pay all depends on your location
and desired level of protection for the aircraft. Smaller airports tend to charge lower
rent as compared to getting a hangar at larger, tower controlled
airports. Insurance will vary as well. The premium
will be effected by the
hull value of the airplane, your experience and ratings, location,
whether the aircraft is kept in a hangar, and so on.
There are only a handful of insurance underwriters that specialize in
aircraft, so shop around with more than one insurance agent to find the best deal.
Maintenance is another expense that can get out
of control if you're not careful. Before buying any
aircraft, make sure you get a thorough pre-purchase inspection from a
knowledgeable A&P mechanic or maintenance shop. Every shop
and mechanic cannot
specialize in all types of aircraft, so seek out one that knows
the type of aircraft you are looking at inside and out. It will save you
major headaches after the purchase. Owners are permitted
to perform their own maintenance to a certain point, thus saving
you money. Here's a good article that outlines what you
can and cannot do as an aircraft owner:
Owner Performed Maintenance
Most of the major aircraft types have their own
owner/pilot forums. Here are a few of the major ones where you
can find valuable information from current owners:
-
Beechcraft
-
Cessna
-
Cirrus
-
Commander
-
Diamond Aircraft
-
Grumman-American
-
Mooney
-
Piper
-
Socata TB
-
Vans Aircraft Company
I
figured $1,000 per month to meet the needs of the Mooney.
A good rule of thumb is to assume the engine will require a
complete overhaul tomorrow so have a monetary reserve to meet
that challenge.
There
are a number of websites that help break down costs for
different types of aircraft. This one is a little
outdated, but you can change the fuel costs to reflect current
prices and get a ballpark figure:
Plane Quest The chart below is an example of how I
modified the Plane Quest data in a simple excel spreadsheet. The
yellow boxes will vary depending on where you are located (sound
like a broken record yet!).
My fuel cost is based on the average price I paid for fuel in 2010 and
the cost per hour for the independent A&P I use. Most
maintenance shops charge closer to $80 per hour when they work
on your aircraft in their hangar.
|
Mooney Example |
PQ's Numbers for M20
series (200hp) |
Numbers for our M20E
(2011) |
| Fuel (GPH):
|
8.00 |
10.5 |
| Fuel Costs/Gallon: |
2.62 |
3.95 |
| Fuel Costs/Hour: |
22.50 |
41.48 |
| Oil Costs per Hour: |
0.99 |
0.76 |
| Maintenance Cost/Hour: |
26.22 |
35.00 |
| Hourly Engine Reserve: |
10.65 |
15.90 |
| Prop T/R Reserve: |
2.00 |
6.00 |
| Total Variable
Costs/Hour: |
62.38 |
113.59 |
| Average Speed (MPH): |
161.27 |
175.00 |
| Cost/SM: |
0.36 |
.65 |
| Annual Insurance: |
1,141.26 |
1,130.00 |
| Annual Hangar/Tiedown: |
1,198.23 |
2,400.00 |
| Training: |
145.95 |
225.00 |
| Total Fixed Costs: |
2,485.42 |
3,755.00 |
| Hours/Year: |
137.87 |
125 |
| Fixed Cost/Hour: |
19.61 |
30.04 |
| Total Variable &
Fixed Costs/Year: |
11,145.78 |
17,953.13 |
| Total Costs/Hour: |
81.95 |
143.63 |
| Total Cost/SM: |
0.49 |
.82 |
One
final thought. Make sure you research and are aware of any
taxes that will be levied against you by your state. Some
states do not charge sales tax on aircraft that are sold between
two individuals, but will expect the tax to be paid if purchased
from a dealer. Brokers are considered a middle man and not
part of the transaction, but that definition can change from
state to state as well. Some states also charge a yearly
property and luxury tax against the aircraft. Just make
sure you are aware, because the tax departments will find you
sooner or later. They are continually checking the FAA
registry to find new owners living in their jurisdictions.
Check with the state revenue and tax office if you have any
doubts before proceeding. The aviation forums are full of
examples of people getting surprise bills in the mail from their
local tax agencies.
