Light Sport cost of ownership 2020

[FastEddieB]

The bad news is I only flew my Sky Arrow 30.6 hours this year. That’s 10 to 15 hours less than usual. Main reason was not venturing out for fly-ins and breakfasts due to COVID 19 concerns. Plus an ill elderly aunt and an aging dog kept us from going on trips.

Good news is my total cost of ownership was just $1,911.46. Breakdown...

Insurance - $1,218
MOGAS - $267.86
Maintenance and parts - $404.61
Other - $20.99

Works out to $62.47/hr. Not bad. Lion’s share was for insurance, obviously. No allowance for hangar, since we built our own.

That said, last year had MUCH higher expenses due to the ROTAX 5-year rubber replacement, a cracked exhaust and ADSB-out installation. If I have time later I’ll post those far more discouraging 2019 numbers. Still, when things go well, Light Sport flying can be pretty darn affordable.

[JimParker256]

I wish I had the option to build my own hangar, but even if I did, I would still probably include that cost in my operating cost estimates. I'm sure it would cost "something" to build it, and I wouldn't build a hangar if I didn't own an airplane.

I picked up my RANS S-6ES in June, and flew it for 33.1 hours in the remaining 7 months of the year. Here's my breakdown (which is impacted heavily by expensive hangars in our area). All annual fixed costs were pro-rated for seven months (June-Dec):

Insurance: $587.40 ($1,007, which included a "named pilot" clause for the CFI who did the transition training for me)
MoGas: $164
AvGas: $374 (ferry flight home)
Maintenance & Parts: $400 (new encoder + installation/certification, plus three fuel cans for MoGas)

Without accounting for the "parking" of the plane, it comes to just over $46/hr flown.

I technically could rent a tiedown for $65/month, but with our Texas thunderstorms (golf-ball sized hail hits the airport at least twice a year) I'd be replacing my fabric a LOT more often, bringing cost about even with the ridiculous cost of hangars... The 50-foot T-hangar I'm leasing at our local municipal airport costs $645/month. I share that expense 50/50 with a buddy whose low-wing plane fits next to me with zero issues. So my hangar cost is $322.50/month. If I factor that into my operating expenses ($2,257.50 for 7 months), my hourly costs rocket up to just over $114/hr.

Still, that's a lot cheaper than renting a plane anywhere around here, and I never have to worry that someone else left trash in the plane, or didn't make it back on time from their rental flight, or I'm going to get "bumped" by the flight school for someone's checkride, etc. Nice to open the hangar door and know the plane is exactly where (and how) I left it!

[FastEddieB]

Jim,

Those are all good points.

One can make an argument that one should also figure in the “opportunity cost” of the money invested in the plane, money that could have been earning several % interest if invested conservatively. Also, money that needs to be set aside for an overhaul reserve. And, yes, the construction cost of a hangar or the hangar portion of a hangar/home, amortized over a certain time frame. Not to mention possible depreciation*. I stipulate that all of these are valid arguments.

My “expense report” is more just a simple analysis of annual cash flow. What it actually cost me in money spent last year. All the above mentioned items are either “sunk costs” - money already spent - or future costs - for expenses that may or may not ever be directly incurred, as is the case of the overhaul. I respect those who figure other things in - I just want to keep it simple.

*It seems to be the case that many of our planes are depreciating very little, if at all. As the prices of new Light Sports continue to skyrocket, it can’t help but stabilize or even increase the value of our planes over time.

[JimParker256]

Yeah, I get it – completely. I use the same subset of data when discussing the airplane with my wife. Advice from an old pilot buddy was "don't ever itemize aviation expenses with your wife..." I don't hide anything from her, but neither do I volunteer a monthly or annual accounting statement. No upside, lots of potential downside to that...

The way my wife and I look at it, there are some costs that are directly associated with "owning" an airplane, whether you fly it or not. This includes the original purchase cost (and potential "opportunity loss" from no longer having that money invested), annual insurance, hangar lease, and any scheduled maintenance that you cannot do for yourself (transponder certs, etc.). Those are required to preserve the value of the airplane asset itself, regardless of how much (if at all) you fly your airplane. These are also (in my opinion) the major determinants when deciding whether or not you can afford to own a plane, but that's another discussion for another day...

Since my plane is E-LSA, and I've completed the LSR-I training, I will be doing my own inspection sign-offs – possibly with someone looking over my shoulder on a few tasks that I'm less comfortable doing... I enjoy the work, so I don't bill myself for the time I spend doing it... So my recurring annual expenses are basically hangar and insurance.

Then there's the second major part of the equation: The cost of actually "flying" your airplane. This includes fuel, oil, and oil filters, plus unscheduled maintenance expenses. For my Rotax 912ULS powered RANS S-6ES, it costs me basically $12–15 per hour to "fly" my plane: $10-13 per hour for MoGas, and roughly another $2 per hour towards oil and filter changes every 50 hours. Cross-country flights cost a bit more if I have to use 100LL, and I plan for $25–30/hour for those flights.

My engine is new enough (90 TTSN, 7 months since "rubber replacement") that I expect to have several years of flying before I'll need a gearbox inspection. And in a worst-case scenario, I've got savings that could pay for major repair or overhaul, so I don't worry about contributing to a "maintenance reserve." I did that before I started flying, and chose an airplane / engine combo that fit within the financial parameters for purchasing that I alluded to above...

Happy new year! Here's hoping (and praying) that 2021 is a better year for all of us!

[drseti]

Happy new year! Here's hoping (and praying) that 2021 is a better year for all of us!

Well, in many ways, it couldn't possibly be any worse than the Year From Hell we've all just survived. May 2021 bring us all clear skies and tailwinds!

[zodiac flyer]

My hangar cost alone is $4800.
And that is in a shared hangar!
Dave

[drseti]

Dave, one can only hope that where you're paying Big City prices, you're also earning a Big City salary!

[Warmi]

Main costs:

About $3800 for a heated and private T hangar here in a rather distant Chicago suburb ( as you get closer to the city prices jump to $6000 then $7000 and so on - pretty crazy up there )
$1700 for my insurance ...
$1300 or so for each annual with occasional and rather dramatic spikes ( 5 year rubber, parachute repack etc )

[zodiac flyer]

Nope
Retired and in the West Palm Beach Area
Hangars are in short supply.
Dave

[drseti]

Retired and in the West Palm Beach Area
Hangars are in short supply.

They're probably all full of golf carts, Dave.