Finishing What Started

Pilot? Student pilot? Future pilot? Interested in learning to fly? If you're reading this forum, you've got flying in your blood! SportPilotTalk is a great place to ask questions about this exciting new segment of (more) affordable aviation!

Moderator: drseti

WB714PR
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed Oct 30, 2019 10:00 am
Location: Dayton, Ohio

Finishing What Started

Post by WB714PR »

Hello,
I was very pleased to find this site as I have been thinking of getting back into flying.

I was a member of our college's flying club in the late 70"s and managed to get through to my second solo cross country when graduation and life caught up with me. Now as my retirement is within the year, I am thinking that I have unfinished business with aviation. The sport pilot program is perfect for what I am looking for. I don't need to fly to Disney Land in a big twin in IMC, I just want to hop in an airplane and fly around.

I have been doing some online studying, and it is very interesting to see how things have changed in the last 40 years. I feel like I have been in a time capsule.

While the Sport Pilot and LSA rules seem straight forward there are some odd quirks that I hope to get answers on as I go. Also, I hope that this forum can keep me up to speed on the proposed rule changes that were talked about this summer (I don't see why a Sport Pilot can't fly a 150 or the like).

Cheers!
User avatar
FastEddieB
Posts: 2880
Joined: Wed Jan 07, 2009 9:33 pm
Location: Lenoir City, TN/Mineral Bluff, GA

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by FastEddieB »

Welcome! Where are you located?
Fast Eddie B.
Sky Arrow 600 E-LSA • N467SA
CFI, CFII, CFIME
[email protected]
WB714PR
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed Oct 30, 2019 10:00 am
Location: Dayton, Ohio

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by WB714PR »

Dayton, Ohio.
TimTaylor
Posts: 1594
Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2017 7:17 pm

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by TimTaylor »

A Sport Pilot can't fly a twin to Disney Land in IMC, true. However, a Sport Pilot can fly a VERY capable light sport aircraft to Disney Land in VFR weather. Forget about possible future rule changes that may or may not ever happen. Sport Pilot rules as they currently exist are fine. Any changes that might happen in the future would just be icing on the cake.

A Sport Pilot can fly an LSA in daytime VFR weather with 3 miles visibility up to 10,000 MSL or 2000 AGL whichever is higher. He must also maintain visual ground contact at all times. He cannot fly for compensation or hire or in furtherance of a business. He can do all of this with a driver's license as medical.
Retired from flying.
WB714PR
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed Oct 30, 2019 10:00 am
Location: Dayton, Ohio

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by WB714PR »

Yes, I have been checking out all the available aircraft in the LSA category and the older planes that a sport pilot can fly like the Cubs and Ercoupes (I don't think I will be doing the real old ones that require hand prop start).

I will have to work up to a long cross country. In my introduction, I didn't really cover how badly my second solo cross country went. The weather went completely upside-down from what was predicted and it happened fast. I turned around short of my first stop, miscalculated the winds aloft, got blown off course, and ended up using a road map to figure out where the heck I was, all why the ceiling kept getting lower and lower. Fortunately, I had the presence of mind to call flight service (after I flew through an antenna forest) to figure out if the ceiling would hold up long enough for me to get home without further degradation (which it did).
What is really cool to me, are all the electronics in the cockpit for weather and navigation. I am in IT and I know how finicky technology is , so I will ALWAYS carry paper. But in the spring of 1979, as a 21 year old kid with 25 hrs, it sure would have been nice to look down at an iPad and say to myself, "huh, I thought all that weather was supposed to stay to the south."

I am really looking forward to getting back to flying.
TimTaylor
Posts: 1594
Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2017 7:17 pm

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by TimTaylor »

GPS makes flying so much easier than it was with VOR. ADS-B weather is a good thing also. I believe most of us probably stopped carrying paper charts long ago. As long as you have redundancy, there is little need for paper anymore.
Retired from flying.
User avatar
Scooper
Posts: 397
Joined: Sun Jul 08, 2007 12:29 pm
Location: Santa Rosa, CA

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by Scooper »

I have to second the notion that LSAs are very capable flying machines. For more than a decade I owned and flew a Cessna 172 including several coast-to-coast cross-country flights, but in 2006 decided to let my special issuance 3rd class medical lapse and fly LSAs as a sport pilot using my valid driver license in lieu of a medical. I sold my 172 to a friend and neighbor who is a retired airline captain. Ninety-five percent of the kind of flying I did in the 172, I can do in my Zodiac LSA.

When BasicMed came along, I hopped on board. At about the same time, my friend who had bought my 172 was diagnosed with cancer and lost his medical. He offered to sell me back the 172 for half the price he paid me a decade earlier, and he had made significant investments in upgrades. After thinking about it, I decided to keep my Zodiac because it's faster than my 172, burns 5.5 gph instead of 8 gph, and since I converted it to experimental I can perform my own maintenance. One important thing BasicMed does for me is let me fly at night so I can continue flying home after a long cross-country without having to land at twilight and spend the night in a hotel. I helped my friend sell the 172 to a new owner who is thrilled with the plane.
Stan Cooper (K4DRD)
Private Pilot ASEL LSRI
Image
Experimental AMD CH601XLi-B Zodiac LSA N601KE (KSTS)
Dave C
Posts: 96
Joined: Tue Jan 15, 2019 5:33 pm

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by Dave C »

WB714PR wrote:Hello,
I was very pleased to find this site as I have been thinking of getting back into flying.

I was a member of our college's flying club in the late 70"s and managed to get through to my second solo cross country when graduation and life caught up with me. Now as my retirement is within the year, I am thinking that I have unfinished business with aviation. The sport pilot program is perfect for what I am looking for. I don't need to fly to Disney Land in a big twin in IMC, I just want to hop in an airplane and fly around.

I have been doing some online studying, and it is very interesting to see how things have changed in the last 40 years. I feel like I have been in a time capsule.

While the Sport Pilot and LSA rules seem straight forward there are some odd quirks that I hope to get answers on as I go. Also, I hope that this forum can keep me up to speed on the proposed rule changes that were talked about this summer (I don't see why a Sport Pilot can't fly a 150 or the like).

Cheers!
Hello and welcome to the site! I received my Sport Pilot certificate back in March and now own an LSA. I think that Sport Pilot is a good option but if you are not already thinking about it, you should consider Private Pilot as well. IF you are confident that you can pass the medical exam, Private Pilot gives you a lot more flexibility for not much more cost and time. I know the minimum hours are twice as many but most people end up with a lot more than the minimum to gain the required proficiency. The real test is proficiency and from what I understand the Private Pilot checkride is almost the same as the SportPilot checkride. I passed my Sport Pilot checkride at 40 hrs. I maybe could have passed at 30hrs. My buddy, training in the same plane with the same instructor passed his private in 40 hrs and we have been comparing notes all along. It is something to think about.

-Dave
User avatar
drseti
Posts: 7227
Joined: Sat Nov 28, 2009 6:42 pm
Location: Lock Haven PA
Contact:

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by drseti »

Dave C wrote:My buddy, training in the same plane with the same instructor passed his private in 40 hrs and we have been comparing notes all along. It is something to think about.

-Dave
Your buddy is definitely super sharp (as is his CFI). Most of my PP applicants have been over 50 hrs, and the national average is said to be something like 70. Not saying it can't be done in 40, but I think that's the exception.
The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.
Prof H Paul Shuch
PhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMT
AvSport LLC, KLHV
[email protected]
AvSport.org
facebook.com/SportFlying
SportPilotExaminer.US
Dave C
Posts: 96
Joined: Tue Jan 15, 2019 5:33 pm

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by Dave C »

drseti wrote:
Dave C wrote:My buddy, training in the same plane with the same instructor passed his private in 40 hrs and we have been comparing notes all along. It is something to think about.

-Dave
Your buddy is definitely super sharp (as is his CFI). Most of my PP applicants have been over 50 hrs, and the national average is said to be something like 70. Not saying it can't be done in 40, but I think that's the exception.

He is super sharp and the instructor is a skilled perfectionist. How many hours does the average sport pilot finish up in?
User avatar
drseti
Posts: 7227
Joined: Sat Nov 28, 2009 6:42 pm
Location: Lock Haven PA
Contact:

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by drseti »

Dave C wrote: How many hours does the average sport pilot finish up in?
I don't know any national average figures, but my curriculum has a minimum of 29 hours, and my students average around 35. So clearly the 20 hour minimum was only realistic for those experienced ultralight pilots who already knew how to fly their planes when the SP rule went live in 2004.
The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.
Prof H Paul Shuch
PhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMT
AvSport LLC, KLHV
[email protected]
AvSport.org
facebook.com/SportFlying
SportPilotExaminer.US
TimTaylor
Posts: 1594
Joined: Tue Feb 21, 2017 7:17 pm

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by TimTaylor »

Comparing hours to get Private vs Sport is apples and oranges. Many Private students are younger vs Sport who are older. That makes a difference. Try not to get hung up on how many hours it takes someone else or average. Nobody is average.
Retired from flying.
User avatar
drseti
Posts: 7227
Joined: Sat Nov 28, 2009 6:42 pm
Location: Lock Haven PA
Contact:

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by drseti »

To put it another way: it's not about hours in the logbook, but rather skill with the stick.
The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.
Prof H Paul Shuch
PhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMT
AvSport LLC, KLHV
[email protected]
AvSport.org
facebook.com/SportFlying
SportPilotExaminer.US
WB714PR
Posts: 13
Joined: Wed Oct 30, 2019 10:00 am
Location: Dayton, Ohio

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by WB714PR »

I had about 25 or so hours in back in the day in Pipers and Cessnas (logbook is MIA) - so that should put me somewhat ahead. I certainly remember my training. I doubt they do it now, but my instructor took me up one afternoon in a 150, and we did about 5 or 6 spins until he was sure I could recover on my own.
I suspect I can probably get my Sports Pilot in 20 hours or close to it.
I am not 100% sure on the medical. I had some issues, but then lost 100lbs, and they all went away. But, the stacks of medical records I would have to take to an AME to explain all that has put me off of PPilot.

I retire in June, so we shall see how the old man does.
User avatar
drseti
Posts: 7227
Joined: Sat Nov 28, 2009 6:42 pm
Location: Lock Haven PA
Contact:

Re: Finishing What Started

Post by drseti »

WB714PR wrote: I doubt they do it now, but my instructor took me up one afternoon in a 150, and we did about 5 or 6 spins until he was sure I could recover on my own.
You're right, they don't do that anymore. Spin training is now required only for CFIs.
I am not 100% sure on the medical. I had some issues,
My advice: if you're not 100% sure, don't even try for a medical. If you apply, and are refused for any reason, your only flying options become gliders or balloons.
The opinions posted are those of one CFI, and do not necessarily represent the FAA or its lawyers.
Prof H Paul Shuch
PhD CFII DPE LSRM-A/GL/WS/PPC iRMT
AvSport LLC, KLHV
[email protected]
AvSport.org
facebook.com/SportFlying
SportPilotExaminer.US
Post Reply