Cheapest way to commute via plane

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wilburburns

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Wilburburns
Ok, I drive 75 miles each way to work and back each day. I live 3 miles from my nearest airport, and work 6ish miles from the local airport.

Exactly 51nm airport to airport.

So, that being said, I've been pondering costs to fly, time savings, etc. how to make it cheaper, and is it even possible to make it feasible and semi cost effective.

Questions being, what would the best plane be?

Would I need a hangar at both airports, or would the day location be considered short term parking ? This is probably dependent on location and actual airport.

Could a leaseback agreement make this beneficial as the same flight school has locations at both airports.

Does anyone here commute via plane for such a relatively short distance, and could and time savings be truly accomplished?

Have I completely lost my mind?

I like that I could easily and quickly add hours in the logbook, and valuable cross country hours at that.

Cliff
 
First thought is 51nm is lucky as it fits the most common distance minimum for logging cross country. It's also a good short distance that you can drive whenever the weather isn't great.

Personally such a short commute I probably would only do on VFR days. And by the time you pull the airplane out, preflight and taxi out you've killed 1/2 hour. Flight time depends on the speed of the plane but in a typical fixed gear 4 seater you have another 30 min flight. And then another ten mins to tie down and lock up and then you still have a ride to work, taxi?

Point is unless it's a terrible drive with slow back roads, as a practical matter you won't save time flying. It'll just be fun.

So get a fun plane, commute via air when the weather cooperates... for fun.


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Gyrocopter, kept in your own garage. Obtain permission to land in work parking lot.

Probably the only way you end up saving significant time.
 
cowman said:
Gyrocopter, kept in your own garage. Obtain permission to land in work parking lot.

Probably the only way you end up saving significant time.
Click to expand...

Small heli like a R44 would be ideal...

If you're just looking to build time cheaply solo, get something slow and fun:

c150, Tomahawk, cherokee140, Beech skipper, cub, aeronca


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So a case study in this for you...

On one occasion we needed to ferry a car from our house to a friend who lives 130nm away by air... not sure by car but probably close to that. So my wife left for his place in the car and I headed to the airport with the intent of flying out there, meeting up for dinner/fun then flying back with her. When my friend met me at the airport my wife had just called to say she was waiting for us at a Starbucks. She got there first....

Sure I was going almost twice the rate but I had to drive to the airport... admittedly I'm more like 30mi from the airport not 3 but I still had to do a pre-flight, taxi, takeoff. Then I had to enter the pattern, land the airplane, taxi to the ramp, and tie down. These things take time... more time than we probably realize when we're having fun. By car, you just get in and go then stop when you're done.
 
cowman said:
Sure I was going almost twice the rate but I had to drive to the airport... admittedly I'm more like 30mi from the airport not 3 but I still had to do a pre-flight, taxi, takeoff. Then I had to enter the pattern, land the airplane, taxi to the ramp, and tie down. These things take time... more time than we probably realize when we're having fun. By car, you just get in and go then stop when you're done.
Click to expand...

Agreed with Cowman. I did a similar analysis, thought I'm not a close to the airports at either end as the OP is.

I have a 86 mile commute. I'm 20 miles from my home airport, and the destination airport is 15 miles away from the office. I would have to buy a cheap ("beater") car to leave at the destination airport, or a scooter/motorcycle. Driving to the home airport would take me about 40 minutes on surface street. Then flight planning, pre-flight, fueling, run-up, taxi, takeoff would take me another 30 minutes. In flight time would be about 40 minutes to cover 73nm, then I would need about 15 minutes to taxi, tie-down, walk to the beater, hope it starts, then drive the 30 minutes into the office. All told, that's 155 minutes (2 hours 35 minutes.) Driving into the office with normal traffic would take me 2 hours. 3 hours on a bad day with heavier than normal traffic. And it would cost me less since I drive a diesel, so I burn 2 gallons of diesel one-way vs. 7-8 gallons of MOGAS.

BUT... if it's a holiday or a weekend, and I'm headed to the city where the office is located (San Diego), I'm flying. The Interstate 5 is a parking lot on weekends.
 
A different case study. I have a vacation rental on cape cod, and im a good 3+ hour drive away, and that's when the traffic isn't bad. I'm 15 mins from my airport and the cottage is ten mins from the airport on the other end. I fly a 180 knot airplane so I can open the hangar, preflight, takeoff, fly there and land in around 45 mins.

So I save 1.5-2 hours each way or close to 4 hours on the round trip by flying.

So you see the flying sweet spot is more in the 150+ nm range, out to a distance where at some point an airline makes more sense.


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An IFR 152 and a beater car at the work end of the deal.
I did a 93 mile commute in a Cherokee 140 for a while. It was more for the fun of it. Occasionally I had to leave the plane behind and take the car home.
 
I commute weekly. 133 NM each way and own a 1991 AG5B Tiger. I flight plan for 130 kts so it's anywhere from 50 minutes to about 75 minutes depending on winds aloft. By the time I get the plane out of the hanger, pre-flight, fly and then tie the plane down, its about 2 hrs. Another 1/2 hr from the airport to my lake house and total it is 2 1/2 hours. I can drive it in 3 hrs. Not much in time savings and I personally think the real benefit to flying in terms of time is closer to 200 NM. Otherwise, it's pretty much a push and a car is way cheaper but certainly not as much fun. YMMV, particularly if traffic is an issue which it is many large cities where it can take 2 hrs or more just to get in or out of the city, e.g. Seattle on major weekends.
 
It works best if you have a friendly FBO at the 'work' end of the trip. It helps if you can just chock the plane on the FBO ramp and they tie down or hangar if weather moves in. Cuts 10 minutes off each trip.
 
I used to live 13 road miles from work, call it 25 minutes by car, into and through town, then back into the country.

It was 10 road miles to the airport (first 4.5 was the same road, then turn in opposite directions). Going past two schools in the morning made the airport drive pretty much the same as to work. Add 8-10 minutes to preflight, pull out of the hangar, crank up, taxi a couple hundred yards, then after runup I back taxied 1000' and took off away from work.

Climb out, turn around, level off at 1500 agl, reduce throttle, set RPM, lean the engine, then call patetrn entry, look hard at the grass strip and land one way or the other. A short uphill taxi, shutdown, grab my stuff and walk another couple hundred yards to work. Man, it was a great feeling, worth the extra time to do! But it had to be forecast for VFR all day, with decent wind; couldn't have rained much the last couple of days (short grass strip, 2000' on the riverbank); no morning fog; and I had to be out the front door a half hour early.

So I only did it a few times. Summer was too hot to leave the plane sitting outside all day, then get inside to go home. Now I've changed jobs and relocated, and I wish I had taken advantage of the opportunity more! But so often, I was just caught up in the morning routine and forgot about it . . . All I had to do was hurry a little bit, or set the alarm a little earlier . . . . . Missed opportunities!

Go for it a few times, just because you can. Take it from me, who can't any more.
 
Will no way be cheaper...most likely not faster...but what you are buying is convenience.

There are a LOT of fixed cost to ownership well above the direct cost of the flight.

To answer your direct questions...something as cheap and easy as a 152 will be all you need.
You will need tie down or hangar at your home airport...that is an easy call to the airport to find out rates.
On the arrival end, most economical would be to lease a permanent tie down spot. Again, easy call for rates.

As for time...you are at least 20 min from airport arrival to wheels up if you have preflight down to a science...add time for fuel if needed. 10 min from wheels down to driving away.

If you need the leaseback to afford it, you can't afford it. Leasebacks rarely work out in favor of the owner and almost always benefit the FBO...that was direct advise from a school owner who had a bunch of leasebacks on his line.

In reality as mentioned you will need a second car for the destination end...plus an IFR ticket to be really viable, even then you will still have a percentage of unflyable days.

I do a 140 mile commute several times a month...I am probably able to fly it vs drive only 50-60% of the time for one reason or another. To bypass Bay Area rush hour traffic is well worth any monetary cost!
 
Last edited:
wilburburns said:
Ok, I drive 75 miles each way to work and back each day. I live 3 miles from my nearest airport, and work 6ish miles from the local airport.

Exactly 51nm airport to airport.

So, that being said, I've been pondering costs to fly, time savings, etc. how to make it cheaper, and is it even possible to make it feasible and semi cost effective.

Questions being, what would the best plane be?

Would I need a hangar at both airports, or would the day location be considered short term parking ? This is probably dependent on location and actual airport.

Could a leaseback agreement make this beneficial as the same flight school has locations at both airports.

Does anyone here commute via plane for such a relatively short distance, and could and time savings be truly accomplished?

Have I completely lost my mind?

I like that I could easily and quickly add hours in the logbook, and valuable cross country hours at that.

Cliff
Click to expand...
I actually did this for about 6 years...but I had an airstrip at my own house...weather is a big factor (it was the biggest for my commute, due to Michigan winters, grass strip at home, etc). My distance was only 32 nm. Didn't really save time, by the time you park, tie down, untie, preflight, etc. It was also very tempting to skip preflights, especially at home. On my most frequent-flying year I made only 40 round trips...less than one a week average.
 
Oddly I have a 62 mile one-way commute right now. (Ft Worth to Plano)

I've worked out on-site Tues-Thu, remote Mon and Fri. I get a hotel for 2 nights (~$300) and save ~8 hours of commute time and 240 miles of driving. Entirely worth the cost!
 
Not surprisingly, everyone has said basically what I was thinking.

1: not really cost effective for such a short distance.

2: not gonna save much if any time in the end with such a short flight.

Speaking even more specifically to point 2 above. My drive is normally 1:15-1:30 minutes, and can be as short as 1:10. Given the numbers below, this is what I'd estimate.

Travel time to and from each airport 20 min
Quick preflight and tie down at destination
25min
Flight 30min
Run up and takeoff/landing clearance/taxi
Easily an extra 10-20 minutes since both airports are towered.

Main airport is a regional class C, and destination airport is a class D below a class c shelf, which is also busy, especially at the morning and evening commutes.

However, it would still be fun, if I had unlimited funding, or time.

Cliff
 
I commuted to visit someone at an out of town hospital for a couple weeks. The trip was 2 hours one way by car nasty Orlando traffic, only 30 min flight. I live on my airport, so no travel time to get to the plane, but there was a 30 minute uber ride on the other side. Still it took almosy exactly the same amount of time to fly if I started the clock when I walked out the front door and stopped it when I walked in the hospital door. Was at least $45 more cost per trip too.

But, it was a zillion times more fun than driving in orlando traffic for four hours.
 
Unless there are consistent traffic snarls you won't save time. I've heard of commuters in the LA area saving time by flying, but that is probably when they are going across most of the basin at rush hour. The closer you are to the airport and the closer work is to the other airport the better.
 
Short of a helicopter at your home and landing at work I doubt you can save any time. It could be more fun, but not cheaper or faster.

Here are some examples of the distances and deltas between driving and flying. I'm flying somewhat fast planes; an SR22 and a Baron.

Our youngest daughter is attending college and it's ~3.5 hour drive. It's just over an hour flight with no instrument approach. Add a 20+ min drive to the airport (with no traffic issues), pre-flight, getting IFR flight plan clearance, getting the rental car/Uber at the other end, there's not that much savings in time. We'd save about an hour, 1.5 hours tops if the stars fully align (ha!), for quite a bit more cost. So we drive there.

At Christmas break I was planning to fly her and her roommate home. Get to the airport and it's a cold day (for Atlanta). The airplane I reserved wouldn't start. The mx guy brought a power cart over, and it would spin the prop faster, but no starting. Switch to another SR22, and it starts up fine. Yea! :) Get over the Georgia / South Carolina border and the ALT1 light comes on. :( I make it to CUB and get a rental car (actually a nice new F-150) and drive the girls home. :mad:

Our middle daughter is attending college that's a 6 hour drive from home. We always fly there. The only time I drove was to move her in to her dorm freshman year. That meant a drive up, hotel stay, then drive home the next day; move in timing was controlled by the university due to the number of people moving in that day. At the end of her freshman year I was flying a Baron and moved her out with the Baron. :cool: Up and back in one day, easy-peasy.
 
wilburburns said:
Ok, I drive 75 miles each way to work and back each day. I live 3 miles from my nearest airport, and work 6ish miles from the local airport.

Exactly 51nm airport to airport.

So, that being said, I've been pondering costs to fly, time savings, etc. how to make it cheaper, and is it even possible to make it feasible and semi cost effective.

Questions being, what would the best plane be?

Would I need a hangar at both airports, or would the day location be considered short term parking ? This is probably dependent on location and actual airport.

Could a leaseback agreement make this beneficial as the same flight school has locations at both airports.

Does anyone here commute via plane for such a relatively short distance, and could and time savings be truly accomplished?

Have I completely lost my mind?

I like that I could easily and quickly add hours in the logbook, and valuable cross country hours at that.

Cliff
Click to expand...

Forget the leaseback idea. The flight school I worked for had a fleet that was all leaseback, and the owners were last in line when it came to scheduling time.

Bob
 
First, steal a plane.
Fly it like you stole it.
Dump it when you are done.
Don't get caught.

That's the cheapest way to fly.
 
When I did the 93 mile commute in the 140, there was a guy with a LongEze going the opposite direction every morning.

As for the time required: If it's your commuter plane, you are not going to spend 20minutes on pre-flight or post-flight. Got fuel, got oil, no birdsnests, no water and the wings are present is going to be your pre-flight. Tiedowns with carbines and quick-lock straps are faster than waiting for a hangar door to open. Ideally you want uncontrollable airports at both ends and the option to park your car at the tiedown. The speed of the aircraft itself is not that important. A 152 or AA1B vs a Mooney is going to yield similar door to door times, the speed is in how quickly you can transition from ground to plane and back.

And forget about the leaseback. This has to be your plane alone with the headset and trim in the spot you left them.
 
Please to define: Ideally you want uncontrollable airports at both ends

What is the time gain associated with 'uncontrollable airports'? How do you determine the controllness of an airport? Are uncontrollable airports safe?
 
Ravioli said:
Please to define: Ideally you want uncontrollable airports at both ends

What is the time gain associated with 'uncontrollable airports'? How do you determine the controllness of an airport? Are uncontrollable airports safe?
Click to expand...

"Uncontrolled" means no control tower /class e or g airspace. Means light traffic usually and quick in and out.

And yes they are safe.


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gsengle said:
"Uncontrolled" means no control tower /class e or g airspace. Means light traffic usually and quick in and out. And yes they are safe.
Click to expand...

You are describing 'Uncontrolled' which is what many say instead of the correct term "Non-towered." I'm sure people still "Position and Hold" instead of "Line up and Wait" even though there is plenty of documentation of the correct terminology.

I was querying the person who wrote "uncontrollable airport"

[Did I really need to explain this?]
 
Ravioli said:
You are describing 'Uncontrolled' which is what many say instead of the correct term "Non-towered." I'm sure people still "Position and Hold" instead of "Line up and Wait" even though there is plenty of documentation of the correct terminology.

I was querying the person who wrote "uncontrollable airport"

[Did I really need to explain this?]
Click to expand...

Actually you said "uncontrollable" which means something entirely different. I was explaining the meaning as I interpreted you asking the question. I do know that the FAA moved to using "non towered" which is how I explained the meaning of "uncontrolled". Both are correct in the sense that an uncontrolled field is non towered and a non towered airport is uncontrolled.

I didn't see a post preciously that said "uncontrollable". I hope you don't need to explain this, you certainly don't have to to me.


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gsengle said:
I didn't see a post preciously that said "uncontrollable".
Click to expand...

I was poking some fun at the precious (previous?) post #22 that introduced the concept of uncontrollable airports.
 
Ravioli said:
I was poking some fun at the precious (previous?) post #22 that introduced the concept of uncontrollable airports.
Click to expand...

Yep of course now I see it.

And yes uncontrollable airports do exist and no they aren't safe :-o


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With a very simple plane and the right tie down on the ramp you could do it. In the Bay Area, at the wrong time, it could take 2+ hours each way. I do concord to modesto often which is 62 miles and round trip can take 4 hours if I do the drive at the wrong time. By plane it's door to door 1:30. 30 mins isn't much time to save but if I do it twice a week it adds up.
Piper archer with a cruise prop, tie down near runway and car parked both sides
 
I'm starting to sound like Henning.

I lived in Benicia and trained at Concord a little and then switched to Nut Tree.

I'd rather fly to Modesto than drive it ANY day.
 
Don't forget, you will have the plane for any other trips you might want to take.
$100 hamburger...and better yet the infamous $100 taco.
We live about a 2 hr drive from Nashville and Louisville.
I expect to ferry family/friends to those locations as they depart/arrive for visits from abroad.
At least the 1 or 2 times the weather cooperates ha ha.

Also I have no experience with Uber or Lyft. They may be cheaper on the other end than owning a car full time?
 
weilke said:
If it's your commuter plane, you are not going to spend 20minutes on pre-flight or post-flight. Got fuel, got oil, no birdsnests, no water and the wings are present is going to be your pre-flight. Tiedowns with carbines and quick-lock straps are faster than waiting for a hangar door to open.
Click to expand...
If you're doing the kick the tires pre-flight, I'd prefer a private hangar. Then you know for sure it's exactly as you left it. Of course, my hangar door opens fast. :)
 
Ravioli said:
You are describing 'Uncontrolled' which is what many say instead of the correct term "Non-towered." I'm sure people still "Position and Hold" instead of "Line up and Wait" even though there is plenty of documentation of the correct terminology.

I was querying the person who wrote "uncontrollable airport"

[Did I really need to explain this?]
Click to expand...
Call it what you want. It's uncontrolled.
Makes me laugh when people say "the active" at an uncontrolled airport.
 
Skyrys62 said:
Also I have no experience with Uber or Lyft. They may be cheaper on the other end than owning a car full time?
Click to expand...

The cost to own a beater with liability only is pretty minimal.

'Commuting' implies use several times a week, it doesn't take long for the airport-car to be the cheaper option. Also, having the car at the 'out' location makes it easier to decide that the weather doesn't support a return trip that day. If the alternative is a $200 Uber ride, you may be tempted to push the weather.
 
It will cost more, take more time, and be more of a worrisome burden.

Drive.
 
I have about an 800nm weekly commute to work. It costs me 0 dollars to do this ! I generally work 3 days on 4 days off. Except of course when I have vacation.
 
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