Do I fly too much?

flyingcheesehead

flyingcheesehead

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Just going through some usage statistics for the club, and for the 4th year in a row, I'm gonna be the club member with the most hours.

I've flown over twice as many (99.81) tach hours as the next-closest member (48.97).

I flew 22% of the hours for the entire 30-member club... And that doesn't even account for all of my hours, as I have probably at least 20 hours logged in non-club planes this year.

Do I fly too much?

Naaah. :)
 
Just means you are going broke faster than anyone else :smilewinkgrin:

Enough is too much
 
Nope, not even close.

You are precious close to being a candidate for your own plane... but you knew that, didn't you?
 
You can't fly too much. It's impossible.
 
Sounds to me like the other club members didn't fly enough.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Do I fly too much?

Naaah. :)
Click to expand...

One thing I've found is that the more I fly, the more I want to fly.

It's a dangerous addiction that has led me to do some pretty strange things...like buying airplanes, converting hotels into aviation museums, flying when it's 5 above zero, etc.

In other words -- nope, you're not flying too much. Too much ain't enough!

:rofl::yes::yes::yes:
 
Well, Kent, if you fly too much then I really fly too much, as in the past calendar year I've flown about 200 hours.

I'd say you're doing just fine. :)
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Just going through some usage statistics for the club, and for the 4th year in a row, I'm gonna be the club member with the most hours.

I've flown over twice as many (99.81) tach hours as the next-closest member (48.97).

I flew 22% of the hours for the entire 30-member club... And that doesn't even account for all of my hours, as I have probably at least 20 hours logged in non-club planes this year.

Do I fly too much?

Naaah. :)
Click to expand...

So the total hours flown by the club is 454? (99.81/0.22)

If you flew 100 hr and the number 2 person flew 49, then the other 28 members flew 305 hours, or an average of only 11 hours each last year...


Trapper John
 
Trapper John said:
So the total hours flown by the club is 454? (99.81/0.22) If you flew 100 hr and the number 2 person flew 49, then the other 28 members flew 305 hours, or an average of only 11 hours each last year...
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A significant imbalance in hours flown by members is fairly typical (usually like 1/4 of the members fly half the hours, or half the members fly 3/4 of the hours), although not quite to that degree.
 
Ron Levy said:
A significant imbalance in hours flown by members is fairly typical (usually like 1/4 of the members fly half the hours, or half the members fly 3/4 of the hours), although not quite to that degree.
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That makes sense but it also makes me think there are quite a few pilots out there not flying many hours at all. In your opinion, how many hours should a VFR private pilot fly a year to stay proficient? By proficient, I guess I mean able to pass the private pilot checkride requirements at any time.

Trapper John
 
I'd say it's pretty typical to see an imbalance. In my club with the Cessna/Archer, there are a few pilots who do the majority of the hours. It used to be that I flew about 75% of the hours (maybe more) that the aircraft got out of a total of around 30 members. Most of the club members fly I'd estimate about 15-20 hours per year, if that, and you've got a couple who do the majority of the flying. I do not think that most of them fly enough to stay proficient, but they also generally only fly down the road 20 miles or so to another airport and back, and only on perfect days.

To me, the imbalance can be one of the attractions of a club. If you don't fly much, it makes it easier and more affordable to have aircraft at your disposal for use. If you fly a lot, those aircraft are probably generally being flown primarily by you and a few select others. The problem is that you've got to deal with whatever dumb rules are put in place, normally by those people who barely fly. When it's your plane, you can make your own rules (provided they stay within the confines of the laws).
 
Naaa.!! More power to you. I'm sure we all (maybe a few exceptions) wish we could fly more than we do!

Gary
 
its actually very important for clubs to have a good portion of the members not fly. need to bring in dues money etc. without any expenses.
 
tonycondon said:
its actually very important for clubs to have a good portion of the members not fly. need to bring in dues money etc. without any expenses.
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From what I've seen, most clubs follow the 80/20 rule, i.e. 80% of the flying is done by 20% of the members. But there's a downside to this, the 80% of the membership that don't fly much aren't getting any value for their investment and dues. The result of that is often dimishing club equity as the non-fliers vote to save money above all else.
 
lancefisher said:
From what I've seen, most clubs follow the 80/20 rule, i.e. 80% of the flying is done by 20% of the members. But there's a downside to this, the 80% of the membership that don't fly much aren't getting any value for their investment and dues. The result of that is often dimishing club equity as the non-fliers vote to save money above all else.
Click to expand...

i suppose. the club i flew at over by cedar rapids had about 175 members, and i bet at least 100 of them never flew, or very rarely flew. the dues were pretty cheap though, like 15 bucks a month. so it wasnt that painful to just pay the dues and have the option, and it was a good revenue stream for the club.
 
jmaynard said:
Piker. I've flown more than that in 6 months.
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Tach hours, Jay. :yes:

As far as total hours, I have 151.3 in the book so far this year - Some due to the difference between tach and hobbs, and some due to flying non-club planes (I did two ratings in other planes in the last two months).
 
Nav8tor said:
Sounds to me like the other club members didn't fly enough.
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Some surely don't, but the numbers are a tad misleading. For example, one member who flies 10 or 11 months out of the year only has 6 hours. I think a lot of his flights are just going up for an hour in the pattern every month. We have a "flying credit" where the first $50 of flying each month is free to encourage people to get up at least once a month, even if only for a few hops around the pattern. (Should be able to get 6-7 landings in for free.)
 
I belong to two clubs One $20 mo. dues non-owner/member & the other $75 mo.duers owner/member. I totaled 90 hours last yr (Nov to Nov) here in Seattle where as you know it rains 24/7/365. lol DaveR
 
lancefisher said:
From what I've seen, most clubs follow the 80/20 rule, i.e. 80% of the flying is done by 20% of the members. But there's a downside to this, the 80% of the membership that don't fly much aren't getting any value for their investment and dues. The result of that is often dimishing club equity as the non-fliers vote to save money above all else.
Click to expand...

That can be a problem. In my club, most of the people on the board are the people who never fly, and are more interested in saving money (to keep their dues low) than to have truly capable aircraft. Although really, this means that the people who fly more should try to be on the board to make sure their interests are heard.

tonycondon said:
i suppose. the club i flew at over by cedar rapids had about 175 members, and i bet at least 100 of them never flew, or very rarely flew. the dues were pretty cheap though, like 15 bucks a month. so it wasnt that painful to just pay the dues and have the option, and it was a good revenue stream for the club.
Click to expand...

Exactly. The non-flying members really help keep dues low. Low dues encourages more non-flying members. It's a happy cycle.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
Just going through some usage statistics for the club, and for the 4th year in a row, I'm gonna be the club member with the most hours.

I've flown over twice as many (99.81) tach hours as the next-closest member (48.97).

I flew 22% of the hours for the entire 30-member club... And that doesn't even account for all of my hours, as I have probably at least 20 hours logged in non-club planes this year.

Do I fly too much?

Naaah. :)
Click to expand...

Glad you answered that the way you did cause I was gonna say thats a dumb question:nono:
 
Is it possible to fly too much, Kent? I don't know that it is. :D
 
flyingcheesehead said:
jmaynard said:
Piker. I've flown more than that in 6 months.
Click to expand...
Tach hours, Jay. :yes:
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I've flown more than that in 6 months...about 106 tach, now.

As far as total hours, I have 151.3 in the book so far this year - Some due to the difference between tach and hobbs, and some due to flying non-club planes (I did two ratings in other planes in the last two months).
Click to expand...
Now, I can't claim I've flown more than that.
 
Trapper John said:
That makes sense but it also makes me think there are quite a few pilots out there not flying many hours at all. In your opinion, how many hours should a VFR private pilot fly a year to stay proficient? By proficient, I guess I mean able to pass the private pilot checkride requirements at any time.
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My experience suggests a minimum of 50 hours/year for true proficiency.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
That can be a problem. In my club, most of the people on the board are the people who never fly, and are more interested in saving money (to keep their dues low) than to have truly capable aircraft. Although really, this means that the people who fly more should try to be on the board to make sure their interests are heard.
Click to expand...

Trouble is, the non-flying majority may be inclined to vote for board members who share their economic views.

Exactly. The non-flying members really help keep dues low. Low dues encourages more non-flying members. It's a happy cycle.
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Until the non-flyers take control and start cutting "expenses". That's where the unhappy cycle begins.
 
Right, but that's what you get if you want cheap flying.

You don't mind if it's not cheap, then get your own plane. :)
 
lancefisher said:
From what I've seen, most clubs follow the 80/20 rule, i.e. 80% of the flying is done by 20% of the members. But there's a downside to this, the 80% of the membership that don't fly much aren't getting any value for their investment and dues. The result of that is often dimishing club equity as the non-fliers vote to save money above all else.
Click to expand...

Hmmm. Sounds like club by-laws should be written so that your vote is the percentage of hours you've flown in the last xx months. Would encourage folks to fly more, and those that are doing the flying make the rules. :)
 
Ron Levy said:
My experience suggests a minimum of 50 hours/year for true proficiency.
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What is "true VFR proficiency" ?

I've flown no where near 50 hours this year, and with an hour in PA28, you wouldn't be able to tell if I'd flown 5 hours or 105 hours. Instrument flying might be another story, but VFR proficiency? Not buying it.
 
I've done flight reviews with those who haven't flown ranging from a year to eighteen years. Even a few months proves some without a little skill, especially if it's only a few hours every quarter.

I'd have to go with Ron's average of fifty hours a year. That's only an hour a week and only just enough to keep the rust off, let alone truly be proficient. As far as IFR proficiency, the currency requirement currently in effect is a joke.
 
Well, I know when Ive gone up after a long lay off, I go through the commercial PTS and am still within the standards halved. Come on, it's not that hard to fly a heading, hold an altitude, fly a steep turn to +/-50' or hit within 100' of my touchdown point even with a few months off. Hell, I hadn't flown for 5 months, had never flown a plane with floats before and nailed the commercial steep turn to plus minus 20 the first time.

50 hours? Laughable.
 
Kent, I normally get 100 hours or a little over each year. This last year, with the fuel cost so high, I only got about 85. I hope the fuel price stays a little lower this coming summer.

Bob
 
EdFred said:
Well, I know when Ive gone up after a long lay off, I go through the commercial PTS and am still within the standards halved. Come on, it's not that hard to fly a heading, hold an altitude, fly a steep turn to +/-50' or hit within 100' of my touchdown point even with a few months off. Hell, I hadn't flown for 5 months, had never flown a plane with floats before and nailed the commercial steep turn to plus minus 20 the first time.

50 hours? Laughable.
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For you, anyway. There are some people I've seen for whom 50 hours a year isn't enough for them to nail the private PTS standards. It amazes me that those people ever passed in the first place.

I don't like generalizations that say "You need xx hours per year to stay proficient." Some people are just better than others, and it also depends on how good you are when you stopped.
 
Ted DuPuis said:
For you, anyway. There are some people I've seen for whom 50 hours a year isn't enough for them to nail the private PTS standards. It amazes me that those people ever passed in the first place.

I don't like generalizations that say "You need xx hours per year to stay proficient." Some people are just better than others, and it also depends on how good you are when you stopped.
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Don't tell that to the experts.:rolleyes:
 
Ted DuPuis said:
For you, anyway. There are some people I've seen for whom 50 hours a year isn't enough for them to nail the private PTS standards. It amazes me that those people ever passed in the first place.

I don't like generalizations that say "You need xx hours per year to stay proficient." Some people are just better than others, and it also depends on how good you are when you stopped.
Click to expand...
You don't speak it as a "generalization" that would belittle someone. For example, I've come to an estimate for the pilot who hasn't flown for some time. So, I tell them, "As a general rule, it takes about 1.5 hours in ground time for every year not flown." I've come to figure between 1.0 and 1.5 hours flight time for each year not flown.

Putting it that way is more than acceptable and you're not telling them they are rusty nor anything remotely demeaning about their flying skill and knowledge. They already know they need some help getting back up to par. So, let's just dig in and find out. But, at least they start out with an idea of how long it may take.

The fifty hours is a general rule. For some pilots, the skill stays with them better than others. So, there's no reason to take offense at the rule that's most commonly encountered for most.
 
Yes, Kent....now let me have 271G every once in a while :D
 
EdFred said:
What is "true VFR proficiency" ?
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What Trapper John said -- being able to pass a PP-ASEL practical test on your next flight without breaking a sweat.
I've flown no where near 50 hours this year, and with an hour in PA28, you wouldn't be able to tell if I'd flown 5 hours or 105 hours.
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I might take that bet.
Instrument flying might be another story, but VFR proficiency? Not buying it.
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There are always exceptions, and the more total time someone has, the less they need for proficiency, especially if they flew a lot (several hundred hours a year) for some time. But when you've flown with as many non-proficient PP's as I have, and looked at their logbooks, you see certain trends.
 
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