Flying yourself before you flew commercial?

farmerbrake

farmerbrake

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farmerbrake
Kinda bored so I thought I'd ask a question on here.
I have been flying since 2013, got my ppl in 2014, and am about halfway though my instrument now on my way to commercial (who knows what after that).
Anyways, I have yet to fly on a commercial airliner. The only planes I have been in are the ones I've personally flown (172, Cherokee 140, warrior, archer, and arrow). Kinda curious to see how long I can go without flying commercially.

I surely can't be the only one on here that got their first flying experience by flying the plane themselves.
How long have some of you guys made it before your first 'commercial' flying experience?
 
I'm personally always amazed if/when I hear of someone who hasn't flown in an a-ro-plane before.
 
I think my first commercial flight was when I was 3. My first small airplane flight was when I was 19. It was also my first lesson. Nothing like jumping in without knowing anything about it.
 
Everskyward said:
I think my first commercial flight was when I was 3. My first small airplane flight was when I was 19. It was also my first lesson. Nothing like jumping in without knowing anything about it.
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Same for me. The first time I was ever in a small plane was the first lesson.

First commercial flight in 1968 was in a Trans Texas Airline DC-3.....aka tree top airline
 
farmerbrake said:
Kinda bored so I thought I'd ask a question on here.
I have been flying since 2013, got my ppl in 2014, and am about halfway though my instrument now on my way to commercial (who knows what after that).
Anyways, I have yet to fly on a commercial airliner. The only planes I have been in are the ones I've personally flown (172, Cherokee 140, warrior, archer, and arrow). Kinda curious to see how long I can go without flying commercially.

I surely can't be the only one on here that got their first flying experience by flying the plane themselves.
How long have some of you guys made it before your first 'commercial' flying experience?
Click to expand...

You are not missing anything unless you like being hassled by mall cops and really enjoy being in extreme close proximity to the great unwashed masses that this country has to offer.
 
My first small plane ride was five decades ago, at age 5, a passenger in a C150 piloted by my dad, who had a student certificate. He told me to hunker down as he taxied, so that nobody would see me at our small city airport. Our destination was a big city airport, where I boarded a TWA jet, unaccompanied, to go see my grandparents in another state.

So, first time in a small plane and in an airliner on the same day.

Hopefully the TWA pilot was less of a scofflaw than my dad.
 
About the only thing I can say is that my first small airplane ride (172) was provided by one of my father's clients, a pilot and flight engineer at Trans Caribbean Airlines (while they were being acquired by American)
 
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SkyDog58 said:
You are not missing anything unless you like being hassled by mall cops and really enjoy being in extreme close proximity to the great unwashed masses that this country has to offer.
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Yeah I've been to airports plenty of times and through security to the gate with my grandparents. I didn't think it was too bad, but I can understand how some people would get annoyed.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
If I owned my own plane I would fly it more than I fly commercial probably.
 
I think I had flown commercial maybe 3 times before my first lesson. I've still flown myself a lot more than I've flown commercial, by any standard (miles or hours).
 
I use the best tool for the job. Given a choice of spending a few days getting to California in the Navion or flying commercial and spending a few more days drinking wine out there, I chose the latter.

Bopping up and down the east coast is almost always faster in the Navion (and will be more so once I move so I'm not 2 miles from Dulles Airport any more). I can start in my house at IAD and beat my parents to the family reunion in the Boston suburbs by an hour or by several hours if it's in Maine.
 
flyingron said:
I use the best tool for the job. Given a choice of spending a few days getting to California in the Navion or flying commercial and spending a few more days drinking wine out there, I chose the latter.

Bopping up and down the east coast is almost always faster in the Navion (and will be more so once I move so I'm not 2 miles from Dulles Airport any more). I can start in my house at IAD and beat my parents to the family reunion in the Boston suburbs by an hour or by several hours if it's in Maine.
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I have a sister that lives in raleigh and when I told her it would take me 2 hrs to get her home she said oh but if I fly commercial It only takes 45 minutes. I said yeah, but with the added time getting to and from airports plus security I'm faster. Proved it to her last weekend. She loved the 'security' she had to go through at the FBO lol. Plus parking was even cheaper.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk
 
First commercial flight 1976. LA to Guam. (I was 11)

First GA airplane ride - 2003 (A36 Bo)

First Flight lesson -- 2 weeks later :)

Current logged - 360hrs

Current commercial mileage - 2.3million... and clicking fast.
 
flyingron said:
I use the best tool for the job. Given a choice of spending a few days getting to California in the Navion or flying commercial and spending a few more days drinking wine out there, I chose the latter.

Bopping up and down the east coast is almost always faster in the Navion (and will be more so once I move so I'm not 2 miles from Dulles Airport any more). I can start in my house at IAD and beat my parents to the family reunion in the Boston suburbs by an hour or by several hours if it's in Maine.
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Oh definitely, for going coast to coast commercial will get you there faster. Apart from dealing with TSA, the issue with commercial is direct flights often cost more than flying myself, and for flights within the eastern US, layovers can make it much quicker to just hop in the Cardinal. When I brought my plane out here last year it took me 6 hours to get from BTV to DTW in the aluminum tube - with a layover at ORD, and closer to 8 door to door - but less than 4 hours to fly myself back from VLL to MPV.

Probably not much cheaper if you count engine wear and mx, but counting fuel only, flying myself was $150 less.
 
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1st Commercial flight: Age 10
1st GA Flight (also my intro flight): Age 28
 
My first commercial flight was age 3 (rather, it was a military transport going to the South Pacific.) It was the second event I can still remember. The first were the trolley cars in San Francisco.
 
My first flight was in a Cherokee 140 in 1968, my father was in the left seat and his instructor in the right. It was about a year later when I had my first airliner ride, in a Delta DC-8. Back then, air travel was still pretty expensive and I think I flew airline round trips in my first 18 years of life.

Edit: I have two daughters, their first airborne experience was in a hang glider. They complained that they had never been on an airliner for a number of years, until they got on one at ages 9 and 11. I told them it was like riding a bus but with nicer seats. A few minutes after takeoff, they pulled out books and iPads, and for all the interest they had, could very well have been on a bus.
 
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1st GA flight - 1961 (when I was 9). A friend of my dad's gave a ride in his C-172 (or was it a C-170? I can't remember).

1st commercial ride - 1969. And it took Northwest another 30 years to finally get me somewhere on time. The largest unscheduled airline in the world.
 
I had my PPL, instrument and multi 4 years before I ever got on a commercial flight.
My first commercial flight was to San Antonio, Texas for Basic Training.
 
I was 11 months old when I took my first commercial airplane ride. Apologies to anyone that had to sit near me!
 
First flight was when I was 6 in a C-172 for $20. I think the first airline flight was when I was maybe 12-13. Don't really remember the first airline flight. Wasn't as fun as the small stuff.
 
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