Getting a PPL in San Antonio: I'm getting more and more frustrated

[softtower]

Hey all,

I am a student pilot, loving this board. As a long time lurker, but - after months of googling for answers to my growing list of questions - this is my first posting, hoping to hear some encouraging bits of info.

Here's my situation: I've been dreaming about being able to fly an airplane all my life. I've started my training to get a PPL about a month ago. After the knowledge test, a bit of flying and ground school (while keeping a day job) I am going to a flying school full time, 8am to 6pm every day, hoping to get my private license in about 5 weeks.

As I've started implementing the plan, I've been looking for solutions to my "next generation" problem, namely: where do I get access to an airplane to fly?

I live in San Antonio. I found exactly two groups that could be remotely called "flying clubs". Both can be best described as "six guys and a single 1972 Cessna". Not to offend them, and this isn't something everybody agrees to, but my belief is to avoid old hardware. I can get into this in depth, but it's not the central point to answering my situation: I do not want to fly that.

As far as I can tell, there are no opportunities to rent planes around here (San Antonio). My flying school uses excellent, brand new C172s but they don't rent them out.

What other options are out there for me?

Here's my mission/personal profile:

I can afford to spend up to $500K on a plane but I'd prefer someone more knowledgeable about maintenance to own it. I'd be happy to pay $20-30k per year to just having access and flying, not having to worry about maintenance or headaches of selling. An engineer in me also believes that the planes are made to fly, not to sit: therefore my own hours won't be enough workload to keep it in good shape, I can see maybe 80 hours a year.

And even if outright ownership is the only way out, I've been told that it takes *forever* to get rid of a plane, so dumping half a million dollars into something completely illiquid does not seem right.

This looks *ideal* to me:
http://www.planesmart.com

But these guys aren't available in San Antonio and their beginner-friendly GA fleet is just Cirrus.

I've been looking at doing a partnership with someone who's sharing my passion for aviation, and while I did find a couple of guys that fit this profile, they looked at me... funny when I started talking about co-owning a plane: it's just like marriage for most, it seems, and you can only do with with someone you know very well. No such luck in my case.

If I don’t resolve this problem I am not sure I want to proceed with the training. The pilot's license will be of no use.

My ideal use case would be to pay a monthly "membership" fee and have access to two types of aircraft:

- Something like C172 to continue my post-training VFR hour building. Slow, safe and new.
- Something like C182 or maybe a Cirrus for instrument training and occasional trips up the coast all the way to DC with one passenger and a bit of baggage.

Anything else I'm overlooking? What are the "hacks" to flying I haven't heard of?

Thanks!

 

[Archammer]

Have you looked at New Braunfels or San Marcos? That will help me narrow my follow up.

 

[murphey]

Hey all,

I am a student pilot, loving this board. As a long time lurker, but - after months of googling for answers to my growing list of questions - this is my first posting, hoping to hear some encouraging bits of info.

Not to offend them, and this isn't something everybody agrees to, but my belief is to avoid old hardware. I can get into this in depth, but it's not the central point to answering my situation: I do not want to fly that.

Not to offend you, but are you sure you're not Hocky in disguise with the comment about old hardware?

I will put my 45 yr old Cherokee up against any current Archer any time, any where.

• I have a higher service ceiling.
• Don't care about air conditioner - useless weight since you can't use it when you really need it.
• Leather seats in the southwest in the summer? Get real.

So I don't have the latest Garmin stack. But for considerably less than the $300-400K for a new Archer (or even one no more than 4 years old) I can install the Garmin stack. Last estimate was about $25K.

The engine is the same. The airframe is the same. ok, 4 in longer for more room in the backseat but that doesn't affect the front seat at all. As for the wing - that was changed back in the 70s with the Warrior.

Let's move onto the C172....11 fuel sumps in the new models? Again, get real. Biggest difference is the IO engine instead of the carburator version. Does that really warrant $300K?

Other than the manufacture date, there's really not much difference between a 70s model and the late 2000's/current models of Pipers and Cessnas at this level.

Even if you move up the the 182-level, still not that much difference thru the years.

Consider the Mooney as a viable category for your wishes.

As for maintaining it, there are companies in many of the major cities that do just this. You pay a monthly fee, they manage all aspects of the airplane for you, may even include hangar, too.

Caveat: if I had $500K to spend on an airplane it wouldn't be a new piper, cessna or even a mooney. I'd buy a late 80s/early 90s mooney and bank the rest of it in high-yield bonds!

 

[warthog1984]

This seems like a duplicate of your other thread, where I posted several new planes for rent in the San Antonio area.

 

[AggieMike88]

agree this looks like a duplicate...

Mari or Spike or Jesse, please merge.