Need to rent a plane in the Bay Area

Henning

Henning

Taxi to Parking
Gone West
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Feb 26, 2005
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iHenning
Hey all,

I need to rent a plane in the Bay Area this weekend, I need it for the weekend. I'm flying in commercial on Wednesday night so I can do whatever required checkout Thursday or Friday. I need to fly my friend and her daughter down to San Diego Sat morning to make funeral arrangements for her mother and say goodbye then will return to the Bay Area on Sunday afternoon. Plane needs to take 3 people/600lbs, if I have to make a fuel stop, so be it.

Can anyone help me out?

Thanks
 
Where exactly in the Bay Area? If you're flying in to Oakland, Bridgeford at Napa County airport (KAPC) would be my recommendation.
 
Sac Arrow said:
Where exactly in the Bay Area? If you're flying in to Oakland, Bridgeford at Napa County airport (KAPC) would be my recommendation.
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Flying into SFO but my friend is picking me up, she lives east bay south of Hayward. Specific airport doesn't really matter, anywhere I can get a plane to use in the area.
 
Henning, Contact Kareem Fahimi over on the Red Board. I think he is Sr. Instructor or Chief Pilot over at California Airways at Hayward Airport. Edit I just checked he is now an owner. They have a huge fleet and prices look reasonable $135 dry for a Beech twin Dutchess 76

http://www.california-airways.com/
 
AdamZ said:
Henning, Contact Kareem Fahimi over on the Red Board. I think he is Sr. Instructor or Chief Pilot over at California Airways at Hayward Airport. Edit I just checked he is now an owner. They have a huge fleet and prices look reasonable $135 dry for a Beech twin Dutchess 76

http://www.california-airways.com/
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Correction: They used to have a large fleet. But they don't have anything other than a handful of 172s and 152s now(and some dual only twin) And most of these are pretty much always booked for p141 students.

I'd go to West Valley Flying Club instead. $$$ but they do have availability and selection.
 
Everskyward said:
If you don't mind going out to Livermore, this place has lots of interesting aircraft. In fact there was a CFI who posted here from time to time not long ago. Seems like he was also a podcaster.

http://www.attitudeaviation.com/ourfleet.html
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I love their list, but I need to haul 3 people with 600lbs in the cabin and I don't see them having anything for that.
 
A 180 hp 172 will give you that load with full fuel and room to spare. Not the fastest plane in the sky, but a good load hauler. Good luck with the search.
 
Ghery said:
A 180 hp 172 will give you that load with full fuel and room to spare. Not the fastest plane in the sky, but a good load hauler. Good luck with the search.
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Which 180 horsepower 172? Surely not the new ones. You must be talking about the old ones there.
 
I must have weird friends, they took commercial flights from the Bay Area to San Diego.
 
EdFred said:
If 4 people are in the plane, rental might be cheaper.
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3 people in the plane and it's a bit cheaper or a bit more depending on the plane, but that isn't the issue. She can't get time off work, so this maximizes her time with her mom since it's the last time she'll see her.
 
Henning said:
3 people in the plane and it's a bit cheaper or a bit more depending on the plane, but that isn't the issue. She can't get time off work, so this maximizes her time with her mom since it's the last time she'll see her.
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Which is reason enough.
 
There used to be all kind of flights going between Northern and Southern California many times a day. Times change.
 
Henning said:
3 people in the plane and it's a bit cheaper or a bit more depending on the plane, but that isn't the issue. She can't get time off work, so this maximizes her time with her mom since it's the last time she'll see her.
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She needs a new job
 
If her employer won't give her time off to go to the funeral of a loved one, there is something seriously wrong.
 
steingar said:
If her employer won't give her time off to go to the funeral of a loved one, there is something seriously wrong.
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It's not the funeral, we have to make the funeral arrangements and this is the last time she'll see her alive. It's also not the employer, it's that she doesn't trust the crew to get it right (and I've met them, she's not incorrect) without her there. She's very conscientious.
 
Check out Nice Air at KRHV http://www.niceairaviation.com/airplane1.html
C172n with Garmin430 $105/hour wet hubbs. no checkout required if you have enough time in the type. No monthly fees. Just come to their office, have paper work done (takes about 30 minutes) and you good to go. They also have very reasonable priced C182 with old avionics $130/hour and Arrow III for $135/hour.
Plan B Squadron 2 at KRHV - a little bit more expensive. They are in the next building from Nice Air. KPAO and KHWD are more expensive. I like California Airways but they have very limited fleet and unlikely you will be able to take one of their planes for weekend.
 
sba55 said:
I'd go to West Valley Flying Club instead. $$$ but they do have availability and selection.
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But you need to be a member to take anything other than an "intro" flight. (Not a traditional intro flight necessarily, I did a 2.8-hour IPC there once, but you do need one of their CFI's on board.)
 
Kareem Fahmi used to be at a place that rented a Mooney, if I recall correctly. I was heading out to San Fran a few years ago and looked into renting one for the week. It was not too unreasonable, but it didn't pan out. Is there any place out that way that still rents nicer aircraft like that?
 
Aztec Driver said:
Kareem Fahmi used to be at a place that rented a Mooney, if I recall correctly. I was heading out to San Fran a few years ago and looked into renting one for the week. It was not too unreasonable, but it didn't pan out. Is there any place out that way that still rents nicer aircraft like that?
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Yes. West Valley Flying Club :)
 
Knowing Henning, he probably grabbed some bird like a HelioCourier pushed off to the edge of the ramp, do a bit of mx, fire her up for the first time in 15 yrs, pronounce her fit to fly. To top it off, the owner would give Henning a gas card to show his gratitude that some id...pilot would want to fly her.
 
steingar said:
Henning doesn't even need a stinking airplane. All he needs is a cape...
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Negative. He doesn't have super powers, just super at having his **** together or of having a super line up of the right people in strategic locations. Besides, capes are dangerous.

I think he could thumb clear round the world hitching rides which just peeps in his network. This is beginning to sound like a Chuck Norris thread.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
But you need to be a member to take anything other than an "intro" flight. (Not a traditional intro flight necessarily, I did a 2.8-hour IPC there once, but you do need one of their CFI's on board.)
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That's where I ended up getting a 172SP... The checkout process was interesting...
 
Henning said:
4 hrs worth of paperwork and 2 hrs in the air and I was charged $70hr instruction fee for all of it. Never had a $700 checkout in a 172 before.
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Sounds like my 172S checkout in New Orleans. It was very frustrating.
 
Sorry to hear your flying skills and aeronautical knowledge have deteriorated to such a sorry state. What areas did you find the most difficult insofar as recurrent training were concerned?

Henning said:
4 hrs worth of paperwork and 2 hrs in the air and I was charged $70hr instruction fee for all of it. Never had a $700 checkout in a 172 before.
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wabower said:
Sorry to hear your flying skills and aeronautical knowledge have deteriorated to such a sorry state. What areas did you find the most difficult insofar as recurrent training were concerned?
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He didn't know what to do with only two levers now that he's used to 6.
 
Henning said:
4 hrs worth of paperwork and 2 hrs in the air and I was charged $70hr instruction fee for all of it. Never had a $700 checkout in a 172 before.
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West Valley does love paperwork! Glad to hear that you were able to get a plane though.
 
Henning said:
4 hrs worth of paperwork and 2 hrs in the air and I was charged $70hr instruction fee for all of it. Never had a $700 checkout in a 172 before.
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I checked out in their Archers/Warriors a few months ago. Yeah, the instruction rates were pretty high, but I thought my CFI was pretty good. I didn't pay for much ground, though.
 
Henning said:
4 hrs worth of paperwork and 2 hrs in the air and I was charged $70hr instruction fee for all of it. Never had a $700 checkout in a 172 before.
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Holy crap.

They definitely like their paperwork... Even for the "intro flight" I had to fill out a bunch, but I did that before the CFI showed up. Good thing, too, because the CFI was Max Trescott (2008? CFI of the year, and the author of the G1000 book) and he charged $90 or $95/hr. With the hourly rates out there and the holy-crap California taxes, my 2.8 hours in the sky cost me just a hair shy of $1,000! Most expensive single-engine flying I've ever done. Just renting the Seneca here (no dual) is even more expensive than that, though. There's a reason I only have about 5 hours in that plane.

So did they make you "join" the club? They told me that if I flew with them again (or wanted to take the planes without a CFI) that I'd have to join, and that's pretty pointless since I live 2000 miles away.
 
I kinda figured the BS of getting "checked out" would run more than a couple coach class tickets.
 
This is an expensive hobby - no getting around it.
 
wabower said:
Sorry to hear your flying skills and aeronautical knowledge have deteriorated to such a sorry state. What areas did you find the most difficult insofar as recurrent training were concerned?
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Club by-laws.
 
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