Rental plane frustration is when...

flhrci

flhrci

Final Approach
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Jan 26, 2007
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Groveport, OH
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David
You join a club in July, specifically because it has 1 of the only 2 rental 182's in the state and you wait and wait and wait to rent it because it is always gone for days at a time when you do have the money or here when you don't have the money to get you HP endorsement and checkout in it.

Frustration is when that plane you have reserved for tomorrow and has been gone for the last 2 weeks, should be available but the first winter storm of the season has it stuck in Kansas, 4 states away.

Frustration is when you can only fly on the weekends and the plane is gone for 48 hours next Saturday and Sunday. So you see the scuedule is wide open the following weekend, 2 weekends from now and you can't get ahold of the CFI to reschedule because the club does not put the independent CFI's on the scheduler.

My disappointment is huge. I was really looking forward to it.

Thanks for letting me rant.

Please feel free to post other frustrations with rentals.

David
 
flhrci said:
You join a club in July, specifically because it has 1 of the only 2 rental 182's in the state and you wait and wait and wait to rent it because it is always gone for days at a time when you do have the money or here when you don't have the money to get you HP endorsement and checkout in it.

Frustration is when that plane you have reserved for tomorrow and has been gone for the last 2 weeks, should be available but the first winter storm of the season has it stuck in Kansas, 4 states away.

Frustration is when you can only fly on the weekends and the plane is gone for 48 hours next Saturday and Sunday. So you see the scuedule is wide open the following weekend, 2 weekends from now and you can't get ahold of the CFI to reschedule because the club does not put the independent CFI's on the scheduler.

My disappointment is huge. I was really looking forward to it.

Thanks for letting me rant.

Please feel free to post other frustrations with rentals.

David
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Wow, that sucks. Mine are relatively minor - I rent from a flight school/FBO, and it's a pain to get a hold of the "good" planes. Took one of 'em up last weekend and the AI was inop and the DG was precessing like a SOB. Took another up this morning, and I flipped the NAV light switch, saw the ammeter peg negative, switched it back off. Apparently the line guys already knew about it too, but there wasn't a squawk sheet in the plane's paperwork. Oh boy! :hairraise:
 
Where to start?

Known deficiencies that go uncorrected and/or uncommunicated -- had a IFR flight I had to cancel the clearance and depart VFR since Nav 1 (GS/LOC) was inop. Someone turned off the nav radio so it was obvious there was a known issue. Missed some good actual time. Then there was the plane that liked to leak oil, I report the issue, "everything's normal." Finally gets taken down for an overhaul. Because of an oil leak. Radio / PTT switch issues are another frequent one that is often known but uncorrected.

GPS databases not updated. Sure it might cost a few more bucks a month. So just raise the rental rate $1 an hour to cover it?

Scheduling issues, as you say. Fortunately hardly ever an issue with the school I rent from now. Usually can get a plane for the day, even on short notice. With a month's notice, I can easily book a plane for a multi day XC flight. Most places that's not the case though.
 
1. The previous renter takes the keys home with him.

2. (Background: The FBO bills on the first of the month. Bills from the FBO consistently arrive by 1000 on the first of the month. The Garmin database must be updated every 28 days, and the update is available several days prior.) You climb into the plane on the first day of the new database cycle, and its an IMC day, and the DB hasn't been updated.

3. E-mails like this:

"Dear Renters, Students, and CFI's;
Please do not extend flaps on preflight. We continue to burn up flap motors & drain batteries. And please run required lighting only, no nav lights during the day, period. Landing lights in the pattern only, if needed. To stay in business and keep our prices affordable, our unnecessary maintenance costs have to go down. Thank you for your help, and your business.
Happy Flying!"
 
Van Johnston said:
3. E-mails like this:

"Dear Renters, Students, and CFI's;
Please do not extend flaps on preflight. We continue to burn up flap motors & drain batteries. And please run required lighting only, no nav lights during the day, period. Landing lights in the pattern only, if needed. To stay in business and keep our prices affordable, our unnecessary maintenance costs have to go down. Thank you for your help, and your business.
Happy Flying!"
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Wow. That's pretty bad. Sounds like a place I used to rent from...
 
... your prospective passenger, who has been excitedly waiting for his first GA flight, sees the condition of the plane and apologetically declines to climb into it.
 
thanks for the post. Sometimes I wonder if buying my plane was a good idea. Financially, no, but sometimes just knowing it's in my hangar ready to go is worth the cost of admission.
 
You go out and preflight a 172(with nice low wheel pants) and take it around the patch before loading your 11 yr old neice in. Upon starting up and taxiing out the left main blows. Waited around to see disassembly. Found 8 areas worn to plies. Found 3 of 8 worn to inner tube. One of three blew out, luckily while taxiing. Paid for .4 hrs and never rented again. Started building the RV-10 six months later.
 
I was in a pretty good aero club and the aircraft were well maintained. My issue was that when I figured out the weather was good for flying there were 32 others that figured that out as well. the other issue was that one of the older gentlemen had a standing rental for 4 hours every Sunday mid morning. Seems he and his buddyflew under approaches every Sunday. that really made it impossible to go somewhere over the weekend. I approached him about letting me have his Sunday and you would have thought I asked for his first born.
 
No, you want frustration?

The weather is perfect. About 80, inverted, dead calm, at least 30 miles visibilty, no hint of clouds, several aircraft are available, ranging from the 150L to the Dutchess 'cause summer is over, and the wife wants a few things crossed off the honeydo list....
 
a really great rental with top notch equipment usually is fairly high hourly rates but the planes are available. A place with good rates will be 100% booked on perfect weather days but be a little cheaper.

a club is a really good way to save money and know the plane you fly at the same time but if you have 8-5 Monday through Friday times employment and most of the members of the club have the same it is going to require a great deal of patience to be happy.

but if you are unhappy the next step might be to find a low density club or a low density partnership of less than 5 or 6 partners per plane.
 
Wow.

I never realized how well-run my local FBO is with their rental fleet.

Though I own an airplane now, and haven't rented from them for quite a while, I'm going to thank them next time I'm at the airport, as I've never had these frustrations with them.

A couple of the older airplanes could use some freshening of the cosmetics, but thay are always maintained to a very high standard, and it's rare no airplanes are available.
 
Just for the record, the frustrations I listed above have actually only been of late. The FBO/school's actually been really good about keeping rates sane while also being pretty on top of mx.

I guess the main frustration is plane availability, especially now that VanDy keeps stealing my planes! :rofl:
 
jdfrey1 said:
All these reasons why I bought a plane.....
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Until you go to leave somewhere. And the airplane gets dinged in the hangar. Then aileron replacement #1 is junk (warped), replacement #2 was destroyed by UPS, and replacement #3 is stuck in a record breaking blizzard.


On that note, I've been renting for a month beause of this. I cannot wait to get my airplane back. Renting stinks.
 
The only complaint I have about the place where I currently rent from (www.ventura.aero) is the paint scheme on the Warriors.

Could be a bit cheaper of course, but the availability is great, planes are always nice and clean, and they are very flexible with just about everything.
 
The first club I joined had good rates and I liked the CFI. Availability wasn't the problem.

So...

Go out to check out the planes and ALL had medium/severe hail damage due to a storm that passed a few weeks passed. the club owner said they were going to fix the planes with the insurance money. I go back 2 months later to find out they pocketed the money and the planes still look like **** although they are airworthy. About 3/4 of the way through my PPL I talk to one of the DPEs on the field who refuses to take checkrides in all but 1 of the airplanes due to mechanical issues on the others. Issues range from leaking gas tanks, leaking oil from the engine, AI that don't work properly, radios that go on and off etc.

Turns out I got my PPL and never looked back. The club is a mess and the owner doesn't want to spend any money on the planes and the mechanic is a retired guy who shouldn't be fixing planes.
 
MAKG1 said:
No, you want frustration?

The weather is perfect. About 80, inverted, dead calm, at least 30 miles visibilty, no hint of clouds, several aircraft are available, ranging from the 150L to the Dutchess 'cause summer is over, and the wife wants a few things crossed off the honeydo list....
Click to expand...

Same thing happens whether one owns or rents...
 
Van Johnston said:
3. E-mails like this:

"Dear Renters, Students, and CFI's;
Please do not extend flaps on preflight. We continue to burn up flap motors & drain batteries. And please run required lighting only, no nav lights during the day, period. Landing lights in the pattern only, if needed. To stay in business and keep our prices affordable, our unnecessary maintenance costs have to go down. Thank you for your help, and your business.
Happy Flying!"
Click to expand...

Yikes!

We had to give notice to a group of guys who were doing 20-30 minute preflights with ALL the lights on the whole time but to prohibit proper preflight and restrict the PIC from deciding what lights to use?!

And OP, I know a 182Q available for rent at MGY /shameless plug
 
ajyeary said:
Just for the record, the frustrations I listed above have actually only been of late. The FBO/school's actually been really good about keeping rates sane while also being pretty on top of mx.

I guess the main frustration is plane availability, especially now that VanDy keeps stealing my planes! :rofl:
Click to expand...

It's Vandy again, who would have figured that!!!!
 
I've never heard of them before. 5 hours in type checkout for the 182 though? Only have to fly it one time here. Hmmm... Will have to think long and hard about that financial investment as well as the long drive from Columbus.

Thanks for the info!

David


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
 
flhrci said:
I've never heard of them before. 5 hours in type checkout for the 182 though? Only have to fly it one time here. Hmmm... Will have to think long and hard about that financial investment as well as the long drive from Columbus.

Thanks for the info!

David


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
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Blame our insurance company
 
flhrci said:
I keep forgetting the blame is usually on the insurance company.


How much is the rental on that 182 btw? I forgot to ask.

David
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That I don't know, but you can either call Tom at (513) 984-5880 and ask or wait about 5 min while I do it:wink2:
 
Skylane81E said:
That I don't know, but you can either call Tom at (513) 984-5880 and ask or wait about 5 min while I do it:wink2:
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:D

Sounds like you are calling so I shall wait. I figured you were flying it already since you have the knowledge.

David
 
Well, seems that Tom went home already, with the weather no one was coming in

I've flown it, but don't pay regular price
 
Skylane81E said:
Well, seems that Tom went home already, with the weather no one was coming in

I've flown it, but don't pay regular price
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Weather? Sunny here right now. Kinda weird with what is supposed to be coming.

Thanks for trying.

David
 
only had1 problem with a rental at my flight school. i scheduled the plane a week before. the day i get to the airport i tell them i have the plane for 2 hours and they look at me weird. they tell me the plane is in maintenance for its 100 hr. they asked if someone called last night to tell me. i say obviously not. other than that ive had great rentals from the fight school and they have treated me very well
 
Solo helicopter flight departing a class C. Tower calls to say negative transponder. While climbing out, recycle with similar results. (Not an easy task, by the way.) Tower asks intentions., RTB.
After I get back, I find this had been an intermittent issue for a month or more. It was apparently a loose wire that finally broke clean off.
Solo helicopter flight, the first in months, destination is 24 miles away, 10 m into the flight, low voltage light, -5 v discharge, recycle, +5 v, another 15 m light comes back on, repeat. RTB.
After I get back, I find this had been an intermittent issue for a month or more. Alternator replaced and we're much better now.
I have no problem deferring maintenance if you cannot find the problem but it sure would be nice if your would be pilots knew this. The latter could have been a much different outcome.
 
silver-eagle said:
I have no problem deferring maintenance if you cannot find the problem but it sure would be nice if your would be pilots knew this. The latter could have been a much different outcome.
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I agree with you. The FBO I used to rent at until recently did away with squawk sheets for some reason and would not go back to using them. So the 172R I used to fly had all kinds of stupid gripes on it.

For instance, I occasionally fly right seat to maintain some semblance of being a CFI and I found out the hard way that the radios would not transmit voice data from the right seat and I was going to a towered airport. Found this problem out at the towered airport. All they could get was a blank transmission, no voice. Landing light was also out as well as intermittent headset hack connections on the pilot side.

Stupidly easy to let pilots know before they takeoff.

David
 
flhrci said:
You join a club in July, specifically because it has 1 of the only 2 rental 182's in the state and you wait and wait and wait to rent it because it is always gone for days at a time when you do have the money or here when you don't have the money to get you HP endorsement and checkout in it.

Frustration is when that plane you have reserved for tomorrow and has been gone for the last 2 weeks, should be available but the first winter storm of the season has it stuck in Kansas, 4 states away.

Frustration is when you can only fly on the weekends and the plane is gone for 48 hours next Saturday and Sunday. So you see the scuedule is wide open the following weekend, 2 weekends from now and you can't get ahold of the CFI to reschedule because the club does not put the independent CFI's on the scheduler.

My disappointment is huge. I was really looking forward to it.

Thanks for letting me rant.

Please feel free to post other frustrations with rentals.

David
Click to expand...

Was this trend not evident in the scheduling history of the plane when you did your due diligence before joining the club?
 
rsleeds said:
Was this trend not evident in the scheduling history of the plane when you did your due diligence before joining the club?
Click to expand...

Nope, not evident. Had no access to the schedule system, nor did I ask about it. Not blamign any one, just frustrated.

I did not think that the higher end planes would fly as much as they do.

Sure its my fault. Anyways, I got the plane booked again for the 19th with CFI. Hopefully the weather holds out and the 100-hour is good. Can't verify the 100-hour till I can get my hands on the plane some time.

David
 
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