Renting while out of state

[jcepiano]

I'm heading to Florida for a couple of weeks in January for work and want to do some flying around. I just got my PPL-ASEL in November and haven't rented outside of my flight school. Can anyone here offer some tips when going to a new FBO to rent? Also information about what to expect on a checkout would be helpful. I usually fly a Cessna 172/R or S. This would be specifically for the Miami area.

 

[mjburian]

Have you looked into https://www.openairplane.com?

 

[poadeleted20]

I'm heading to Florida for a couple of weeks in January for work and want to do some flying around. I just got my PPL-ASEL in November and haven't rented outside of my flight school. Can anyone here offer some tips when going to a new FBO to rent?

First and foremost, bring your logbook.

Also information about what to expect on a checkout would be helpful.

That depends a lot on your own experience and qualifications as well as the flight school's policies. It may also depend on the specific aircraft you're renting, e.g., if it's a retractable, their insurance may require some minimum number of hours of training with that school before you take it out without a school instructor. That said, when Fran and I were honeymooning on the opposite coast and wanted to rent a plane for sightseeing, once they verified that I was a current working CFI at a flight school at home, the school where we rented the plane was happy to let me have a Cessna 150 with about a 30 minute flight including a couple of stalls, a steep turn, and one precision short-field landing, but mostly just familiarization with local procedures.

I usually fly a Cessna 172/R or S. This would be specifically for the Miami area.

I'd suggest contacting potential aircraft providers before you leave on the trip so you know in advance what to expect and what to take with you.

 

[MAKG1]

Renting a 172 shouldn't be difficult. It varies, but somewhat under an hour checkout should be expected for a type you're well qualified in. Maybe a little more for a carb'ed 172 given your experience. You'll have to learn how to prime (easy), and remember to use the carb heat. Maybe a new flap switch or 40 deg flaps (also easy).

Show up with a current local sectional. You're trying to convince someone to trust you with their aircraft.

 

[John221us]

I rent a lot when I am traveling, but I normally don't bother getting a checkout. I usually just go up with a CFI in the right seat and get some stick time and check out the sights. It might be worth a checkout if you are going to be there for a while and fly more than once. The only logbook I carry is my electronic one on my iPad. If I know I am going to fly, I'll bring along my headset, otherwise those are easy to borrow, too.

 

[jcepiano]

I rent a lot when I am traveling, but I normally don't bother getting a checkout. I usually just go up with a CFI in the right seat and get some stick time and check out the sights. It might be worth a checkout if you are going to be there for a while and fly more than once. The only logbook I carry is my electronic one on my iPad. If I know I am going to fly, I'll bring along my headset, otherwise those are easy to borrow, too.

Can one transfer an entire physical logbook onto an electronic version and it would still be accepted by a flight school that isn't familiar with you?

 

[pj500]

You'll be asked to do a checkout. If you just past your check ride, it should be reasonable familiar to you. Figure you'll lose an hour of your time.

If you plan to fly under 5 hours, and don't need the front right seat, it's often cheaper to pay a babysitter to sit there and do nothing than to actually do the checkout process.

FL flight schools are used to out of towners.

 

[John221us]

Can one transfer an entire physical logbook onto an electronic version and it would still be accepted by a flight school that isn't familiar with you?

I don't think I have ever had anyone ask to see it. We usually talk a little first and they get an idea of my experience and what I am looking to do. Then we preflight and go flying. I normally am not looking for any signatures, but if I get one, the CFI will just give something I can stick in my logbook when I get home. The electronic log book is what I use most of the time. The paper logbook is just for signature stuff now days. I transferred all my paper logs to electronic a few years ago, but I only had a little over a hundred hours at the time and it didn't take very long.

 

[MAKG1]

I had to show my logbok twice.

Once, when I said I was headed into the Cascades, they wanted to verify some mountain experience. And one other was iust sufficiently anal that they wanted to see my HP endorsement (it was for a 182) and flight review.

 

[Mike I]

OpenAirplane is the answer for most of these issues. Do a UPC once, rent wherever you want. no further checkouts if in same model plane as your initial checkout. Or, easily add some types to your OA checkout. I added 172 Steam, 172 Glass, and Piper Cherokee to mine, giving me a lot of rental flexibility. No need to show logbooks anywhere once checked out, and makes the process almost as simple as renting a car from Hertz.

 

[John221us]

OpenAirplane is the answer for most of these issues. Do a UPC once, rent wherever you want. no further checkouts if in same model plane as your initial checkout. Or, easily add some types to your OA checkout. I added 172 Steam, 172 Glass, and Piper Cherokee to mine, giving me a lot of rental flexibility. No need to show logbooks anywhere once checked out, and makes the process almost as simple as renting a car from Hertz.

The closest OpenAirplane to me is two hours away. Also, the places I often go are fairly out in the sticks and I haven't seen a lot of support for that yet. Maybe if they get wider adoption, it will be more practical

 

[midlifeflyer]

I've been checked out over the course of more than 20 years in multiple locations in states from Florida to Washington. Here's my experience.

First and foremost, I always get in touch well in advance to find out the FBOs procedures. FBOs are independent businesses and their procedures can be very different. Renting a 172 in one location could mean a simple 45-minute flight with a CFI; in another it could mean a more extensive flight and a knowledge test that takes hours. In areas, like Florida, which do a lot of international student training, you might even be asked to supply proof of citizenship.

I also try to do as much as I can in advance. If the FBO has an extensive application process, I find out if it is downloadable so I can do it by email. If they need some some of documentation I ask how much of it I can supply scanned or in some other electronic format. (I generally prefer FBOs that do business online - that means do business, not just have an email address they never respond to.)

Speaking of electronic formats, I don't particularly like to travel with my paper logbook, so that's another thing I ask. All FBOs will want to verify currency and experience, but they can be different in what they will accept. I've rented from places that insist on my paper log (although it no longer shows my currency except for my flight review) but, more and more I have seen electronic logbooks, backed up by a scan of a current flight review, accepted.

For the checkout itself, again it varies from FBO to FBO. You can expect, at a minimum, to demonstrate a standard subset of Private PTS maneuvers - slow flight, stalls, steep turns, as well as engine out emergency procedures and, of course, takeoffs and landings. FBOs in densely populated areas will also generally engage in an area familiarization - which is something I would never complain about!

BTW, another option: As much as I want to fly around, vacation time tends to be family time and I'm really not going to fly that much. Many times there is simply no flight after the checkout. So, why not skip the checkout and use the CFI as a guide for an area familiarization flight when you fly the airplane and see the sights? Unless I am checking out for the purpose of going somewhere else altogether, that's an option I have chosen regularly.

 

[poadeleted20]

And one other was iust sufficiently anal that they wanted to see my HP endorsement (it was for a 182) and flight review.

I think that "fiscally responsible" would be a more accurate description than "anal" -- their insurance would probably be void if something bad happened and it turned out you didn't have the proper endorsements.

 

[MAKG1]

I think that "fiscally responsible" would be a more accurate description than "anal"

What's the difference?

 

[hook_dupin]

What's the difference?

$1M per person and $40K-$400K depending on the age/condition of the SkyLane

 

[jcepiano]

Strange question - do you usually double check their engine numbers for inspections to be current? I assume most rental businesses keep a simple binder that indicates when the next inspection is due? Or do you assume if it's being rented out all is fine with engine inspections and such.

 

[midlifeflyer]

Strange question - do you usually double check their engine numbers for inspections to be current? I assume most rental businesses keep a simple binder that indicates when the next inspection is due? Or do you assume if it's being rented out all is fine with engine inspections and such.

Not a strange question at all. While I generally don't ask to see the logbooks I do want to see those numbers in writing in a book or dispatch sheet of some type.