Single vs. Multi as first plane???

[Henning]

You ever try to change an MD's outlook on anything? That's why I suggested making sure he can deal with a long hard road to solo before getting him into a twin for ab initio training.

Of course, it turns out this guy has already soloed in a 152, and the question is whether the first plane he buys (not the first one in which he trains) can be a twin, and the answer is, of course, "yes." But I'd still take him up through a the steps, say, the 152 he's flying to a 172 to a 172RG in rentals and getting his IR before buying a Bonanza or a Baron.

That's why I advocate coming at it from the other side and getting them to full functionality/capability ASAP even if that means extra time flying 2 pilot. For someone who has more money than time, this provides them the greatest value for their aviation $$$.

As for "stepping up", sure, while he's finding a plane to buy keep flying other stuff, but as soon as he has a plane, all time should be in it.

 

[Apache123]

Most of you are answering the wrong question, she asked about buying a first airplane, not learning to fly and get a PPL in a twin. I think the idea of this doctor getting his PPL in a rental, then buying a twin as his first plane makes some sense, depending on the mission. Getting a Baron or 310R and flying 40-50 hours with a CFII to build time towards his IR, would work, he can take his family with him with the CFI in the right seat. I don't think I was near smart enough to do it that way, I had 500 hours and my IR before I got my multi.
The right twin to buy depends on the mission, from a Twinkie to a King Air 200

This is exactly what I did with my Apache. I've had the same instructor from solo in a 172 to now, and it's worked quite well.

So long as you can burn Mr. Benjamin without flinching, and if your significant other is infinitely patient with you for this, it's not too bad. =)

Of course, an Apache is a lot different (*cough*slow*cough*) compared to most of the twins listed in this thread.

 

[DeeG]

20 years ago I would have agreed, primarily based on the way the training was administered and student expectations. Time to solo had become the "big-dick-measuring-stick" for student pilots, and vestiges of this outmoded approach obviously remain in some areas.

Not for the student, but the CFI. It became a contest where I was at, who could solo a student in the least amount of hours? One CFI boasted that he solo'd a student in less than 10 hours. Could the student get around the pattern? yup. Could he get anywhere else if, for whatever reason, the runway was shut down? Nope. They had never been out of the pattern, how the heck could they find another airport? Scary thought.
OTOH, I know a CFI whose students first solo's where almost x/c's. They seldom solo'd with less than 25 hours. But they could navigate their way around SoCal's airspace with confidence. They didn't fumble on the radio, they could read a chart, hold altitude and airspeed to PP standards. By the time they were ready for their checkride, they could do it to comm standards.

 

[wabower]

Hey Wells,

Can I borrow 20K until my brother straightens up?

Your friend,

Wayne

PS: You were right about playing golf in trifocals. It only took two years to get used to them, but I'm finally able to see only one ball.

I don't read "most other people's" posts to be saying that. I am a firm believer in working up in complexity, as well as the huge dollar savings that would be realized by gaining the instrument rating and meaningful hours in a complex single.

I, too, am what some people would assume is a "rich doctor", but I am also very frugal, as are many doctors. Actually, there are very few truly rich doctors--we are basically smucks, pawns in a system in which we have very little control.. but I digress! I got my private in a rented 172, then flew a friend's 182 for a while until I bought a Cardinal RG, in which I got the instrument rating and accumulated about 900 hours (and lots of educational experience) before moving to a 210.

I can tell you that, in those first few years of flying, it was my routine to go fly at least once a week, to build and maintain skill. Now, with the higher fuel burn of the 210 (and the higher gas prices, of course), I cringe at the thought of going to fly "just to lubricate the engine" and to maintain some level of proficiency. I have to make myself go fly once a month for these purposes and to do a VOR check. My wife doesn't even need to remind me that for every hour that I DON'T fly, we can afford to go out to dinner at a nice restaurant.

I vote for a complex single: Cardinal RG or 210 in the Cessna line, Arrow or Saratoga if Piper (and possibly interested in a Seneca), or Bonanza if thinking ultimately about a Baron. I know that he is eager to take the whole family travelling, but I can tell you from experience that that just doesn't happen all that often, and they might not be all that eager to travel with him until he gains some meaningful experience.

Buy something that you can afford to fly a lot.

Wells

 

[W. Stewart]

Hey Wells,

Can I borrow 20K until my brother straightens up?

Your friend,

Wayne

PS: You were right about playing golf in trifocals. It only took two years to get used to them, but I'm finally able to see only one ball.

Your brother may NEVER straighten up, and I never received the 20K that I billed you for the golfing advice, anyway! And furthermore, I don't wear glasses, only see one ball, and STILL can't play golf worth a darn.

Wells