What's the cheapest airplane you ever rented?

BiffJ said:
Frank

Gwen-are you still in Rio Rancho??? I used to live in North hills. I chased a lot of coyotes in the taylorcraft out there. Nice place to fly. To bad 7 Bar and Coronado are gone.
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Hi Frank, Yes, I'm still 7 miles on the extended centerline of Double Eagle's RWY 4 (04). And we have plenty of coyotes that love lounging in my back yard, munching on local bunnies, quail, and kitty cats. 7 Bar is now American Home Furniture, astride Bed Bath and Beyond and Lowes (formerly Home Depot, who is now across the street by Cibola High). I forgot all about Coronado, but you're right! Now the area is merely a Tuff Shed distributor.
My daughter used to live in North Hills, but is now in Cabezon south of Southern, east of Unser. City Hall has moved beyond North Hills to Northern Meadows and the Chevron station at 528 & Southern is now a CVS. You are missing this year's fire season -- MAJOR fires from the Springerville/Show Low section of Arizona that has been choking us, and another in the Jemez that (like Cerro Grande) threatened LANL -- and is still only 50% contained. Lovely weather. Nick did good to relocate as well.
 
Hmmm.

Going back to my training (2003), I was renting an old 1979 172 for $69/hr wet.

Recently, the cheapest was the Citabria at Green Castle for $70/hr wet (last flew it in November at the Pumpkin Splat).

First time I flew in one of the club Archers (with someone else, before I joined the club) it was $62/tach hr wet (late 2003). Same plane today is $119/tach hr.

When I joined the club in 2005 and got checked out in 71G, it was $83/tach hour wet. Now, $143.

We found some old club records showing a Champ for $7/hr. Sigh. :frown2:

The difference just between 2003 and now is huge - But then, avgas was 60-65% less then than it is now. Other fuels were much cheaper too, and yes that affects everything. The parts your FBO uses have to get there from the manufacturer, the manufacturer has to get the raw materials, etc. etc. I once figured out that something as simple as a bottle of beer has ridden on at least seven trucks by the time you buy it in the store... So, diesel and Jet-A prices factor into the cost of flying and everything else to a significant extent as well.
 
MSPAviator said:
Ok, this one should be good for the old timers around here.

What's the cheapest price you have ever paid, wet, for airplane rental?

What kind of plane was it, and how long ago?
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$14.00 per hour, Cessna 150, 1975.
 
Tom-D said:
in 1953 My Dad bought a J-3, for $485.00, new in the crate. he taught my to fly it, on $.08Cent per gallon farm gas.
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New in the crate? I believe production of the J-3 ended in 1947.
 
Seeing all of these numbers makes me thankful for the cheap rentals I had when I was a renter.
 
In 1972 the Georgia Tech Flying Club was renting a Cessna 150 for $7/hr. I think the Cessna 170 was $12 but I am not sure. I couldn't afford it back then.
 
1993-1994, a 1969 C-150 in pretty cherry condition, including a nice loran, $39/hr wet.

Jeff
 
Since there was no mention of how far back we could go.... I used to work a week, after school, pumping gas, to earn $15. My dad gave me $2 to add to that ($17) for a wet C-150 with instructor for an hour... circa 1972.
 
1980 ..... N5416M = 152.... 23 an hour wet.

Instructor was 11 an hour.

172 was 26 an hour.

100LL gas was .94 a gal

ben.
 
Rotor&Wing said:
Navy Flying Club Atsugi, in 1978 a C150 was $12/hour, a C172 was $15 and the Beech T34B was $20.00
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About ditto for the Flying Activity at Aberdeen Proving Ground, 1979, except they had a Beech V-tail for the twenty bones. A Capt. next door took his sons and I flying there but the Beech was off limits. It was too expensive. :D
 
Evergreen Flying Service..........Wally Olson.

Champ.....Taylorcraft 65 or 85 if you're feeling brave. All were $7/hr wet. Instructor was $3/hr.

Gas was $0.30, and a hangar was $17/mo.

Year...1965.

HERE:
 
2004 - Cessna 150 $55/hr @ KRST
 
My clubs 152's are $70 wet. All are in decent shape, none have GPS.

Only 2 of them have a DG that is worth using however.

I got checked out in our 161 warriors that are $105 / hr but I find myself flying the 152's most of the time even for cross country. I weigh 135lbs and my girlfriend is only 100 lbs so the 152 can carry us just fine.
 
The cheapest was an Aeronca 7AC at the Sacrament City College flying club in 1974 @ $5.00 wet (tach time). The next cheapest was in the same place and time . . . a Cessna 150 @ $6.00 wet. The instructor was $5.00 per hour.

My flight instructor was into sailplanes, and he taught me how to use the thermals around Sacramento to gain altitude in the Champ with the engine at idle (less tach time)!

I finished getting my private pilot's license in Marquette Michigan in a Piper Cherokee @ $25.00 per hour wet.
 
1b9 a c152 cost me $55 an hour in 1993. The instructor was $15 and lived up stairs of the FBO. They don't even have a C152 online anymore. Just C172s and PA28s. In '94, the PA28 Warrior II cost me $75 at 3b9 (now GHG). That same costs $120 today.
 
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Champ19E said:
The cheapest was an Aeronca 7AC at the Sacrament City College flying club in 1974 @ $5.00 wet (tach time). The next cheapest was in the same place and time . . . a Cessna 150 @ $6.00 wet. The instructor was $5.00 per hour.

My flight instructor was into sailplanes, and he taught me how to use the thermals around Sacramento to gain altitude in the Champ with the engine at idle (less tach time)!

I finished getting my private pilot's license in Marquette Michigan in a Piper Cherokee @ $25.00 per hour wet.
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Hi Champ, Did you do the engine out practice over the rice fields? Set up to land on the dikes? Fly out to Franklin next to the prison? Was John P. still instructing? Howard
 
I was curious how some of these prices related to today's dollars, so I used an inflation calculator to convert the numbers.

1971, Hanover Airport here in Jersey, Cessna 150 was $10 wet.
That would cost about $55 today.
[SIZE=+1]
[/SIZE]In 1959 the hourly cost for a rental airplane was equivalent to a day's wages working in a mens's store in a small town in Oklahoma. About $6.
That would be about $46 today.

$18/hr wet, brand new 1974 C-152 Commuter II, in 1974
That would be about $82 today.

1996 - KLNK (Lincoln, NE) - Cessna 152 for $35/hr wet
That would be about $50 today.
 
Back when I was in the Aberdeen Proving Ground flying club, I think the 150s went for about $17 and the 172 for $22. I should have flown more, but operations at Phillips could be a real pain in the ass at times.
 
I actually found one of my first receipts for pilot training. In 1970 the rental for a nearly new Cherokee was $7 for the airplane (wet) and $2 for the instructor. This was at an Army post.
 
Challenged said:
I was curious how some of these prices related to today's dollars, so I used an inflation calculator to convert the numbers.

1971, Hanover Airport here in Jersey, Cessna 150 was $10 wet.
That would cost about $55 today.
[SIZE=+1]
[/SIZE]In 1959 the hourly cost for a rental airplane was equivalent to a day's wages working in a mens's store in a small town in Oklahoma. About $6.
That would be about $46 today.

$18/hr wet, brand new 1974 C-152 Commuter II, in 1974
That would be about $82 today.

1996 - KLNK (Lincoln, NE) - Cessna 152 for $35/hr wet
That would be about $50 today.
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One thing about using inflation calculators is you have to check the notes for what's excluded. Most inflation calculators exclude fuel. The rate of inflation on fuel and energy has out stripped most other sectors; since fuel makes for a large portion of the wet rental price of aircraft, the inflation rate of aircraft rental with naturally be higher than other issues.
 
Leave it up to the Fed to exclude Fuel and Food from inflation
 
Yeah, what would happen if the U6 unemployment number was the one the press used? Oh....nevermind, it wouldn't fit their narative
 
The cheapest airplane I've ever flown is my 1940 Chief. Of course I bought it, but diving the purchase price by 300 hours = $40/ hour acquisition cost.

Add in maintenance (mostly improvements and overhauls), insurance, and hangar to date brings it to $55/ hour over 300 hours.

3.6 GPH of 50:50 100LL:pure MOGAS at $3.75/g = $13.50

$58.50/ hour wet. Not bad. Plus it takes so long to get anywhere I build time.

:wink2:
 
Do gliders count? Cheapest I've done was $128/hr in 2009 for a 172M
 
denverpilot said:
Those "fuel surcharges" are stupid. Gas ain't comin' down. The price is what it is... just put it on the bulletin board, and be done with it. :(
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I agree in practice, but around here, fuel fluctutates enough that the input component can change by $4/hr in a week.

The choices are:

1. Print a price board every week, complete with packages, brochures, banners, and anything else with a price on it

2. Charge a usurious rate that allows the house to absorb this sort of fluctutation.

3. Charge a basic rate with fuel at some floor value, and create a sliding scale to account for fuel's rate "this week"

4. Charge dry rates.


We do #3, and have tried #4 -- we were accused of setting "fake" low prices, and nobody seems to like being charged a different hourly rate for each flight.

That said, though, I think #4 is the longterm solution and correct approach for schools. It's the "most honest" and doesn't require odd explanations like #3 does.



...Back to who paid Orville sixpence per hogshead to rent the wright flyer. ;)
 
$55/hr for a cessna 150 wet, due to fuel going up nearly 2 bucks a gallon since then, it's now $60/hour wet.
 
bigblockz8 said:
Do gliders count? Cheapest I've done was $128/hr in 2009 for a 172M
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When I was active in a soaring club the glider rental was something like 10 cents per minute. IIRC when I started taking lessons in a 152 the wet rate was a little more than $18-20/hr plus instructor (another $7-8). Seemed like a lot at the time. But the real steal I missed out on was the "learn to fly" deal offered by a newly formed flying club at the University of Michigan where you could get a PPL for $300 and you even got college credit for it. Unfortunately I didn't have $300 at the time which was about one full semester's tuition. Coincidentally Ron Levy was a "founding member" of that club but I didn't cross paths with him until years later.
 
wabower said:
In 1959 the hourly cost for a rental airplane was equivalent to a day's wages working in a mens's store in a small town in Oklahoma. About $6.
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So really, that hasn't changed all that much. It might be a little more now but I imagine a job like that is about $80-120 a day.
 
1965, Taylorcraft BC-12D $7.00/hr wet. Instructor $3.00

Wally Olson, Evergreen Airport, Vancouver Washington
Evergreen_WA_90s_Olsen.jpg
 
$0.00 per hour. My fathers airplanes, and my choice of which one to use. The silver spoon was good to me when I was young. Now my kids come home and fly the 172, guess who pays.
 
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