> > And, with aerotows to 3000 ft costing $60, either they're going to make a > killing fleecing unsuspecting overseas pilots or go broke because no-one > wants to spend that much on a launch. > > Oops, spoke too soon ! Sportavia charge $66 for a 3000ft launch in the > high season in their gliders, and $75.90 in private ones. > > Clearly the Australian peso is viewed as mere pocket change by those Euro > carrying visitors who come to Australia to fly ...
Oh the age old debate on not wanting to spend any money, yet living in 5 star luxury. In a pure aviation perspective (as the following comments apply to most things in life), the amount of money you are willing to spend on your hobby is still relatively low. If you dont want to spend money on yor hobby, then take up darts. This was and is still an issue in the maintenance area. There you have a person who should be suitably qualified, risking their own personal well being to sign out your aircraft for around $40 - $45/hr??? Geez, if you take your car to get serviced these days in the city it'll cost you a few hundred $$ for an oil and filter change with a look at the brakes and a kick off the tyres (depending on what you drive of course), and that guy doesn't have to worry about your car falling out of the sky. The only thing he has to worry about is your engine overcooking cause he forgot to put the oil back in. (And he can be protected by a union). Sportavia and Corowa tailor their sites for Europeans, because the rest of the world tends to earn more money and spend more money. They obviously have the clientele to be able to charge those prices, seeing they are in the game to make money out of it. Their capital outlay is quite large and the money needs to be recovered somehow. If you feel there is a need for a budget priced 'fully catered for' aerodrome, then by all means, buy yourself a few PW5's and an Ultralight for towing. I am sure there will be people to fly them, if you make money out of it is unknown. You may even want to keep the prices the same in the high season when everyone is battering you to try and get a tow early, with outside pilots turning up with their aircraft wanting to make use of your facilities. Do you work for your employer for food and accomdation only? (yes, I know there are people that do...I was one of them once), or do you try and squeeze as much money/benefits out of them as possible? How long is the aerotow in Australia going to remain around the $25- $30 mark? Especially considering these economic and worldly times? Lastly, if you cant afford to pay that sort of money, don't go there. (I am quite sure that you won't be). There are alternatives. Chris Kiehn Fibremites P/L This message was sent through MyMail http://www.mymail.com.au -- * You are subscribed to the aus-soaring mailing list. * To Unsubscribe: send email to [EMAIL PROTECTED] * with "unsubscribe aus-soaring" in the body of the message * or with "help" in the body of the message for more information.
