Much as I moan myself about the cost of flying here in the UK it isn¹t quite that bad for a simple Ercoupe owner...
* Tuition at my airfield is $195 an hour, you only pay top rate around London. * Few bother with an IR as most flying is for leisure, not for business, so you only fly on nice days. * You can fly single engine GA types on a National PPL for UK and VFR only on a medical form your physician signs. * Cost of the Ercoupe doesn¹t matter as depreciation is minimal. * My insurance is $1,200 per year. * The annual cost is right, and labour costs. * I pay $2,500 a year hangarage but that¹s a bargain. * I have a free weather service no need to pay for 24 hour forecasts. * I avoid larger commercial airports anyway, so no handling charges. GA-friendly fields are $15-20. I¹ve only been flying 5 years so I don¹t know what it was like back in the past. What I do see as ironic though is that in socialist¹ Europe most aviation services are privatised so GA users are charged for services, where as in the land of the free¹ Joe Public pays for a few to enjoy their hobby! Best regards, Mike ________________ Alon A2 A-188 G-HARY www.ercoupe.co.uk On 21/5/09 05:58, "ronblackink" <[email protected]> wrote: > > Just got this report from a friend here in the Wichita area. He is in contact > with one of his buddies in England, and he describes what sport flying is all > about over there. Please note the costs associated with flying (User Fees) > anywhere he goes. Tain't Pretty! > -Ron > > Subject: Flying in Europe > > The future of Aviation in the USA? Please read and forward. I have been in > contact with this man. We have it gooddddddddddddddd! 4bh > Subject: Flying in Europe > > Hello Bill, > > Really good to hear from you and glad you liked the article. I would be happy > to share my experiences with you of flying over here. I have made this into > quite a lengthy narative since, if you think it appropriate, I may send it to > ABS as others may be interested. See what you think > > The UK General Aviation scene had changed massively in the 40 years I have > been flying and sadly the change is for the worse. Without being unduly > pessimistic, I would say that in my lifetime (I'm 60 this year), I have had > the best of it and the regulatory authorities are doing their level best to > make life increasingly difficult and expensive for the GA pilot. I'll give you > some examples. > > First, let me explain what it takes to get me and my Bonanza in the air. All > the values shown below are in $US at today's exchange rate of £1 = $1.50 > > The pilot > > 1. I need to learn to fly. Most clubs charge $250 per hour training rate and > because of our weather, I am lucky to complete the 45 hour course without > needing some extra time. However, lets say I stick at it and pass my tests > first time. Thats $11,250. I send my licence to the Civil Aviation Authority > with the application fee, $300, and my licence is in the post, typically 6 > weeks later. > > 2. I may be able to fly but I also need to talk on the radio. That needs a > separate test $110 and an extra $70 fee for the issue of a radio licence. > > 3. The weather here is very unpredictable so, having accumulated 200 hours in > a C172 or PA28 at typical 'wet' rates of $170 per hour, (that's $34,000) I > need my instrument rating. Now, please appreciate that the skies over here are > so very busy that the last thing our authorities need is a bunch of GA pilots > sharing their valuable airspace with the commercial boys. So, how do they deal > with that? Well, they make it really, really difficult to pass an IR for the > private pilot. (Out of 40,000 private pilots in the UK, only 200 have UK > instrument ratings). They make you do pretty much all the theoretical subjects > for the ATPL exam and insist you attend a residential course before taking the > exams. You need to go to CAA Headquarters at London Gatwick airport for the > tests. It takes me 2 years by correspondance course ($1000) plus a week off > work for the course plus 4 days for the exams. Cost of tests to CAA, $75 per > subject. There are 9 subjects. OK, so I've passed my written exams and need to > do the flying. Best to get a multi engine rating. If I only get a single IR, > I'd need to take the flying tests again all over in a twin. > > For the IR training, it is 55 hours (30 hours sim, 25 hours flying) PA34 at a > package rate of $20,000 (yep, thats right, twenty thousand dollars! - See > Bristol Flying Centre as an example). The IR test takes 2 hours and has to be > with a CAA examiner. The test fee is $600 plus the hire rate of the aircraft > $1000 so you had better pass first time! > > 4. Of couse I need a medical and because I'm over 50, that's every year with > an ECG. Plus, I need an audiogram because I've now got an instrument rating. > Total is $300 per year > > Well, thats got me good to go with all the licences I need and $70,000 lighter > in the pocket. What I need now is an airplane! > > The Airplane > > 1. I choose a Bonanza because it is the best GA single in the world. It is > also very rare here in the UK - there are only 11 V tail Bonanza's. Typical > cost to buy a UK registered Bonanza in good condition with a mid-time engine > $150,000. > > 2. I need to register it in my name. Ok, that will be $60 and a form sent off > to the CAA. Now its mine. If its through its annual then we can go flying but > if not - > > 3. An annual typically costs $2,750 provided there are no squarks. Most shops > charge $55 per hour labour rate. That's just for the airplane. Each year, I > need a radio annual as well. If all the gadgets and gismo's work OK, this > should be $200 for the sign off. Oh, and I almost forgot! We need a licence > from the Radio Telecommunications Agency to use our radio's. Thats another $40 > per year. > > 4. Wait, I need to arrange hangarage and insurance first. Hangarage at my home > base costs $4,500 per year. Remember, we have 15% value added tax on > everything. Insurance for average utilisation of 120 hours per year with > coverage throughout Europe costs $3250 per year. Can we go flying yet? Not > quite, we need- > > 5. Avgas. At my home base EGNE, I am paying $1.95 per LITER. There are 3.8 > Liters to the US Gallon so that is $7.40 per gallon.So, I am going flying in > the UK and fill my Bonanza to the brim, tip tanks and all - thats $790. Phew. > > So, my FBO have pulled the airplane out of the hangar (thats included in the > $4,500 per year). They have filled the tanks and I've checked it out. We > really are good to go - well, almost! > > The Flight > > 1. First off, we are going flying to a typical GA airport 120 miles in the > South of England. (We'll go overseas in a while). Better get the weather. > > 2. For TAF's, METARS and weather information, you do it yourself. That means > subscribing to an aviation web based weather and briefing facility like > AVBRIEF. $75 per year. Ok, so the weather looks marginal even for our planned > IFR route. Better phone our Met Office. They have a special briefing unit > where you can talk to a real, live met officer - at $30 per call but better be > quick, they only allow you 4 minutes and you better have read your TAF's and > METARS first! The weather looks OK but, having used AVBRIEF for the NOTAMS, I > am still not quite there. First, I need to check the Red Arrows RAF aerobatic > team. Where the heck are they today. Not quite so critical since we are IFR > but better check anyway. Oh, and the same goes for the Battle of Britain > Memorial Flight. Go anywhere close to these guys and you can say cheerio to > your licence. > > 3. Nearly there. I need to file a flight plan because we are IFR. I now (since > March 2009) have to use a computer based filing system. It is frought with > difficulty and complexity. First, I need to check out that my route will work > within the system (remember how busy our airspace is). Then I file the flight > plan on line and, if we are lucky and I have done my homework, I get an > Acknowledgement. We had better be going. If I am delayed more than 30 minutes > off blocks, I have to file a Delay. > > 4. The flight turns out really nice. This is what all the effort and hard work > is about. We go nowhere near out filed routing as London Control has us > vectored all around to avoid commercial traffic but, with all that fuel, we > don't really mind. We are given radar vectors to the ILS and we land and taxi > in. There is a ground handling van to meet us. Oh, that's bad news. Ground > handling looks to be compulsory here (should have checked that) so we accept > gracefully and are taken to the Tower to pay our dues. Well, here goes. It is > $45 landing fee, $20 Navigational charges (that's because we used the ILS) and > whilst parking is free for the first 3 hours, it is $5 per hour thereafter. > The handling agent also wants $20 for the ride in the van. > > 5. Route charges. Now, they are something else again. If your airplane is over > 2 Metric Tonnes, you pay Eurocontrol charges for any flight in the IFR system > throughout Europe (which would include the flight we have just made - think > another $50 for that.) They bill you direct through the mail. Fortunately, > with my Bonanza, we don't pay route charges - yet! > > 6. Later this afternoon, we fly over to the Channel Islands. We go VFR because > the weather is nice now but we still need to file a VFR flight plan as we are > crossing water. We enjoy views of the French Coast as we are positioned in > traffic for landing. Mind you, it is a good job that I remembered to to send a > General Declaration form to Special Branch of our local police not less than > 12 hours earlier as the Channel Islands are classed along with Northern > Ireland as governed by the Prevention of Terrorism Act. We also need to tell > them when we are returning as they have the right to meet us at the airport to > check our details, departure point and time of arrival. The good news is that > AVGAS here is cheap, only $5 per US gallon and landing fees only $15. > > 7. Well, there is good time to slip over to Cherbourg on the North French > coast before our return flight back to our home base in the UK. First, > however, we need to spend time doing a little homework. I file a VFR flight > plan to Cherbourg and then an IFR plan from Cherbourg back to base, leaving > time in Cherbourg for some excellent seafood! Then, I fax a General Customs > Declaration, one copy to my home airfield, one to Her Majesty's Revenue and > Customs (we are effectively re-importing the airplane so have to make a > customs declaration that all taxes are paid) and one to Immigration at an > airport near my homebase where immigration officers are stationed - remember, > they can check on us on our return. > > 8. The flight to Cherbourg is wonderful at low level. It has to be as we are > VFR and have to remain not above 1500ft. We remember to avoid the nuclear > power installation to the west of Cherbourg town. Infringe that and the French > will fine us and probably confiscate our airplane. On arrival in Cherbourg, we > pay a modest $10 landing fee - no other charges and this is typical in France > - and, after an enjoyable supper, make our way home. That means lots more > radar vectors through the Western sector of London Heathrow traffic until we > are clear to the North. > > So, there you have it. I would urge you to enjoy the flying you have, the > freedom it brings and the comradeship you share with your fellow pilots. We do > just the same over here but, as you will appreciate, it costs us dear. > > Kind regards > > Adrian Daley > > > > >
