Thoughts on getting a PPL in the SF Bay Area... or not?
Posted by JDfromSpace@reddit | flying | View on Reddit | 17 comments
Getting a PPL in The Bay Area is $$$$$. I'm looking for recommendations on alternative cities in the Western USA my nephew and I could travel to for 3 months to get our PPL over the summer? The goal is to save money while obtaining a PPL from a reputable flight school.
Overview:
- I work 100% remote and travel full time. No apt or house atm. Live out of Airbnbs, although I call San Jose home when I'm not traveling.
- My nephew is in uni, off for the summer, also in SJ.
- We are both committed to getting an PPL in a 3 month window this summer.
The Options:
- Travel home, get an apt, spend Bay Area rates (Cessna 172 standard rates $200+, CFI Rates $90+, and lots of sitting on runways waiting for traffic at busy airports).
- Or, get an Airbnb for 3 months somewhere with better rates? (My nephew would stay with me)
Other Details:
- My nephew and I have already taken ground school online (me: Sporty's; him: Pilot Institute).
- Also, I started flight school back in 2020 but the pandemic hit and my training was interrupted. I had about 14 hours under my belt.
My Questions:
- Does this sound like a feasible plan or am I overthinking this and should just get the PPL back home?
- If it's not crazy... where would you go if you were me? (I was originally thinking Prescott AZ).
Thanks!
makgross@reddit
If you’re still working, 3 months is not realistic. Nights and weekends will take a year with ordinary maintenance, weather, and work emergencies. If you’re constantly traveling like you said you were, it can be a lot more. Your limitation is not busy airports or airspace, but rather the work schedule.
I teach at Reid and ask people to plan a minimum of two flights per week for reasonable progress.
JDfromSpace@reddit (OP)
I'm super lucky, my job is extremely flexible and project based so I get weeks at time where I don't work at all. I should be able to find a few hours for flying everyday throughout the summer.
I was planning on flying 3-4 times a week plus a 1-2 hours per day of study. Do you think that's completely unrealistic?
Longjumping_Panda531@reddit
I did mine in 3.5 months (Sept to Dec in LA) while working full time on site at an aerospace company 50+ hrs a week. It was not hard, and you have even more schedule flexibility than I did. This plan is doable if you take it seriously and actually put in the time you describe. Disagree with the guy telling you otherwise.
makgross@reddit
Maybe, but everything has to go perfectly. Which isn’t likely.
Weather and maintenance don’t make schedule on demand, and most people find flying to be more difficult than they expect. More importantly, the external pressure of a fixed deadline is counterproductive and can generate unsafe decisions.
You also have the ground/flight ratio a bit light. There is quite a lot to learn.
hutthuttindabutt@reddit
AI slop.
isflyingapersonality@reddit
It’s been said repeatedly: if you’re working, 3 months is too ambitious with a hard deadline.
It takes ~50 actual flown non-cancelled lessons to get a PPL.
That’s over four months if you do 3 lessons per week. You might save some time by scheduling 4 - but will also lose time when planes go down for maintenance and schedules don’t line up. Don’t forget that a 2 hour lesson slot takes ~3-4 hours of clock time by the time you commute, preflight, and debrief.
I did mine during a very flexible remote job where I could take off at 2-3pm multiple times per week and it took me just under 6 months.
Most people that accomplish a PPL in 3 months are doing it at a school that specifically offers accelerated programs where their CFI has fewer students, you’re flying two lessons per day, and planes are scheduled for maintenance around the students graduating. At my normal part 61 school, planes went down basically randomly and if the plane you booked goes in for 100hr, you can lose a week of flying.
If you really want to push a fast PPL on a fixed schedule, you generally have to commit to it full-time. Otherwise your best option is to fly as much as you can but work it into your actual every day life - don’t put yourself into an indefinitely long temporary position while you’re working on a PPL that will inevitably get drawn out.
weaselkeeper@reddit
Where do you live ? I’m at the Livermore Airport LVK, there are a few flight schools/flying clubs and I don’t think their rates are that high.
Check out
Bay Area Flying Club. They have decent 172’s and in house CFI’s
Flying Particles. They have two rental rates, the cheaper rate comes from you leaving a $3000 deposit that is refunded when you resign, they were founded by employees at the Lawrence Livermore Lab.
Red Sky. The owner is a retired United A&P, the planes aren’t the prettiest but are in decent shape
STAY AWAY FROM Excel (X-Hell) a drunk owner/operator and an extreme lack of maintenance.
Anonymous5791@reddit
Do you plan on flying in the Bay after you get your certificate? If so, train in the Bay.
If you end up in the boondocks of somewhere in flyover country to save a few bucks, coming home to crowded airspace and terrain is going to feel overwhelming for you and you’ll spend quite a bit of time and money post-private coming up to speed on how to deal with a place that has real traffic, real airspace constraints, and all the quirks of tucking VFR spam cans in with a bunch of busy commercial airports surrounded by terrain.
You -can- get a PPL in less than a month in a place with good weather, no traffic, and flat lands. And it is totally legal; mine, some years back, took me just over three weeks…but doing it was a full time job, every single day, seven days a week all day long. I was perfectly qualified to fly a plane at the end of it, but a long way from dealing with complex airspace and crowded airports though.
JDfromSpace@reddit (OP)
This. I think you've convinced me to train from home. Plus I've been thinking this past hour, I'm going to want to develop some kind of relationship with the local pilot community, which I would completely miss out on studying elsewhere.
AlbiMappaMundi@reddit
Just be realistic, that irrespective of location, getting your PPL in a firm 3 month window could be a stretch. Not necessarily because of where you are training, or your effort, but factors like examiner availability and lead-time are significant.
JDfromSpace@reddit (OP)
Solid point. I could always extend my stay but my nephew would need to return for uni.
AlbiMappaMundi@reddit
When I started my own Private Pilot training, I did a two week intensive program, billed as allowing you to finish everything that quickly, with checkride on the final day. Well, the final night, the examiner called to say he was sick. And I had to go back home, leaving it uncompleted. There's something to be said for being in your home base, given all of the unpredicability and uncertainty and variables you face with flight training.
saml01@reddit
Rent an RV and park it at the airport with your nephew, live and train right there.
JDfromSpace@reddit (OP)
I like it. And, I'd fit in with all the other RVs already on the street.
humboldtreign@reddit
Have you considered driving to nearby Bay Area airports that are less expensive? If you’re looking at PAO or similar, sure, prices are steep, but a 60-90 min drive would solve that. Lots of options with Class D airspace or less.
JDfromSpace@reddit (OP)
Good call. Admittedly, much of my info about the bay area prices are from what pilot friends have told me. I'm going to call the regional flight schools tomorrow to get some actual details.
rFlyingTower@reddit
This is a copy of the original post body for posterity:
Getting a PPL in The Bay Area is $$$$$. I'm looking for recommendations on alternative cities in the Western USA my nephew and I could travel to for 3 months to get our PPL over the summer? The goal is to save money while obtaining a PPL from a reputable flight school.
Overview:
The Options:
Other Details:
My Questions:
Thanks!
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