If I pass my PPL (Private Pilots License) and I don't have enough for a plane, how can I get one?

Question

If I pass my PPL (Private Pilots License) what way can I get a plane if I don't have enough money?

I'm from the UK and wanted to know.

Are there any websites where I can pay off a bit each month, eventually paying it all off and own the plane?

Or are there any shops doing the same. Thanks.

Answer 1

My dad just started making good friends at our county airport and found a rich guy who has several airplanes. He let my dad take him up to prove his worthiness as a pilot and he then agreed to add my dad to the insurance on the plane. Basically my dad is able to fly the plane whenever he wants and all he has to do is pay for gas.

Answer 2

Aren't you precious.

Yes, these places are called "BANKS" and they make "LOANS" where they give you money to buy stuff (like a car, house or even an airplane) and then you pay them back each month.

If you do not pay them, they take your car, house or even your airplane.

Answer 3

keep watching the trade papers for an aircraft you can pilot contact the person and you never know,also try saving your money

Answer 4

If you can pay for it at a bit,  put it into a savings and then buy it outright or get a loan, I'm sure you can finance it.  Its not everyday people buy planes.

Answer 5

rent one when u want to fly...geeeze...duh

Answer 6

You can get an aircraft mortgage, which is quite common for pilots wanting to own outright.  These mortgages aren't bad (relatively I mean) but you need to choose your aircraft carefully.  Many aircraft depreciate tremendously, but some are still appreciating.  

Try to choose an appreciating aircraft, or one that is not visibly depreciating heavily and then you have a few options open to you.  The others are right about the costs, but I would say they are not hidden, you just need to do your research up front.  If you are not going to fly more than 50hrs a year, you might as well just rent, because pay back & risk is poor.  

You could also buy a group share of a far better aircraft for the same price, but you definitely need some cash at bank for rainy days if you follow.  

The other option is to buy one at full price yourself and then sell 3, 4 or 5 (or more) shares in it and slightly above what you paid overall.  Then, if you think about it, you can have others help pay off the loan.  Many groups work really well like that and you can run it as a business and as long as it doesn't make a profit overall, the aircraft ownership thing is a fun and rewarding thing to do.  

Get it wrong though, and you're in for an expensive ride that won't be all that rewarding even when you are flying.  Ask around, pilots are usually very helpful especially those in the smaller clubs.

Answer 7

You buy a plane just like you buy a car only you go to a airplane dealer at an airport.

Answer 8

You really don't want to own a plane.  Besides having to make payments,  don't forget you have to pay for a place to store it, maintenance, and much less fuel.  Renting is the way to go.  

If you are h**l bent on getting a plane,  find a partner to go in with you.

Answer 9

you can get anything on payments as long as you have credit.  You may also want to look into for sale by owner advertisements....where they do "owner financing" also remember you need to pay storage fees for that plane!

Answer 10

It would probably be cheaper to rent, but if you did want to buy one, you'd be able to take out a loan. One note for you, I read that if you fly over 100hrs a year, than it would be more cost-efficient to buy an airplane, rather than rent one.

Answer 11

Alot are recommending that renting is the "best" way to go. I strongly disagree.

Buying vs renting would make me ask myself, what is my mission,? Do I fly with family /friends often to need more seats or will I fly mostly by my self or with  just one passenger, If it is the latter You can buy a 2-seater (cessna 152 for example relatively cheap (<$20k)

and rent a four/six  seater for the rare times you would take more than one passenger. How many hours a year can you realistically anticipate flying. If you are expecting less than abut 50  hrs...RENT, it is more cost effective. If you are flying more, consider buying. It will actually can be cheaper per hour flown.A couple of things  to consider are fees to park it, be it a hangar or tie-down. (depending on location, can costly) I have our plane in a hangar that cost $125 mo vs $30/mo for a tie down..

Insurance for a low time pilot is going to cost more than for an experienced pilot,

Maintenance, etc.

I "charge" myself $25/hr to put away for maintenance, 100 hour/ annual inspections, new engine fund,  etc so when I have to pay for this, I have the funds available.

If the $ make sense,  owning has its perks, you dont have to schedule the plane, it is ALWAYS available, you can take it for multiple days away from home base with out "paying" for it to sit at your destination. (IF you rent , most will charge a minimum amount of hours a day if you fly them or not.)it is not being "beat up' by numerous students learning to fly. and many more.

Those with deep pockets and cost is not a factor, welll...

of course own your own!

In the UK, there are numerous flying clubs, this can be a

more cost effective way of "renting" ,you pay dues, and the hourly charge is often much less than what you would pay from the FBO.

Answer 12

You can buy an airworthy plane for about $20,000 US. Almost anyone can afford that. You can make payments just like a car.

The thing is, you probably don't want to do that. Where are you going to keep your plane? Who is going to do the required maintenance on it? And what will you do the first time the engine needs to be rebuilt?

You probably want to rent. Or look for ads posted at local pilot hangouts for shares in an aircraft.

Answer 13

save up for one, or pick a monthly payment plan, or just wait a little while and just test fly some so you'll get used to flying, although you have your license, you're still new to flying, just like with driving.

Answer 14

You should look into getting a kitplane they are a lot cheaper

Answer 15

Most people I know just rent it by the hour - similar to the plan when you were just learning.

Good Luck...

Answer 16

There are several things you can do. 1) do a search on flying clubs in your area. Often five or six people  (who, like you, cannot afford an aircraft,) will form a club , pool their resources and buy an airplane. Check it out, there may be some folks just like you that need a partner.2) Find a local airport and get a  part time job cutting grass, fueling aircraft, cleaning up around the hanger, etc. Work out a deal where  you  get flight time in return . I hope this helps! Blessings! Gabe

Answer 17

Most pilots don't actually own a plane. The down payment alone would make you take another loan out. A lot of pilots rent planes by the day or the week as needed.

Answer 18

Most pilots don't own their own airplanes.  You can rent one just as you did when you were working on your certificate.  You will find out about this as you go along.

You can also join a club, in which you have a portion of the ownership of one or more airplanes, or form a partnership with one or more friends/relatives to own an airplane jointly.

If you have the credit power, you can buy an airplane on installments.

But remember that ownership of an airplane is very costly and entails many pitfalls and hidden costs.  It's better to rent unless you are planning to use it a lot.

Answer 19

If you can't get financing, you could always rent an airplane when you want to fly.

And don't forget, just buying the plane is the easy part. The maintenance will likely be thousands of dollars a year too.