How much did you spend on your PPL?

Captain_Bob

Captain_Bob

Well-Known Member
OK... just to get a feel for it across the country and the years.

This could be fun... and educational for folks.

Let's try this format (Cut and Paste it):

FBO:
Amount "Quoted" (if any):
Amount paid:
Time period:
How was your overall experience?:

Bob
 
FBO: Thunderbird Aviation-Busy Class D under MSP Bravo
Amount "Quoted" (if any): None
Amount paid: 6k, maybe a little more. My own fault though, frequency of flying
Time period: 10 months - 2003
How was your overall experience?: Outstanding. Would have been much better if I could have continually flown at least 2-3x a week.
 
FBO: Maine Aviation (PWM) - Class C
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $3000
Amount paid: $4500
Time period: 2 years '01-'03
How was your overall experience?: Good overall. My checkride was scheduled for 9/17/01. 9/11 put that on hold... then life got in the way with the birth of my first daughter... logged 4 hours over the course fo the following year... finally got my butt in gear and bought a block of 10 hours to finish.

3 different instructors... but I had one for the majority of my training. Planes were old... broke quite a bit.. causing me to pay more for the "upgraded" planes when I wanted to fly.

Other than that... the coast of Maine was an awesome place to learn to fly.

Bob
 
FBO: Adventure Flight Training of Arizona
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $5k
Amount paid: $6k, maybe a little more. My own fault though, frequency of flying
Time period: 10-12 months
How was your overall experience?: Ok. Would have been much better if I could have continually flown at least 2-3x a week. I averaged once, maaaaybe twice a week!
 
Maximillian_Jenius said:
FBO: Adventure Flight Training of Arizona
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $5k
Amount paid: $6k, maybe a little more. My own fault though, frequency of flying
Time period: 10-12 months
How was your overall experience?: Ok. Would have been much better if I could have continually flown at least 2-3x a week. I averaged once, maaaaybe twice a week!
Click to expand...

Dude, get your own answers.... ;)
 
I have 2 PPL (Brazilian and American)

The Brazilian one
FBO:Aeroclube de Braganca Paulista
Amount "Quoted" (if any):
Amount paid: 3.5k in US dollar
Time period:25 days
How was your overall experience?:Amazing...couldn't have been better

American PPL (I only needed to meet a few requirements 'cause of the Brazilian one)
FBO:American Flyers
Amount "Quoted" (if any):
Amount paid:2.5k
Time period:4 months (reason: money or better yet lack of it)
How was your overall experience?: Ok...not the best one but okay.
 
FBO: Acadia Air (BHB/OLD/BGR), & Pan Am
Amount "Quoted" (if any): ...
Amount paid: 6k
Time period: 2 yrs....due to 9/11
How was your overall experience?: Ok. Following Acadia around was a pain though...
 
FBO: Delta State University
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I can't really remember...somewhere between around 4000
Amount paid: 4500 to 5000
Time period: September of 2000 to October of 2001
How was your overall experience?: I had an ok experience. My first instructor was scared to death of flying (stalls, spins, steep turns, and etc...). His being nervous made me nervous. He was always grumpy about something and took it out on me.I gave him the boot after I soloed, which took me two months and 22 hrs. He was hired by Pinnacle, so Kellwolf should probably be dealing with him by now. I learned what kind of instructor I did not want to be from him. I had another instructor during the second semester and he never showed up to work and ended up being fired as a result. He wasn't very sharp anyways. I tried to rush it all through towards the end of the semester but it didn't work out. I started up the next semester with a pretty good instructor, but then 9/11 hit. So it took a month or so to get things back in order. I continued the program all the way up to and including my initial CFI, graduated, went out to Dallas, and finished up my CFII and MEI add on at Skymates. I loved the class room portion of the university aviation program, but I disliked the flight operation portion. You had no freedom. You had very little choice in anything. They chose when you were scheduled to fly. They chose where you could go. You couldn't take anyone with you. If I had done my time building at Skymates or some other FBO, I could taken whover I pleased flying with me for as long as I wanted to have the plane out. As a result, I've only ever taken one family member flying with me. And thats only because I had a student generous enough to let me borrow his skymaster to go see me watch my alma mater play and I brought my brother along. For that reason alone, I would choose an FBO over the route I took. I would have still went to the university I went to, but I would have majored in something else.
 
FBO: Troy Exec. (Troy, MI)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): N/A
Amount paid: $4900
Time period: 1999
How was your overall experience?: Good, CFI was working on ME/MEI while I was doing PPL. Made it through training without loosing him to another job (although it was mentioned just about every week).

KLB said:
FBO: Delta State University
Click to expand...

I didn't know (or remember) you went to Delta State! GO OKRAS!!
Ok, I didn't go there (except for some MBA stuff), but lived there working at Baxter Healthcare for 6 years!

Were they still using the twin to spray for Mosiqutos when you were there??
 
Academy: US Army Aviation Center
Amount "Quoted" (if any): N/A
Amount paid: They paid me over $4000 a month.
Time period: 2000; Took about 14 months.
How was your overall experience?: Extraordinary. Top notch training in modern aircraft.
 
FBO:- Wings USA, Janesville WI (JVL)

Amount "Quoted" (if any):- No quote

Amount paid:- $5200

Time period:- 4 weeks. Yup, 4 weeks :D

How was your overall experience?:- Very good. I trained at the same FBO where my dad was the DOM, so I knew the airplanes were well-maintained ;) Shortly after I finished my PPL, (Nov 2001) my dad went full time teaching the AMT program at BTC in Janesville. My instructor loved me, I read what he told me to, I studied, I practiced, and it paid off in a quick license. I trained full-time, 4 days a week for 4 weeks. I aimed to train 5 days a week, but this was Wisconsin and I got weathered out of 1 day every week.

This was during my first furlough, immediately following 9/11. I was my instructor's only student, so he was darn happy to have a full-time student. I think during those 4 weeks I paid his rent and kept food on his table :) He went to Ram Air freight, then Chicago Express, and he's now at Sky West. I had the opportunity to keep going full-time with my ratings, but that's where life takes one of those 'forks in the road'. Instead of keeping going and pursuing a pilot career, I got married and accepted my (AA F/A) recall & displacement to LGA. I was furloughed again 6 months later and along came the kids. Family meant more to me than flying, and I chose the family route instead of the pilot career route. A choice I do not regret, as airplanes will always be there for me to fly, and my career (whatever I choose it to be) will still be there for me to get back into when the kids are older. :bandit:
 
JEP said:
FBO: Thunderbird Aviation-Busy Class D under MSP Bravo
Amount "Quoted" (if any): None
Amount paid: 6k, maybe a little more. My own fault though, frequency of flying
Time period: 10 months
How was your overall experience?: Outstanding. Would have been much better if I could have continually flown at least 2-3x a week.
Click to expand...

That is a perfect summary for me. Except my FBO is the Kadena Aero Club and my time period was over 2 years though (All I have left to do is my checkride)
 
FBO: PS Air at the Eastern Iowa Airport in Cedar Rapids, Iowa (KCID).
Amount "Quoted" (if any): I don't remember.
Amount paid: About $5,000.
Time period: About 10 weeks during the summer of 2003
How was your overall experience?: Fantastic. I had a really nice, professional, competent CFI, the FBO treated me well, the plane was well maintained, the rental rates were reasonable, the weather was good....I could go on and on and on. I have nothing bad to say. I had a ton of fun and a lot of good memories from that summer.
 
FBO: Berkeley Aviation
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $45/hour for C-152 $15/Instruction
Amount paid: $2500 and some labor (washing airplanes). :nana2:
Time period: 4 months (2003)
How was your overall experience?: Excellent
 
FBO: University of North Dakota
Amount "Quoted" (if any): None
Amount paid: ~$5,500
Time period: 4.5 months (2003)
How was your overall experience?: Very good. Excellent instructor!
 
FBO: LangaAir, Bethalto, IL (KALN)
Amount "Quoted" (if any): $6200
Amount paid: $5700
Time period: 6/1/2001 to 8/27/2001 (3 months/35.1 hours total)
How was your overall experience?: Positive (although now Langa has a "bridge" program with GoJets, so ... ) Oldest aircraft at the time was a '98. Nice facilities, nice people. Class D airport but not too busy. It was the midwest (home) so you got what you expected.
 
FBO: American Aviation, Inc. - Salt Lake City
Amount "Quoted" (if any): Cant remember
Amount paid: Around $7,000
Time period: 3 months
How was your overall experience?: Positive because of instructor, not school. School was a mess.
 
FBO:Palwaukee Wings, Class D , Under ORD Class B
Amount "Quoted" (if any):Around $7,000
Amount paid:Around 8 G's
Time period:7 Months
How was your overall experience?:Okay, had a rookie instructor who wouldn't say much.Basically, my passenger while I taught myself to fly.
 
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