Thinking of becoming a pilot again...what do I need to know?

Vflyer

Well-Known Member
Hello everyone,

This is mainly for the CFI's of the board, but I'm looking for some advice on what to expect to become current again.

A little bit about myself: I have 100 hours in Cessnas from about 10 years ago (PPL only, working into IFR), and about 100 hours in R22's from about 8 months ago (PPL & IFR).

I'd like to get back into just flying for fun and taking the family on short fun trips and my first question is how much I should budget and expect to fly to become comfortable flying a Cessna again. I will discuss this with the flight school and a CFI in the near future, but wanted to get an unbiased answer on how to prepare myself to make it as efficient and safe as possible.

Any particular maneuvers and knowledge that will be expected of me that I should focus on? How many hours would it take for the average pilot? Ground school? Any recommendations and advice to bring me up to speed?

Thanks!
 
@Vflyer:

If you just finished your ppl and IFR about 8 months ago, I would think your ground would be very minimal. As far as how many hours you need is dependent on getting you up and seeing what you remember and forgot. There is a general rule of thumb of 1 hour per year out of the cockpit, BUT you just finished 100 hours in a R22 so who knows. There are a lot of variables.

I would want to see you perform to the ppl PTS, emphasizing emergency procedures ie: power off landings, stalls, emergency descents, as well as takeoffs and landings. Different CFIs will have different opinions. I want to ensure your are safe, after that you can go practice on your own.

BTW where are located? There may be a CFI on here that is close by and can help you out.
 
@Vflyer:
If you just finished your ppl and IFR about 8 months ago, I would think your ground would be very minimal. As far as how many hours you need is dependent on getting you up and seeing what you remember and forgot. There is a general rule of thumb of 1 hour per year out of the cockpit, BUT you just finished 100 hours in a R22 so who knows. There are a lot of variables.

Agree - I doubt it would take long at all. More than a BFR, but probably not by much.

EDIT: From a purely legal standpoint, you can fly a Cessna alone, PIC tomorrow. As far as instruction goes, you are essentially getting a very thorough rental checkout. The answer to how long it takes is pretty much "once you are comfortable."
 
I would look at the Private PTS and do a few flights with a CFI looking to meet those standards in a couple of hours. Your recent R22 time makes you a "recent" pilot with respect to the few changes there might be to FAR's and flight procedures in the last ten years since you flown fixed wing. I don't see this as a big deal. Get into the POH of the plane you want to get current in and find a local CFI to work with.
 
I'd grab a CFI and just buzz around for an hour first, see if it is still something you enjoy.
 
You want to continue on the Helo side or the plane side?????

I'm actually unsure at this point as I go back and forth between them both. The main goal is to get back in the left seat and have some fun with it and get to a point that I can accurately compare each of them. The schedule and overall QOL of HEMS seems great, but feel that (at least in the past) I'm a bit more comfortable flying fixed wing. I also find that a lot of people (both on forums and in real life) are screaming to stay out of fixed wing if you want to have a good life, so I figure flying for fun will be a good start to test it out again.
 
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