helodriver20

That's great to hear. I personally didn't ask about his honesty, I was asking about paying for the entire course up front and the sport pilot instead of directly to private.

I agree with everyone about the Sport Pilot license. If goal is PPL, then go for PPL, then Instrument. Now, did I hear correctly that you paid up front? This is a HUGE RED FLAG. Do not ever pay up front. It's ok to purchase small blocks of time (no more than 10 hours), but I can tell you horror story after horror story about people that paid up front. Sometimes companies thru no fault of their own close their doors suddenly. Even a small mom and pop with the owner/cfi. What happens if he/she is no longer able to fly? Be careful. Even the large flight schools no longer do this practice of all up front fees. And remember, the largest flight school in the country went belly up leaving tens of thousands of students in debt with no license. Have a plan. Stick to it. Get a good home study course. John and Martha of King Schools has probably taught everyone something at some time. Welcome to the club!

Congrats on your new bird!

That's the way I'm leaning too. Plus it doesn't over-stretch my budget from purchase to maintenance.

2,000 agl! Let's not get crazy! Lol

Very true. And I love your Rocket and it's at a perfect location. Don't get me wrong, I want a K. But do I really 'need' one. Probably not.

Thanks!

Finally...pre-approved for an aircraft loan. There was a day in my life when I didn't struggle with getting a loan. I've paid cash for three different helicopters back in the day. But those days are long gone. So the bank approves $100k for a decent 231 I submitted. But after looking at my needs, I'm not really sure I 'need' a 231. Sure, the turbo would be nice for density altitude days. I could carry more people with more fuel. But usually it will either be me alone, or my wife and I with our dog. I can easily do with a nice E, F, or J. And I can save some money for upgrades. Less maintenance too. When I was partial owner on an F before, we had no problem in the summer in Denver. Sure, a nice K would be better. I live in the Denver Metro Area. 90% off my flying will be commuting to eastern NM / West Texas on a weekly basis where I work for a living...flying an EMS helicopter. It will save me countless hours driving (averages around 10 hours each way). I thought about joint a group/fractional bird, but with me using the aircraft for 9 days at a time, this won't work in most circles. So, let the searching begin for a nice E, F, or J!

Beautiful plane. Out of my range.

I was thinking the same thing!

Done