wc351

A long over due update for all of you. It is a long read. After reading and taking in to account everyone's advice I compiled it all into one that I felt suited me best. I have saved up a good portion of the money to get my PPL three times now and as so many pointed out that something would always creep up and take it away. The first time was all me as I had a ring made from my design and now engaged to my best friend. The second time was when my commuter car decided to strand me on an exit ramp on the way to work and we decided right then that it was time to move on from the first generation Minis (it was a 2006), so I went and got something much newer. Third time is the charm as they say so here I am. I did follow the advice of talking with multiple CFIs and schools. I narrowed that list down to two schools and finished the second introductory flight this morning with the second school. Neither of the two schools are at my local airport but they are only 30-45 minutes away from my house. My fiance pointed out today that everything was pointing to not using the second school, they had a full schedule the first time I tried to go, this morning when I arrived early as requested the instructor and the plane were not back yet from the prior flight and bad weather was moving in, and there was no welcome other than getting my name. By the time I met the instructor it was 30 minutes after the scheduled time and we rushed out to the plane to beat the weather. The plane was a Diamond DA20 which I was excited to see and fly in after reading up on them and seeing the specs and pictures. My how fast that excitement went away when I climbed in the plane because it is way smaller than it appears. To say that we were cramped would be an understatement so that made the comfort level not quite to a level I could see myself in the pane for hours and hours. The instructor was nice and I flew the plane some but maybe only 10 minutes of our 30 minute flight. Still trying to keep an open mind I asked about the other planes in the fleet that could be used and they do have a Diamond DA40 but I was told they try to use it mainly for IFR training. After leaving and talking with my fiance about it I came to the conclusion that he was there to build hours and that I was not as excited as I was with the first school and instructor. Now for the first school and instructor that I decided to try out. For the first flight I arrived early and was greeted with a warm welcome and an introduction of not only the instructor but the plane we were to be flying in a Piper Archer III. The instructor and I talked for almost 2 hours about my experience in the past, my goals for the training, and what the overall exceptions she has as an instructor and the expectations I have as a student. We went out to the plane and I was hands on right away in helping with the pre-flight. Once in the plane we went through the procedures together with a brief explanation of each thing we were doing. Once we started to taxi out to the runway she explained about the how to steer this one on the ground with the brakes and rudder pedals that also control the front wheel on this plane versus the 172 I had flown in before. Every step of the process was explained and differences given where appropriate. On takeoff it felt like I had been flying in this plane for years, it was so smooth and natural feeling with the controls. We flew for roughly an hour and I had the controls within minutes of takeoff right until time to land. During the flight we were doing multiple maneuvers that I was able to preform with minimal additional instruction and she never once had to take over because of a misstep or mistake on my part. She even exclaimed that I was doing well beyond any beginning student she has had in the past and attributed it to my prior experience which I appreciated someone taking into account that I had flown right seat a lot. After the flight was over and since I was the last one for the day I helped to move it into the hanger which oddly made me more comfortable working with this instructor, I guess because I was involved instead of just an observer. After we finished talking she logged the time in my logbook as full instruction time and not just introductory time. I was so excited after this flight that I didn't stop talking about it until the next day. I asked why the instructor was teaching and the answer was that because she doesn't have to do this for any other reason than the enjoyment of teaching and flying. My fiance didn't even think I should try the second school after this flight but I wanted to just to see how it felt. I am going to go with the first school and instructor to do my training. This isn't the closest or the cheapest of the 2 schools I had narrowed my choices down to but it is where I feel like I would get the highest quality training and where I felt like it was just a natural fit. Thanks again for all of the advice and i am open to any and all advice in the future.

Amazing to be able to hear all the different stories from everyone and the journey they took. I'm still in the research phase and found a few local CFIs that I plan to talk with soon. One of them flys a Mooney and I was told that they think he teaches people in it. I will know more soon. Keep the stories and experiences coming, I'm learning a lot about the community already.

How do I learn about the Mooney Fly-ins? I didn't see a section for the southeast groups.

She definitely is behind me 100%, my ex would not have been at all. Thanks for the advice though.

I saw part of that video and got the idea from him. When I saw it I thought "what an amazing thing to do"

All of these were taken with a throw away camera. So the B-17 really was that close to use. That is the pilot, myself, and the pilot's fiance who had to "chaperon" me so that I could fly. The only other passenger was a photographer. It was scary walking through the bomb bay while in flight to get to the tail gunner's position, otherwise it was incredible.

Wow, thanks for the amazing welcome everyone! I asked for information and opinions and it was delivered in spades, which I will be using for all of my research. I will try to answer the questions and comments from everyone but I might miss something. I'm not sure if going and hanging out with the "old guys" will be possible since my local airport doesn't have a good place to hang out unless it is in a hangar, which you can't get to unless you have permission. But I will see what I can do. My timeline is before I'm 40 which is only 2 years away, so I have started my planning and research now because I research things to death before making a decision. I do know in my heart that this is the right time and right thing to do. This should give me plenty of time to get more than enough up for training and really make a dent on the cost of a plane. Constrictions... like most the biggest is time to go do it. Currently there are no kids in the equation and I want to have my PPL before that time comes. The other is me and getting out of my own way. I personally tend to try and do way to many projects at a time and scatter my brain, a result of having to do everything as a kid and young adult, from building or repairing things for my parents house or mine to being the family mechanic for everything I suppose. (Side note here. I do not do mechanic work as a profession but still work on my own stuff and have given up on anything major construction now. I am now a Python Automation Engineer) My biggest goal is to get the training started by next summer and only need the minimum amount of time in the air to get my PPL, I currently have no plans on getting a CFI. So doing the written on my own will help to accelerate the time spend with an instructor. My second major goal (dream) is to be able to fly to a honeymoon spot when that time comes instead of flying commercial or driving. We aren't engaged yet but we have talked a lot about it and we both have major life goals we want to attain before marriage. Other goals include getting my own plane as soon as possible but I don't have a timeline on that yet since things can change on what I think will be my flight missions.

I had only vaguely thought about the trainer being high or low wing. Makes a lot of sense to train in a low wing. Working on the avatar part now.

Thanks for the welcome. Only had 2 hours with an instructor in the plane. I would do small things while in flight and only partially had the controls from time to time. I wish some of that time would transition officially but I know that time was invaluable in my pursuit now because I understand so much more about the dynamics of what the controls do. I do plan on saving at least $5k before getting started and have been thinking really hard about studying for the written on my own. My mission will be mixed as I am sure most peoples are. I do know that there will be flights to and from Michigan several times a year to see family, we would also be flying to Charleston for family as well. Most of the time it would only be two people on board until kids start to come into the mix.

Hello everyone. My name is Will and I am from North Georgia. I wanted to introduce myself but wasn't sure if this was the right area to do it. A little background on me and my flight adventures. My dad got me interested in planes really young and I have been hooked ever since. My first flight (I was in my early teens) that I still am not sure how he manged to convince the pilot to allow, was in a B-24 Liberator from KBKD (Stephens County) to PDK (Peachtree-Dekalb) flying in formation with a B-17 with a Mooney following. Other than the crew there were 3 passengers on board. They flew in a zig-zag pattern form one stop to the next and the flight was close to an hour. My next step in aviation was being the crew for the hot air balloon Evening Sunrise for 5 years in Sautee Ga which is just outside of Helen Ga. I flew in a few balloons over those years and still get giddy when I see one on the ground or in the air. The pilot who was also my neighbor wanted to become a commercial airline pilot so he started to pursue his license. To build time he purchased a late 50's Cessna 170/172. Since he didn't want to fly much by himself he asked if I would like to go, and of course I couldn't turn it down. So I ended up with roughly 175 hours right seat time the Cessna and then probably 20 in the Cherokee 140 after the Cessna. Then life events happened. I have been out of the skies for way to long, feels like a lifetime ago but it has been roughly 15 years. So I have decided to commit myself to getting my pilots license and my own plane. From the time that I first learned about different planes I have loved Mooney's and seeing one out of the side of a B-24 in formation was something I will never forget. So here I am pursuing a childhood dream. I do need some guidance though when it comes to researching the different models of Mooney's so that I can find one that will be best for what I feel like would be my intended use. And one that I would really enjoy flying as time goes on. If someone could guide me in the direction of good places to learn or types of planes to learn on, so that I can be better prepared to transition into a Mooney.