gosleddog

Soloed at 16 - got my Pvt at 17 in 1985; did some flying in college, amassed about 125 hrs civilian went ROTC to get to flight school, got about 120 hrs military (T-34C) time, with good instrument training, got into some trouble, was administratively separated, and pursued a different career. The bug has been biting me bad the past couple years, and I have started action to get my medical back. I have some issues that make it not cut and dry. I have some Pro pilot friends that say I won't have a problem getting it once I get through the hoops. Question is, how should I go about this??
Here are my estimates about time to back into this: about 12-15 Hrs BFR work. I have been a pretty serious flight sim guy over the years, just to keep the scan and coordination working, - estimating that doing a Pvt pilot ground school will be my first step. Then I'll need about 20-30 hrs to finish IFR ticket, and about another 35-45 hrs to get my Commercial... Am I off my rocker, or does this sound feasible to you all? I live pretty close to Deer Valley airport in N. Phoenix, and there is a flight school there (Westwind) I have spoken to some of the staff there, and they seem to think that it is doable. I got my Prvt with 44 hrs for $2,238.00, and prices now a pretty scarey by comparison! That will barely cover my BFR. Is a school the best way to go for getting the best CFI's, best maintained planes, and availability? What about a club? Open to any feedback on what experiences folks have had along these lines.... Thanks in advance!

de727ups

If you can find a club, and a CFI willing to work with you at your pace, I'd say that's a better way to go. I'd make sure I can get a first class medical before I'd make much of an investment, though.

ryan1234

it sounds feasible... hit the books hard before you go back into do your BFR... it'll save some money on ground school, study hard for the instrument using the gleim get the test out of the way same for commercial. Since building time isn't really all that big of a deal... after you get your BFR, I'd try to fly with someone/share the costs as a safety pilot ( Pilot Share The Ride ) ( Airplane Partnerships and Flying Clubs to keep the costs of flying affordable. ) to just get back into the overall swing of things without wasting too much money. Find a decent 61 school that has a good record of students passing their checkrides within a reasonable time (50-55hrs for pvt, etc). Even if you can't log the time try to fly with someone as much as you can.
I can understand your story though, not quite the same thing.. but I soloed at 16, etc, etc... had everything going through AFROTC for a pilot slot.... couple of speeding tickets license suspended, no dui's though...seperated from AFROTC... went to get my medical renewed.. and I couldn't because of my previous tickets... wrote a letter to the FAA begging for it, 4 months later they told me I could get it back... kept working on ratings afterwards self-financed... hardwork, lots of hoops and bad decisions, but it was sure worth it in the end, getting paid for what I enjoy.

gosleddog

Thanks for all the input. I am looking into flying clubs and schools. - And more importantly, setting up an appointment with the AME in the next couple of weeks. Will be going over all the med history so that my ducks are in a row when I meet with him. My friend, (US Air 757 4-bar), has similar issues, and said that he'd go over it all with me so I don't over / understate my conditions / history. Ryan1234, I really appreciate your input. So - you never got to flight school? Dang, - I at least got to do my 2 aerobatic solos!
- On school vs club, I think that its probably going to boil down to the availability of good aircraft that I like (and there is so much more cool stuff out there now! - I've never even flown a plane with a GPS...) and is priced reasonably, and I find a CFII that I click with.

ryan1234

There was a time where I could see nothing but going to UPT, however in hindsight I'm happy with the way things worked out... spend more time with my family.. although from time to time I think about how it might have been, had I made better decisions. I've done a decent amount of civilian aerobatics, so I had a taste of what I was missing.
If you get a chance check out de727ups website about how he made it happen... really great stuff!
As far as the club vs. school... either/or just don't get ripped off.. and generally inst.-comm is easier with a CFI that enjoys teaching
Good luck whichever way...

de727ups

Just a correction. It's not my website. It's simply a write up I did for Doug at Jetcareers.com - Welcome

ryan1234

my mistake.... it is a great story... I could be wrong and I hesitate to say this, but I wish more pilots did things that way... traditional/61/piston twin jobs, etc... you are exactly right that it rounds the perspective into aviation in general. There's just something missing about going from 0 time to RJ FO in 6 months or whatever it is.... also a lot of people never seem to take time to enjoy more of aviation before they get that "airline" job.

de727ups

Couldn't agree with you more....