Dutchboy

You don't really give enough information to make a good decision. The difference between part 141 and part 61 on an instrument rating is not existant. The only difference is that 141 has more required ground training ($$) and part 61 requires cross-country PIC time which you must already have from what you are saying.

I wouldn't be so quick to dump your current instructor over a PERCEIVED savings. It may well end up costing you more to go some other way. I went to the flight school I went to for my IR, CP, CFI, and CFII because I was working with an awesome instructor. Everything else is really secondary.

I've lived in the Kennesaw/Acworth area for over ten years now. I'm still liking it. I think it is reasonably priced but not scary like South Atlanta.

I would move somewhere like Smyrna if I didn't have a job yet. That is where I moved for 6 months before I got a house when I moved here 10 years ago. After you get a job, you might decide where you would like to live for the long term. If you work on the other side of town from where you work, the commute can be brutal.

I'd have to agree with you. Rome is awesome, even if I haven't managed to jump there in a while.

I'm sure jumping there right now would be better than spending two weeks in Nashville finishing your Airframe & Powerplant mechanics license. (what I'm doing at this moment)

Atlanta = awesome
GaTech (GIOT geee-awwwt) = no comment

Yep, and I have so far in my 36 years.

Don't be a Riddle-Diddle. I will never hire another one of these ever again. Every last one of the ER grads I've hired had more erogance than skill and didn't last long at my flight school.

Find a good local flight school that isn't filled with timebuilders and do your training there. You'll save money and get better training.

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That's only if you believe that any of these deployments were neccessary. Only one of the many Cirrus deployments was possibly neccessary and that was the guy that was dumb enough to not see if the ailerons were attached to a plane that just came out of maintenance.

That probably pretty much depends on your point of view. The people deploying them thought it was a good idea. Sort of like second guessing a reserve deployment.

Sparky

I wouldn't liken this to a reserve deployment at all. Not in the least bit similar. When you pull the BRS handle in a plane because you are experiencing turbulance in a plane that is still flying, or because you ran out of gas over the desert it isn't the same as pulling your reserve due to a non-functioning main canopy. These are just a couple of examples of stupid reasons the Cirrus chute handle has been pulled.

That's only if you believe that any of these deployments were neccessary. Only one of the many Cirrus deployments was possibly neccessary and that was the guy that was dumb enough to not see if the ailerons were attached to a plane that just came out of maintenance.

I've been in Atlanta for 10 years now and loving it. I also fled the cold and high cost of living up north.

Traffic really isn't as bad as most people will try to say it is. Boston, Chicago, New York, and every city in California are much worse that Atlanta.

Atlanta is big. My uncle lives like 70 miles from me, and one of my friends lives like 80.

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I was thumbing thru the January issue of Private Pilot and noticed they built a plane using a Harley-Davidson motorcycle engine. Would anyone in their right mind fly in this thing without a rig? NOT ME!

let the flaming begin

This is the same model airplane I built. The one with the reliable Subaru engine that crapped out on me over the forest a year and a half ago. I'd go with the Rotax over the Harley (or Subaru) any day.

The nurse was poking my wife's belly to get it to move for the ultrasound. It rolled over twice and then flipped her the bird.

Here's the first picture of my future pilot/skydiver.

He's flipping the nurse the bird.

I tried skydiving because a friend of mine did it, and I wanted to see why she loved it so much.

I fly a lot more than I skydive because I own a flight school. It seems like every time I want to jump I've got paying customers bugging me to teach them.

I love both aspects of aviation. Skydiving is just pure fun with no practical application. Flying is fun, but also useful for travel, etc. I like flying my body vs. flying a machine and doing aerobatics while skydiiving.

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They teach C++ at your high school?! All they had for us was gw-basic.

It is a private high school. Last year I taught aviation there as well. Next year I won't be teaching there at all since the pay stinks and I have a baby on the way.

If you are using C++, why aren't you taking a ref to the ifstream, and why aren't you using the standard string object. Also a function that returns nothing and has no exceptions possibly thrown is worthless. You wouldn't want to turn this in to my high school C++ class.

I've been in Atlanta for 10 years. I have no desire to move anywhere else.

Congrats on the decision. I left Sapient for similar reasons, I just couldn't have much of a life outside the job.

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Check into just what the plane costs an hour. Last I checked an older 172 was $75/hour.

You may also be able to find deals outside the FBO without their markup- I was flying our favorite skydiving pilot's 160HP 172 for $56/hour wet in 2001-2002 (bought 10 hours at a time). His services as a CFI were also less expensive than if I had to hire him through a middle-man.

This might be a good option, but make sure the guy has adequete insurance. If something happens to the plane they could be coming after you to fix it!

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Well, last year I made the decision between learning to fly and learning to skydive. I am considering giving flying a try in the fall and winter. Could anyone give me a little advice? I know there are a few pilots out there.

What would I be looking at in $$$$, and time? What is the best way to get experience? Any guidance would be appreciated.

Thanks,
Brian

Costs can vary greatly depending on location and the equipment you are flying. I can get someone a license in one of my brand new planes from $4000-$5500 depending on skill and training frequency.

Look at several flight schools in your area. Try and find an instructor who isn't brand new with almost no flight time and little or no PIC time that just wants to build time. In my experience as a flight school owner, these part 141 guys with <250 hrs are worthless.

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Pulled this off Avweb:

If you're working on your instrument rating or you need an Instrument Proficiency Check (IPC), your world is about to change, and not entirely for the better, according to at least one training expert.