Popularity of Becoming a Recreational Pilot

The lure of flying is inescapable. There is no faster, exciting, or more glamorous mode of travel than private aviation. On top of all of that, it’s just pure, unadulterated fun, the stuff dreams are made of. Until recently, this mode of travel was most often accessible to wealthy. That accessibility is changing and it is changing rapidly. All of the new developments associated with flying and with aircraft themselves are making it easier and less expensive. The growing restrictions now placed on us when flying commercially versus the all of the benefits as well as personal safety associated with private flight combine to make becoming a pilot not only exciting but doable and affordable.

Let’s face it. At it’s basest level, being a pilot is exciting. Think about all the movies about aviation or with flight scenes, Top Gun comes to mind. Those movies get our blood pumping and the adrenaline going, they are inspiring in their own right. They have an appeal that stretches all the way back to the kid in us who dreamed of flying to the adult we currently are and probably still dreams of flying. Who wouldn’t like to just take off? It appears that more and more people are doing just that. The time couldn’t be better either.

Whatever reasons propel you to become a pilot and there are many, there are very few negatives to doing so. Flying imbues you with a sense of freedom, challenge and accomplishment with every flight. There are schools all over the United States eager to earn your business. The advent of satellite-based navigation, low-cost GPS equipment and in-cockpit access to weather are making it as safer and easier than ever. The aircraft themselves have evolved. A new generation of Light Sport Aircraft, gives you more access than ever to fulfill the dream of becoming a pilot. The stark line between dream and reality is blurring.

Learning to fly could be thought of as a sport, just like golf or skiing or deep sea fishing. You need to have lessons, you need to practice, you need to hone your skills. But unlike those other sports, there are a lot of things to learn, school’s involved, you need to pass tests. It requires a license. While you may consider it a sport, it’s educational as well. You are learning a skill that could provide a way to earn a living not merely personal benefit.

Of course, once licensed, being a pilot sheds an entirely different light on travel. The skies literally are open to you now. You’re not tied into commercial flying times. That’s a fabulous benefit of learning to fly in and of itself. However, now you have the ability to simply escape for a couple of hours - not necessarily go anywhere -- and experience a sense of freedom that wasn’t available to you before your license. You can escape all of the gravitational pulls on your life and fly. Could anything be more seductive than that?

Then there’s the caché of saying “I’m a pilot”. That gets everyone’s attention. You can get to places in a way that few people can. Flying an airplane gives the pilot an unparalleled rush. It’s a triumph over nature. No one needs an excuse to have that experience. There’s no justification required.