There’s been a bit of interest among some of the other 9rules members about aviation – some wished they had learned to fly, and a couple had friends who wanted to in the future. There are dozens of ‘start flying’ sites on the internet, but a lot of them seem to be British and that sort of thing, so I’m going to try and write a short series on how to get going.

The first step, and the most important one, is to figure out if it’s really something that interests you. Flying is by no means cheap – in fact, it’s fairly expensive and addictive, making it a real commitment. Track down your local airport and see if anyone is giving demo rides; many clubs and FBOs offer half-hour or hour-long flights for around $50. You’ll get a chance to see how flying feels, and whether it’s something you can see yourself enjoying. Joining the AOPA is also a good way to get flight training resources (they have a magazine called Flight Training, in fact) and find nearby airports and clubs.

There are also a couple of prerequisites: you need to at least 16 years old to solo, 17 to earn a certificate, and you need to be in good health. Visiting a flight physician and getting a medical certificate is actually how to get your student license.

After that, finding a good instructor is extremely important. There are often several clubs or FBOs on one airport, and if the first CFI you work with isn’t working out, try another – there’s no reason to waste time and money on someone whose teaching style doesn’t work for you. The minimum amount of time to earn a Private Pilot certificate is 40 hours (at a Part 61 school – more rigorous Part 141 schools only require 35), and most pilots take at least 50 or 60, so having a good instructor will make things go a lot faster.

As I mentioned earlier, flying is expensive – the club I fly at charges around $40 per hour of instruction, $85 per hour for a two-seat Cessna 152, and up to $130 for the newer, larger Cessna 172s. I learned in a 152 and loved it, but some pilots either can’t fit into the tiny cockpit, or enjoy the size and feel of the 172. Other common aircraft to start out with are made by Piper and Beechcraft, but they’re vastly outnumbered by the Cessnas. Everything in the training world is reliable, safe, and relatively slow, but they’re also a lot cheaper to learn in. Expect to pay, in total, between $6,000 and $8,000 to earn a Private Pilot certificate; there are some loans and grants available that bring the costs down.

If flying is something that looks fun, or if you’ve always been the guy who looks up when a plane flies over, bite the bullet and look into learning. It’s worth every penny.