Peter wrote:
I have known pilots who were on say 25k and who were doing a lot of flying – way above the UK PPL average of 20-30hrs. But they kept their trousers done up, etc
Or just marry another pilot.
Easier said than done Alioth !
The issue is to combine lodging a family, paying all the necessary stuff and flying, with a young guy salary.
I don’t think our wages will reach the level of our parent’s.
And of course, the more aviation friendly your family is, the better, because you’ll have to pay less other activities :)
Someone wrote in EuroGA to never put more than 10% of your incombe in flying. To me, it means 20h max.
never put more than 10% of your income in flying
IMHO that would be a very poor use of one’s money, whose purpose is to enjoy life after all, not stuff it into investments which on your death will be passed on to your kids who (with a bit of luck, exercise and healthy eating on your part) isn’t going to happen until they are way too old to make real use of the money anyway 
Obviously if the other 90% is committed in ways you have no control over by the time it has happened, then 10% will have to do. But for a potentially major-value hobby like flying I would go for a higher figure – 20%?
Alioth is spot on of course but in practice that seems to be rarely achieved Still, with internet dating it should be way easier less impossible than would have been the case say 30 years ago.
Well taxes and social security contributions make up 50% of my income, accommodation another 30% (a typical figure in Germany), so that leaves a mere 20% which can be influenced by “life choices” at all, and that includes stuff like food or clothing…I would say the 10% figure for flying by jujupilote looks realistic if not outright ambitious!
I think 10% of gross for flying is a good number, but it depends on whether you’re still investing for retirement or already retired with plenty of assets and no more saving to be done. In that case you can spend whatever percentage you want, as long as all the other bills get paid.
I’m old but not that old… 
By which I mean in my peak earning years, or approaching them. I probably invest 30% of gross in retirement focused investments which provide tax relief and (very importantly!) will someday fund my flying… Hopefully after I stop going to work every day but before I’m dead!
Silvaire wrote:
… it depends on whether you’re still investing for retirement…I would think that is a quite minor factor in Europe.
It may be a minor factor if you work in a large organisation with a non contributory pension scheme especially if it is an exceptionally generous one e.g. – in the UK – teachers, police, other public services some of whom have had completely unsustainable finaly salary based pensions (and you live in a high-tax country or don’t worry too much about having a low standard of living in retirement) but it is a very big factor if you work for yourself.
I have known many pilots, in well paid but conventional jobs, who had to more or less stop flying when they retired. It has always been widely accepted that one will be broke when retired and this could be alleviated in recent times by downsizing one’s house after the kids leave home (although that yields only a one-time cash sum) but nowadays there are many people, especially ex business, who don’t accept that should be the case.
Retirement means less and less nowadays, to more and more people, with the retirement date being hopefully the day you have the ability to spend more time doing things you have always enjoyed. Whereas historically/traditionally, the retirement date was the day you slumped into the armchair, put the slippers on, stuck a pipe into your face, got drunk down the working mens’ club with your old mates, and died 2 years later
Divorce is also a big factor nowadays, especially as the kids leave home to go to univ etc, and nowadays – in the UK at least – is capable of stripping out your pension fund.
My pension will be about 3k a year
Peter wrote:
My pension will be about 3k a year
I don’t even want to think about it. Regardless paying on average 40k for health care and pension funds yearly (split 50:50 for each) for last 20 years, I guess my pension (when and if it comes – having in mind that I live in highly corrupted country) will be peanuts. If I had an opportunity to invest such amount in some well managed fund that would be completely different story. Legislative in Croatia is similar to other highly taxed countries – whatever you earn you have to give as much to state. However, the difference is that in return you get nothing – state as service to citizens is practically non-existing.
Airborne_Again wrote:
I would think that is a quite minor factor in Europe.
I would suggest that for most people anywhere, investment for retirement is the case if you want to retire at 60 or so, live in a nice house, travel in the summer and maintain a second house on the other side of the world, otherwise entertain yourself by maintaining and using a fleet of vehicles including two planes (or at least one, we’ll see) and also have maybe a couple of million $ of assets left over in the end, to leave to others.
All of the above assumes that nobody will be leaving you a large inheritance, which is not something I’m anticipating. Future generations may be a little luckier in that regard.
Peter wrote:
It has always been widely accepted that one will be broke when retired and this could be alleviated in recent times by downsizing one’s house after the kids leave home (although that yields only a one-time cash sum)
Not too long ago I upsized my house and hope to be here until I croak or can’t find my way home
