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Sad but quite interesting (French accident statistics)

MedEwok wrote:

Maybe if electric planes really get going someday, their much lower cost per hour will help to increase currency?

My take on this: The price of an electric plane will be similar to today’s prices for conventional ones, maintenance is still necessary, and you bet that they will tax electric energy much higher as soon as fuel excise revenue goes down (when in the history of the world has a government reduced its overall spending?), so the fuel/energy cost will also not provide massive savings. Airport fees, noise abatement, trouble with the neighbours will still be there.

Off_Field wrote:

I really believe that if fuel was cheaper and flying costs lower that people would fly more and there would be a measurable safety knock on. More recently I’ve been flying less than usual and I certainly notice it.

That. I finished my PPL lessons in late August and had two weeks to wait for the exam, and as I was occupied with family life, did not fly in this time. Currency was noticeably reduced, and I can only wager a guess how out of their water the people are who fly their 15, maybe 20 hours a year.

EHRD / Rotterdam

Marchettiman wrote:

In my experience it is de rigeur for lunch in an Aeroclub to be enjoyed with a glass of red, whereas we Brits go for a pint and a chinwag after flying

This may or may not be true….but I dont think its the reason for many accidents in France. If it were, the DGAC would be all over it.

As others have pointed out,its not clear if those figures are aeroplanes only or ULM & aeroplanes, but that aside I think it is a combination of currency and weather. I am one of the few pilots at my aeroclub to do more than 30hrs a year and who flies further than an hour or so from home base. Additionally I think that there is a huge propensity to only fly on blue-sky-nil-wind days. Like others here though I do find myself looking at finances and thinking about that long trip I want to do in the summer – especially when the weather is carp as it has been these last 2 months here – who wants to fly on murkey grey days if they dont have to?

Regards, SD..

Last Edited by skydriller at 20 Dec 07:16

When I was a teenager, before I started taking lessons, I used to hang around a lot in my dad’s aeroclub. I called it the « apero-club » (help me with a traduction here please) for the numerous old guys staying at the bar for hours. But frankly, it was after flying or non flying members.

I concur with SD. It is difficult to consume flying budget in patterns when you dream about long trips in the summer. Especially when you want to sell GA to your wife/husband.
Today, I am glad I didn’t take the IR, because I wouldn’t have the money to maintain it, or just barely (flying one local approach per month, and that’s it).

LFOU, France

Jujupilote wrote:

I concur with SD. It is difficult to consume flying budget in patterns when you dream about long trips in the summer. Especially when you want to sell GA to your wife/husband.
Today, I am glad I didn’t take the IR, because I wouldn’t have the money to maintain it, or just barely (flying one local approach per month, and that’s it).

Agree, best trips in summer with friends/family are best done without using an IR at 4000ft agl

So one is left with what to do with his winter flying, pattern may do the job

Paris/Essex, France/UK, United Kingdom

The UK always gets a whole pile of fatal accidents in the spring, presumably because so many people totally pack it in for the colder months and then come out when the sun comes out.

I therefore suspect that the 10-20hr/year average (which according to reports seems common across most countries in Europe, with 1 or 2 being perhaps a little bit higher) conceals a really near-zero currency at the time the sun does come out.

Administrator
Shoreham EGKA, United Kingdom

Peter wrote:

The UK always gets a whole pile of fatal accidents in the spring, presumably because so many people totally pack it in for the colder months and then come out when the sun comes out.
I therefore suspect that the 10-20hr/year average (which according to reports seems common across most countries in Europe, with 1 or 2 being perhaps a little bit higher) conceals a really near-zero currency at the time the sun does come out.

I agree. Due to work (away from home) weather and runway condition (grass strip), I last flew 19 days ago (though I managed about an hour and a half in 2 different aeroplanes) and right now there is a thunderstorm passing overhead so I doubt I’ll fly today as planned, though I’ll go to the aerodrome to check out the strip condition. Rain over the weekend, so maybe Tuesday or Christmas eve? When I do go up, it’ll be handling exercises & circuits even if I need to fly to a nearby concrete runway for those.

Regards, SD..

Like most fully employed professionals with a family and small kids, I get only one, maybe two opportunities to fly per month. This month, on both occasions the weather was unflyable :(

I would love to have a higher currency, but anything over 10 hrs/year is unrealistic under the current circumstances.

Low-hours pilot
EDVM Hildesheim, Germany

Imagine practicing a musical instrument for 10 hours a year. And you can hardly kill yourself with it.

always learning
LO__, Austria

Snoopy wrote:

Imagine practicing a musical instrument for 10 hours a year. And you can hardly kill yourself with it.

I probably managed to keep current on PPL with barely 6h/year (between 2013 & 2016), but I did 60h/year on FSX and 30h/year on glider, RT was not slick but that did not kill me

Paris/Essex, France/UK, United Kingdom

Which means what in reference to my comment about proficiency when doing anything only 10h a year? What do you mean? Flying a glider is pretty much the best you can do for stick and ruder skills.

always learning
LO__, Austria
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