What has the biggest corrosive effect on confidence?

I agree with CKN, time is king. That and availability of the aircraft, when renting.

I noticed that the best profile for good currency is owning the aircraft and be a business owner or self employed. In the sense that 9 to 5 jobs with only week-ends off is difficult to synchronise with the weather (VFR at least).

1 and 3 I’d say for me plus, most importantly, lack of time which aggravates Point one.

I am a big advocate of pilots inviting other pilots along for trips. I do a lot of day trips for example and I think it has been good to have other people along. I enjoy some company on a business trip with someone to chat to enroute and they get to fly often into airports they may not usually go to in an aircraft that is perhaps a little different from a typical trainer.

I don’t there is enough flying with others these days away from the training environment.

A small point: how do people deal with being unable to return the passenger on the planned day?

I have had a few cases, years ago, where the person’s job might be in danger!

I guess mission completion rates in the Pa46 are very high but that is not my problem. Anyone I fly is clear that if we can’t get back, we can’t get back. I will try within the bounds of safety and convenience to complete the trip but if its can’t happen, we deal with it. I recall 172Flyer, Judith and me having a great 5 hour evening stay over at Nantes Atlantiques as the headwinds were strong and the UK airports closed on a Sunday night. That beer tasted good after a long flight. We got up and arrived approx 0730 the next morning.

I’d say the lack of social scene also has a flip side: the more you fly, the deeper you are into your anorakitude and the less social interaction you have outside of flying, too. The level of general curiosity among non-aviation people isn’t goo high, either – given a choice between an aeroplane ride and a motorcycle one, most girls would choose the latter (at least that’s what I see myself).

@Peter, that’s a problem I’m experiencing all the time with friends of mine who are not self-employed. From the beginning I tell them that there’s a rather high and unpredictable possibility that we’ll not be able to return in a defined time frame. So we’re always planning for a 1-2 day buffer which basically eliminates almost all weekend trips with friends. On shorter trips (under 2 hours) I also tell my passengers to consider other means of transportation for their way back home if they need to get back in time. I’m also very clear about complaints about weather/technical related issues that keep us grounded: If you bitch, you’re out for all future trips – I’m not gonna kill us all because you have something to do tomorrow that is apparently more important than our lives…

I think many people exagerate about this. The very majority of people are not that important such that they absolutely can’t miss a day at work at short notice. It happens all that time due to illness.

Also, in the worst case, one can usually take a train or so back home (might be back late in the might, but hey).

These are more excuses for not going than real reasons why one cannot go.

When I was more naive 20 years ago and bothered to invite people who had ALLREADY expressed interest into joining me for a ride,
at the end they mostly found comic reasons to escape it ,when called. Even during postcard VFR days.
In the meanwhile ,the allready mini GA population of Greece has shrinked a lot more.Doesnt fancy in new generation. Reasons ?
-Unbelievable taxation,social envy,EASAs friendly burdens,CAA bureaucracy and innefficiency,minimal working hours in aerodromes,
unfriendly NOTAMs,lack of fuel in aerodromes,Cessna SIDs and last but not least…a lack of morale.

Geez. Under these circumstances, the local GA cannot survive.