I think Alexis has a point. Flying requires preparation and concentration and that does not always go hand-in-hand with a challenging job. I used to know an owner of a Commander twin turbo who decided it was time for a co-pilot who could take care of flight planning, keeping an eye on the weather and generally act as safety pilot. It allowed him to concentrate fully on his business meetings.
JasonC, what’s you take on this?
Of course I know that there’s many self-flying businessmen in the USA. But the way Adam put it was that he works on a very tight schedule with not much time between jobs, and in a challenging job too, and that was the reason for my comment.
I have, at times, tried to integrate my airplane into my work life, but i must say that it has not really worked out. But then I am not the type who could work all day and then rush to the airport and do a challenging IFR flight without much time to prepare myself. To me beeing under pressure when flying, especially IFR and through marginal weather, is a horror scenario. Neither do I have the wish to live like that or do I have the nerves. Personally I will avoid “gethomeitis” and similar at all cost and rather take the airline or fly.
This would probably be different if I lived in the US southwest, or in Greece or Spain, but in Central Europe, as an amateur pilot (and most of us here are amateurs), even with IFR, it does not work, many times at least.
Sure, on some days I do use the airplane for business travel. But sit in a meeting and checking METARs all the time? Not my cup of tea.
No, obviously flying to Europe would not have been an option in your own aircraft, so that particular job would have been lost anyway – it was just an observation that you can not get from certain parts of the US to Europe in less than 2 calendar days. And sometimes that’s just too long, like in my case. And a charter simply costs too much, especially a long one.
Fatigue is a good point and it would not always be safe or wise to go fly yourself after a long day of work etc. But as I mentioned, many times the opposite also happens, you’re stuck in a city, the day after a job, well rested, waiting for a late airline departure just sitting around, where you could have been home already if you’d had an early start in your own plane. Or even flew halfway home and got a motel the evening before.
Yes, of course Adam. But what would you do if you knew that you HAD to be back in L.A. the next morning, for the job you have always been waiting for, and found out that the weather was jsut a little bit beyond your personal limits? … From what I know about you you wouldn’t, but that’s the days on which personal flying can get too dangerous.
Alexis wrote:
But what would you do if you knew that you HAD to be back in L.A. the next morning, for the job you have always been waiting for,
Can happen with the airlines as much as and with less control over it than you have on private transport from bicycle upwards to your private 747. Matter of fact, how many such MUST be there’s are subject to fierce debates at airline’s transfer desks when the big birds go tech?
IMHO, the key to that is: Don’t push yourself into a situation where you M.U.S.T be somewhere in a short period of time which does not allow for a plan B.
So if the airline goes t.u. then you have the time for them to sort out a solution or at least you can call and say, sorry, not my fault, see you when they sort it out.
Or if the destination of a private flight goes QGO, land somwhere which is open and rent a car.
It happens to the best…
I’d like to comment only on the part about checking METARs in a meeting …
Probably I’m not the only one who behaves in that way around here. When I’m engaged with my business I focus on that and do not spent a single second on thinking about weather or flying – unless I’m bored and my client is not really available to interact with me.
Once business is over and I am leaving the building I go into “pilot mode” and figure out how to get away from the place and on to the next. if it turns out that the weather does not look good for flying, I re-route to a restaurant or hotel and wait it out without much thought.
It did happen to me this week when I was unable to get fuel at EDVL Niederrhein and after refueling at EDLD Dinslaken the weather towards my destination EDVK Kassel was really bad (lots of thunderstorms). So I decided to have an early dinner and flew a bit later without getting wet.
Just stay calm and not mix the two things. It helps in business matters too.
I go into “pilot mode” and figure out how to get away from the place and on to the next. if it turns out that the weather does not look good for flying, I re-route to a restaurant or hotel and wait it out without much thought.
That shows that you are disciplined, know and follow your limits and don’t bend them. And probably Adam is the same. I am pretty sure it would not happen to me either, because I am the overly cautious type who sometimes doesn’t do a flight although it would have been possible.
But we do know that MANY pilots died because they were not able to draw a line, to say “NO, I will not fly today”. Actually thousands of pilots have died because of “gethomeitis” and similar psychological effects. we cannot pretend that it doesn’t exist.
Many years ago, in my early years as a pilot (1996?) I once flew to Croatia for a weekend with my (then) girlfriend and she really raised hell when I told her that I would not fly back on Sunday although she had that important meeting. We then flew on Monday when the weather had already improved, but there was a lot of wind over the Alps and she was SCREAMING for about half an hour in light to moderate tubulence (which made me really nervous too!) … But I remember how much pressure she put on me that Sunday before. “You promised I would be back …. ". Well. I refused and to this day I refuse when I don’t think it is safe.
aart wrote:
aart17-Jun-17 11:44 #150.
JasonC, what’s you take on this?
Jason is not on a tight schedule, he has time for plenty of beers with me in Straubinsk (well known Siberian GA hub, only reachable by air).
achimha wrote:
Straubinsk (well known Siberian GA hub, only reachable by air).
ROFL!!
Alexis wrote:
over the Alps and she was SCREAMING for about half an hour in light to moderate tubulence
You’re an official member of the mile high club, since then 
