Why is there no entrepreneurial mojo when it comes to owner flown in Europe?

AF wrote:

I’m so curious about Bulgaria. Glad to have your perspective, because it’s one of the countries I haven’t been to (yet). Thanks for that, I’m even more curious now. :)

It’s a nice place to fly to as well. From Austria (especcially southern) it’s also not too far to fly to, about 3-4 hours in a 150 kt plane. AOPA Bulgaria is quite active, Rosen Marinov is the guy to talk to, you find his contact on the Bulgarian AOPA site. What they need to sort out is the present incompatibility of small airfields and larger ones regarding customs, unless they join Schengen real soon, but even that will not help with the usual race track there which goes via Belgrade (for the fuel…) Nice airfields are Primorsko and I hear Lesnovo near sofia, as well as Balchick (former military) at the sea side. Plovdiv is easy going but has no Avgas.

It has been interesting for me to see how BG has developed GA wise in recent years, totally contrary to the rest of Europe where airfields disappear. When I did my AN2 conversion there in 1993, there were mostly the large airports plus several hundred unlisted farm strips for agricultural flying, all of them today disbanded. We took the AN2 into places I don’t even remember including one which looked right out of that horrible Air America Movie, nobody there, nobody interested. We used the rowing channel at Plovdiv for low level training and people waved and had fun watching.

Today, BG has a growing number of GA fields and GA is quite welcome on the big airports too, provided you have an AOPA card.

The society there is split between the younger generation who have never known communism and those who lived under it. The latter are split between those who despised it and those who profited from it. Pensioners live a really poor life there due to low pensions (around 100€ p.m.) and therefore many are supported by their children which they resent. They have never known freedom and are uncomfortable with the idea that their kids have so much of it. Consequently, a lot of the old fashioned economical thinking surfaces when kids to “unreasonable” stuff like spending their money on stuff which they do not understand or which simply wasn’t there. Not so much different from elsewhere but more pronounced due to the rather abrupt change of regime.

Mooney_Driver wrote:

It’s a nice place to fly to as well. From Austria (especcially southern) it’s also not too far to fly to, about 3-4 hours in a 150 kt plane. AOPA Bulgaria is quite active, Rosen Marinov is the guy to talk to, you find his contact on the Bulgarian AOPA site.

Thanks for the tips @Mooney_Driver really looking forward to being able to fly there!

AdamFrisch wrote:

@MedEwok – Fine, but with this resigned/gleeful attitude there isn’t much hope for European aviation. It’ll be gone soon.

I am sorry Adam my post fast neither meant to be resigned nor gleeful. I was merely listing what others posted so far. And I personally think these are valid reasons as to why it is as it is, but this shouldn’t discourage us from trying to improve the situation.

Looking back at the summary, let’s see what could be changed:

• European geography: Nothing we can do about it
• European weather: To avoid it becoming even worse, we need to seriously tackle climate change. And we can try to improve the weather-resistance of our aircraft, though that is difficult
• European infrastructure: I’m glad it is as good as it is, honestly. It will remain a big incentive to stay on the ground I am afraid
• European airports: A lot can be improved here, but it requires serious lobbying for our interests and thus much money. It also requires to get the local population on board. That means: Aircraft have to make as little noise as possible, the environment needs to be taken into consideration for any construction work on airports
• Airport opening hours: Same as above. “Silent” aircraft would lower local resistance against longer opening hours dramatically
• Socio-psychological aspect: This will only change if the general economic situation of large parts of the population improves again. This requires major political change throughout the continent and cannot be influenced by aviation alone
• Economy: The cost of GA is ridiculously high. This can be lowered by de-regulation and technological improvements.
• Insufficient need: Personal travel will become even less important in the future as digitalisation marches on. This is one of the megatrends of the 21st century.
• Cultural: A unified Europe, e.g. a federal European Union, would be a panacea for many problems. A unified airspace would be possible. Economy wise this is the only way out for the Eurozone other than collapse. A large part of the population, including many on this board, it anti-EU for shortsighted reasons. GA would benefit tremendously from a federal Europe, I am confident to say so.

Mooney_Driver wrote:

Maybe because like me he wonders that if the very idea is shouted down in an AVIATION forum, then why do we bother at all? That is something I’ve been trying to digest for a long time, not mainly here, but in other places. Sometimes i really think people like to dismantle and badmouth the very stuff they like to do. With “logical” arguments you can kill anything. The question is, why would one like to? just for the sake of destructiveness?

Urs, I was only listing what arguments were put forth in the previous pages of this topic. I personally think all those arguments have at least some valid foundation. We cannot merely dismiss them because we are enthusiasts. On the contrary, we have to deal with the world as it is, not as we want it to be.
That means as pilots we have to think about what can be done to improve our standing among the population. I think in these times this is mainly achieved by reducing our environmental impact.

• Noise pollution: is one of the main reasons why local populations fight against local airports. Reducing it as much as we can is our duty and will benefit ourselves in the end
• Air pollution: is another important factor. I think we as aviation community need to be supportive of all technologies that reduce it. As much as we may smile and grin about electrical aircraft right now, something like that has to be the future. Or the acceptance of our mode of transport will continue to fall
• Regulation: What we can and should influence is the way aviation is regulated. Since joining these forums I must say I am wondering how obsessed pilots seem to be with regulations, and they are often the ones who directly or indirectly create even more of it. Attitudes have to change here I think.

Mooney_Driver wrote:

They are but still a lot of places can be reached faster and more economically using GA. The main problem is infrastructure, not distances.

I had to fight my way in this line of argument two years ago at an AOPA assembly of all places!! People came by car or by train because they felt it was “uneconomical” to travel by plane.

I too think we have enough airfields in Europe. But they are often badly connected with other transport infrastructure, even in Germany which generally has good infrastructure. As long as it remains that way, car or train will indeed be more economical for many routes.

Mooney_Driver wrote:

Again, mostly a problem of infrastructure. You mention them in the following arguments, bad opening hours, no IFR. There are enough airfields, more than enough in most countries, but most of them are private places with no interest to be infrastructure at all.

Again, to change this we’d have to make all these aerodromes part of the public infrastructure. That requires public money and it will be difficult to convince the general population of investing it in aerodromes without getting them on board.

Mooney_Driver wrote:

What has to happen in Europe is that aviation infrastructure must be completely revolutionized in the way that you will not get a license to operate any airfield or airport if it’s not common infrastructure.

That would be great but it would require a political interest where currently there is none. In my opinion the best way to achieve this is actually through the EU and EASA.

As Peter often pointed out in past threads, a unified european airspace would probably boost GA enormously. This would, in my opinion, be best achieved in a more federal and unified EU. With the UK on the way out, the biggest roadblock against an ever closer union is removed and the UK pilots on this forum might ironically benefit from Brexit one day when they can fly through a unified european airspace…

MedEwok wrote:

I was only listing what arguments were put forth in the previous pages of this topic

Clearly and that is, as you say, a good thing. And btw, you were just listing them in order which is good work. It is simply “funny” and sometimes irritating that some of the most pronounced aviation sceptics come from our own folds.

MedEwok wrote:

On the contrary, we have to deal with the world as it is, not as we want it to be.

Of course. And if some of the things we oppose are really so much of a problem, then we have to act. If there are pilots who feel that their own hobby is “senseless” and heaven knows what else, then they might be happier with something else. Let alone professionals… career changes are painful at times but in such cases maybe not the worst idea.

MedEwok wrote:

That means as pilots we have to think about what can be done to improve our standing among the population.

I find that the best thing we can and have to do is to disspell lies and get the INFORMATION about what we do, how we do it and what the whole thing is all about out there. We keep raving about the US, but heavens if they don’t know how to promote airports. Sure, also here in Europe there are people who do this quite successfully but a lot of people sit resigned and give over control to the oppositon. Or let themselfs be talked into feeling guilty about what we are doing. Why? Flying in most cases is more environment friendly on the whole as most other means of transport. Starting with the fact that we only require small patches of land to do our thing, whereas rail and road use HUGE lands.

All your improvements will need one pre-condition: certification and rule making must be changed fundamentally to make it possible for current day engines and constructions to become products we can use within 12 months other than 10 years and two bancruptcies.

MedEwok wrote:

Again, to change this we’d have to make all these aerodromes part of the public infrastructure.

Yes, but that does not necessarily mean public property. What it should mean is, that anyone who wants to run an airfield or airport will have to allow the public to use it as infrastructure under pre-determined conditions. Those who licence that way will need to get some incentive of doing so, either by giving them some funding or, in true European style, tax those who refuse. In other words, if you want to run an airfield, it needs to be for everyone, if it isn’t, you pay for the privilege.

Another bit I’d like regulated is the misuse of slots and outpricing GA. Slots and outpricing are instruments used by quite a lot of airports who have for some reason become convinced that GA is their upmost problem. I’d like to see law whereby airports are banned from issuing PPR’s of any kind unless they can prove to a watchdog that they absolutely need them. The watchdog would then have to determine which kind of slot regimes may be installed if any. Same for parking restrictions e.t.c. Prove it and then we believe it, otherwise make this practice illegal.

MedEwok wrote:

it will be difficult to convince the general population of investing it in aerodromes without getting them on board.

Maybe, maybe not. The public, if they are convinced that the airfield is not as often perceived a playground for the rich but something everyone profits from then it will be much easier. There are many airfields who do that today but others which are no-go areas for most people.

MedEwok wrote:

a unified european airspace would probably boost GA enormously

A unified airspace with a proper and feasible border crossing procedures yes. I think this could be done without even talking of a United States of Europe though.

Jan_Olieslagers wrote:

No comments to add, all I thought on the matter has already been duly stated.

Still, @T/S, what exactly is a mojo ?

Sacrilege! Obviously Jan is someone who has not enjoyed the Austin Powers trilogy…… otherwise he’d know what Mojo is…..

But Adam, where does this notion that we all “hide” our flying come from? It might be true fro some stranger characters who also hide their Jaguar and go to the office by VW :-) But regular, normal people?

Know this joke? How do you find out if there’s a pilot at the party? You have to do nothing – he will tell you!

It’s not true for me, or any pilot and airplane owner i know. To me it’s just a stereotype.