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How many of you were over 40 before you received your PPL?

I was just thinking the other day that time is slipping away for me... I will turn 39 this year and have loved aviation for as long as I remember.. I haven't grown up around planes, airports or anything like that but have wanted to get my PPL Ticket for as long as I remember... I was just thinking that I want to get my license before I am 40. That could be a huge milestone for me since I one day want to build an RV 7A... So as I was thinking this I was going through a bunch of different topics here and was kinda noticing that it seems most everyone on these boards must have been in there early 20's or so when they received their PPL Ticket... I am curious if any of you over 40 people might want to share there experience of getting there PPL and why they took so long also... Was it a financial thing, sudden desire to fly that they never had before, time commitment etc... Thanks for sharing and inspiring those of us who are not yet Pilots...

Also along the same lines how many of you were over 40 when you started building your RV? What age where you when you started?
 
I wasn't 40, but started and finished my PPL in my mid-30's. It was something I always wanted to do, but for a multiude of reasons didn't get around to until then.... BTW - I startedmy RV-7A before I finished my PPL.

Go for it...... you only go around once.
 
I was 47

I had wanted to since I was a kid. Took ground school when in my teens, but no money to fly:( Over the years I would look at the airplane magazines, but never saw planes that looked: fun to fly, affordable to buy/fly, and useful for traveling. Then in Flying magazine, of all places, I saw an article talking about something called an RV6. Now I have one:cool:
I wish I had known of a way to accomplish that earlier in life. But under the circumstances I just didn't know of a way that seemed financially responsible to do it. I'm very happy with how things have turned out:)
 
I was 41

Like most, it was something I had always wantede to do. We got our finances in order(out of debt) which made it affordable. Now at 43 I am preparing to build a RV9:cool:
 
first lesson at age 18, 1979. 2nd lesson was age 43, 2005. PP-ASEL age 44.

Funny how hobbies take a backseat when raising a family. But with the kids grown and gone, it's our time. I'll fly my RV-7 before I turn 50.....at least that's the current plan.
 
We started building 05. Got my PPL and flew our (9) in 07.
I'm 62 now with my bride of 35 years. The people you meet in an RV
are the very best.
 
I started my RV-6 project when I was 38, got my PPL when I was 41 (in a Citabria 7ECA) and did first flight in my -6 at 44. Wish I had done it 20 yrs earlier, but the $$ situation wasn't there yet.
 
RE:Go for it....

Hi

I was 53 when I got my PPL from Dixie College Flight School. Boy do I regret not getting it years earlier. Money/Family/Jobssss/ you name it slowed me down. But, I still know that I could have worked it in. Missed out on a lot of fun/learning/flying/friendships/.......

So at 63 the 7A is done and I am flying but I know time is growing short. I can only hope for as many years as my CFI friend Cliff at 92 who is still flying/giving BFRs/training ......................but the reality is I know that the health trigger may be pulled on me at any time.

So at least start the training and before you know it the family/responsibilities/work/church/community will give you wiggle room to fulfill your dream.

Frank @ 1L8 ... RV7A ... Flying and Tracken MT-RTG
 
Over 40 and taught by my son.

It was rough but he made me a better pilot. I had second thoughts letting my future air force pilot/ Alaska Air captain son- (back then he was a lowly CFI/CFII/MEL A&P) teach me. You could call it payback. You could call it torture. If the windsock was straight out crosswind, I would suggest we come back the next day. He would say, prep the warrior. Under the hood, he directed me into every turbulent air mass he could find. I did get my PPL at 42 hours. He went on to T38s,KC135,C141,C17 and now predators in the reserves. Somehow he manages his full time job flying for Alaska. I just want to get my RV6A done so I can do what I should have done 20 years ago......
 
Solo'd at 19; 42 hours toward my Private by age 23; got married at 24 and stopped flying; lost my log book somewhere between 24 and 53; Started all over again and got my Private at age 54. Started my RV-7A at 55 and flew it for the first time a year ago at 62. My wife and I are having a ball with our RV-7A. Go for it!
 
I'm in my 50's, building my RV-7A, about to start on my finish kit. And I don't have a PPL yet. I debated in my mind whether to get it before starting the plane, but didn't want my skills to get rusty while spending several years getting the RV finished. I don't have the time, finances, or mental energy to do both at the same time. So I'll start flying when the project nears completion. I think I'll be a better pilot when I can totally focus on it, knowing I have a plane of my own waiting for me.

Years ago, I took the ground school course when I was in college and flew a few hours, but the price tag of flying for a poor college student just made it impossible for me. I was skydiving at the time and I eventually accumulated over 450 jumps. So I've been in, and around, a lot of different airplanes and I'm very comfortable in the air. Then the realities of jobs, family and kids, being the sole provider for my family and finally being a single parent for a long time until the nest was empty set in. I almost lost my aviation dreams completely.

I've known since I was knee-high that I wanted an airplane of my own someday. But they've always been out of reach. Then, along comes this idea of building your own! I knew immediately it was the answer for me. Right now, I'm having the time of my life being immersed in the project.

So don't worry about the age thing. This isn't a race and nobody's keeping score. Just jump in and go for it.
 
PPL

Took 5 hrs when I was 18. Started over at 39, got my PPL when I was 40. Bought a Cessna 150. Started my RV-9A when I was 56. Nearly finished the wings.
 
I was 40

I asked my wife if she would mind if I tried some flying lessons. She reluctantly agreed. I said "Great... I started yesterday!".
 
Get one.

At the price of an excellent use RV in today's market one option would be to take a few lessons, to be sure it is right for you, then, if it is "right" go out and get a flying RV and finish your license in it.

At today's prices, unfortunately for the seller:(, it is easy to pick up an excellent RV for less than what it cost to build one. Granted, you will not get the joy of building but you will get the joy of flying one about 2 -5 years earlier than building.

The people that you will meet flying are an excellent group. Go to Oshkosh next year. It is a great place to see everything imaginable in flying.:)
 
I always wanted to be a pilot...would have done it as a career but I was talked out of it because of my poor vision. Solo'd in guilders in my eary 30's but never got my license.

Finally at age 50, I made the decision to start taking lessons. It took me longer to develop the stick & rudder skills then the young guys but I stuck with it. The fact that I had to work harder at it, made me appreciate it more when I did get my PPL. Now 9 year later, I've got almost 600 hrs logged - more then 200 of that in my RV.

I didn't get much flying in while I was building but it was well worth it. Owning a plane, especially an RV, is sooooo much better then renting.
 
I started and finished my private at the ripe old age of 30, which was about ten years later than I thought I would. I was an aviation nut from about the age of 12, but the interest waned to a certain extent in my teens. By the time I hit 20, I knew I wanted to do it... but the problem was that I'd made a series of bad decisions, decisions that would continue to effect me for some time.

As a result, I spent my 20s working dead-end hourly jobs, making enough to live and do OK but not much more. I kept convincing myself that next year would be the year, and I kept being wrong. It got to a point where I didn't even really believe myself any more.

Things took a big positive turn when I landed a pretty good job about 18 months ago. Suddenly I was actually making decent money for the first time in my life... it was still going to take some time to save up the funds I needed, but it actually felt somewhat within my grasp.

But then I got a completely unexpected windfall... one day my boss (owner of a small company) had me come in his office. He'd picked up my aviation nuttery from hearing me talk... not that that's hard to do. He was also concerned because several people had left the company in a short time. I hadn't had any thoughts of leaving, but he still wanted to do something to show his appreciation for my hard work. You may have guessed it by now, but that appreciation came in the form of paying for my entire private ticket. He couldn't have possibly offered anything more meaningful to me. I "repayed" him by finishing in ~45 hours.

My personal summary of this story is that over the course of about 12 months, I went from being almost at the point of admitting defeat in my dream to actually doing it. In March of 2009, I was making crackers, job hunting, and not having a lot of luck. In March 2010, I was sneaking glances at a shiny new temporary certificate.

I suppose the moral of this story is not to get down on yourself because things are happening later than they thought they would. You never know when your situation could take a sudden upswing and change things entirely. It happened to me, and it can happen to you.

Don't lose heart.
 
I can't remember a time when I didn't want to be a pilot. Built model airplanes as a youngster, was in the Civil Air Patrol in 8th grade, was given introductory glider flights. But, school, the Army, college, marriage, life "got in the way" and it wasn't until I was 54 in 2006 that I could get the required finances and time together to start my PPL. Even though I had doubts about being "too old to start", I took one of those "crash" (pun intended) two week courses at a local flight school from which you're supposed to emerge as a Private Pilot, but only got as far as solo and a few hours into my cross-countries. I then quit flying for almost two years before finding a CFI who taught privately from his own plane at a small airport nearby and finally got my PPL last year. Just last month I turned 58 and will be bucking rivets in my 9A tail kit tomorrow night when I get home from work!

Yeah, I wish I had started this whole process 30 years ago, but I can't do a thing about the past. I'm not particularly anxious about the possibility of my not being physically able to fly the 9A when it's finished in a few years. I'm an almost "burned out" computer programmer and I look on the project and flying as the only "real" things I'm doing in life right now. So, even if I keel over in the near future, I will have at least enjoyed learning new things and being able to hold real airplane parts in my hands! So, it is true that you're never too old to start something.

Finally, what one hears said about the quality of people you meet in Aviation is true for the most part. Never before in my life have I been surrounded by so many good and generous individuals I consider friends and especially those who've built RVs! I regret all the years I could have had with such high caliber people but am thankful that a good portion of whatever time I have left can be spent with them.

I remember "the big four oh" as a pretty "traumatic" milestone. Perhaps that's a bit of what you're going through right now, the beginnings of a "mid-life crisis". This will pass, but if I were in your shoes right now, I'd certainly go for my PPL and get it behind me. Sounds like doing that would lighten your current load quite a bit. Just know from this "old geezer" that I consider you to be a spring chicken! :)
 
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Do it NOW

Flying is a health limited activity. Do it now while you can.

Secondly, once you get it, you will say repeatedly "why didn't I do this a long time ago?" You want to minimize that, and maximize the fun time in the left seat.

For my story: GA passenger since age 10. Solo'ed in my teens. That pretty much caused my selection of aeromechanical carreer. Was on my last few hrs of checkride prep in '85 and had to stop (life sux sometimes). Many years later, the wife said "why don't you finish?". I was at the field the next day.
 
Received PPL at 43, flew a 172 then a 182. Started building a -6A at 60 years old, took 4 years and have been flying it for 7 years. It's not too late, you just have to get started.
 
Enjoy the journey

I asked my wife if she would mind if I tried some flying lessons. She reluctantly agreed. I said "Great... I started yesterday!".

Congratulations. Every journey starts with the first step. Enjoy the journey.
 
Started lessons when I was 36, ran out of money and had to quit for about a year and a half, then resumed and passed my checkride when I was 38. Recently celebrated the 10th anniversary of being a private pilot :cool:
 
Over 40

48 upon getting PPL. Too financially conservative to spend that kind of money until I had raised the family and secured their education. Conventional wisdom says "First the kids college, then the Harley"

If I had known how much fun flying is and the great people who are in that community, I would have gotten into it earlier and exposed my children to it while growing up.

But better late than never.
 
Over 40 PPL

44 when I obtained my PPL. Flew RC for years but always assumed that full scale was WAY TOO expensive. (it's only VERY expensive) :eek:

Craig
 
Started lessons and rceived my PPL at age 60. Learned in a Diamond Katane, then flew a 172 in a flying club. Began my 9A at 64 and finished it at 66. Still flying at almost 72
 
45, for me

First flight age 6, C-172. What an eye-opener!

Bensen gyrocopter preview plan, age 8. Still have it.

Never did save enough for that Rotorway Scorpion information kit.
Out of university, with a job, home evenings and weekends in 1991.
Started ground school.
Started skydiving 1990. More or less stopped for family/money/work about 1995.
Started flying 2007. solo'd. Family stuff, then work interrupted.
More flying, 2008. Family stuff, then work interrupted. More flying and interrupted again.
More flying, 2009 gritted teeth, ignored interruptions with supportive wife.
Finished ground school 2009.
Flight test summer 2009. Written test summer 2010, PPL completed.

Now for some dual time to once again, blow the rust off.

My way was not the inexpensive way, with going back over stuff each year, I think I'm around 80 hrs.

I'm glad I did the skydiving first, I met and learned from some really good pilots, and saw some examples of things to avoid.

I've seen a recurring theme here - do it while you are young. Doesn't always work out that way :)
 
43

I flew into a Bonanza meet at JFK a few weeks back (in my buddy's plane). One of the other Banaza pilots that showed up was a Bishop in his 80's. I hope I still fly in my 80's!!

For what it's worth, there is no getting around it. So like someone else said, do it while you have as much good health left as you can!!
 
Purchased a C172 at Age 41 and about 3 months later had my ppl which was January of this year. I am working on my Instrument Rating now and plan on start building an RV next year. As others have said I wish I would have done it a long time ago, but I am having a blast. My Dad is 72 and still flying and flying well....still giving instruction. So with his genes, I should have at least 30 more years to go.
 
age

I started with free flight back in the 50s, Then RC in the late 60s. The doggone aircraft kept getting bigger and bigger and then at age 53, with my new ticket in hand (100hrs in an 7KCAB) I got into the best model of all, An RV4. That was 1991 and now in 2010 I have over 2000 hrs, all in RV's first a 4,then a 6. and now an RV7a, yes, it's got a wussie wheel in front
 
45

I started lessons at 44 and got the ticket at 45. No real GA experience/exposure before that 'cept a couple of brief rides with friends. Unlike so many folks, I have no regrets at waiting. I hadn't had an easy opportunity and was too busy (and poor) with other activities in my life. I couldn't have imagined spending limited caving money for flying lessons! :eek:

Doing it at an "advanced" age was a great mental challenge (lots of book learning many years after leaving school) as well as a skill challenge. I'm sure I would have learned faster and ultimately been a more skilled stick if I had started younger, but I think I compensate with good judgment and a clear knowledge of what works for me and doesn't.
 
started building 9A kit #625 (slowbuild) at 50 years old in 2002. Finished kit in 2006, 54 years old. Got PPL in 2007 at 55 years old. 200 hrs by 2010 at 58 years old.

doug knight
rv-9a
#90625
 
Must be the oldest yet --- 64

Bought a 1973 Citabria then took lessons and got my ticket in two months at age 64. Flew for a year an half and bought a Liberty XL 2 (one with a funny little wheel on the front) to get an instrument rating but then found my way and started builting a RV-8 about 2 1/2 years ago. Finished her this last December (at age 68) and now have 120 wonderful hours of RV grins.....only problem is I can't keep her straight and level for an extended time, she keeps wanting to roll over, etc.
 
Me...

I was (blah blah) years old when I started building, which was WAY over 40 and I didn't have my PPL. I finished my 7 tail dragger and trained in it after my CFI flew off the phase I time for me. He hated every minute of it I'm sure... lol. :p
 
54 years old. Finished a month ago.

Just finished my private pilot in my co-owned RV9a. Started in 1983 but money and family ended it. Took couple lessons a year ago and then bought the RV9A and finished all the training and the checkride in it. Have never looked back. It was fun to train in the RV and not be on a time line and be inexpensive to fly. We are going to make the plane IFR and start on my instrument ticket.
 
yep, time is slipping

Dude, You can be flying yourself around the pattern, solo, in a matter of a mere 15 hours of instruction (ymmv). In around 4-6 months, you will have a major bucket list item checked off and be permitted to make flight patterns with your hands while you talk at parties. Now you've read everyone else's story, it's time to go write your own.

We want follow-up.

Don
 
(42 now) fixed ppl and build started at 36(ish), helo add-on a few months ago!

Never grew up around airplanes, never flew in a bitty one - just always at the back of my mind. I first saw a helicopter when I was a coupla years old, and dreamed of flying them ever since. Unfortunately, I allowed myself to be persuaded in my teens that it was not affordable for civilians. Finally got around to flying fixed-wing some years back, finished up a few years ago after lots of fun. A recent move provided the opportunity to fulfill my helo flying dream: it was easy and fun, and in my 40s I still learn just dandy. I started building around the time I started my fixed-wing stuff.

Go fly an aircraft and finish a license (any license), is my thinking...we're young, but we're old enough to have had some "shoulda dunnit" moments already - don't need to create any more of those.

It's fun, it's challenging in a good way, it's inexpensive on the large scale, and - similar to scuba diving, rock climbing, very foreign travel, and a bunch of other perspective-changing activities - you can't get that feeling from any other activity you do. If it doesn't end up working for you, that's just fine - but at least you'll never second-guess yourself on the matter.

My folks had what I think was a great dinner-table rule when I was a kid: you didn't have to eat anything you knew you didn't like, but you *had* to try it at some point to see if you liked it...they didn't want us missing out on anything, you see.
 
I was 31 when I got my PPL. I was one of the poor pilots, that was working a $6.00 an hour factory job, but just saved my pennies, till one day, I had enough saved to go do it. Loved every minute of it! It set me back $1,700.00. You’re looking at $5-$6,000.00 now for that same PPL, unless you have a very cool and understanding friend who is an instructor and will let you use his plane for just fuel and other costs.

I’m 52 now, and this is when I finally made up my mind to build an RV-4. I’m fortunate enough to still have my health, and thus far I still don’t need reading glasses (knock on wood).

I think thirties and forties is an excellent time to get started on everything, PPL and building your plane. It’s an excellent balance generally at that age with finances and your health. As you get older, more distractions are going to come your way, and the risks become higher for you to lose your medical.
 
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It's Never too Late

I dropped out of small sailboat racing in my mid 50s, got my PPL at age 59, retired at age 60 (1990). Built an RV-6a as my retirement project. Finished the RV and tested it in 1993. I've been flying the plane ever since (1450 hours on the plane, 1570 total). I'm now pondering a graceful transition to LSA at 81 years.

Frank Russell
 
52

I was about to turn 52 when I got my PPL, and about to turn 58 when I got my A&P. I was about to turn 29 when I started my flight lessons, and put it on hold for my marriage and legal career (neither was worth it). My project has been on hold while I went back to school, but now it's time to get it going again.

Two observations: 1. You can't finish what you don't start; and 2. If circumstances don't let you pursue what you really want to do, maybe you need to change your circumstances.
 
I took my first flying lesson in 1999 at age 16. I worked in a bike shop for $6/hr, so I quickly ran out of money just before I was able to solo. I decided to put flying on the backburner and work for a summer or two to save enough money to finish my PPL all at once. Then there was 9/11 and all of the local flight schools closed their doors. I went to college and a few years went by.

I'd always been interested in skydiving and decided to make my first jump as a Sophmore in college in 2004. I very quickly started working in skydiving while I was finishing my degree. Since graduating from college in 2006 I've been working as a professional skydiver. I've lived in travel trailers on dropzones for about six years now and have had the good fortune to get to know a lot of wonderful people in the aviation community. I bought myself a C-150 for my 24th birthday and finished up my PPL in just a few weeks with help from a jump pilot buddy.

The 150 was a beauty and a solid flying ship, but felt the thirst for real performance. I ran into a member of the VAF community at a dropzone in FL one winter and he took me up in his RV-8. I caught the RV grin, sold the Cessna and bought an RV-4.

Right now I'm 27 years old I've been flying the -4 for a year and a half. I hope to start building my next RV before I turn 30. I feel fortunate to have gotten a relatively early start in aviation, but it's come at the cost of putting a lot of other things on the backburner. As Mike said above, "If circumstances don't let you pursue what you really want to do, maybe you need to change your circumstances." I'd encourage everybody to take that advice and don't look back.
 
I did my PPL after finishing with grad school. I was 27 and newlywed. Had a Rockwell Commander 114 that I co-owned with my Dad. He got his PPL around that same time and he was 51 at the time. Flew that plane for a few years until we started our family. Had to sell the plane and ended up moving away from the family for work. Flying has been on hold for the last 20 years for me. I've always missed the flying, but just never had the time with raising 3 kids. Now that they are in college and finishing High School the time is right for me to get back into flying. I've been an EAA member since 1984, and have always wanted to build an airplane.

There is no Life 2.0, so get working on your dreams!
 
PPL Over 40

I was about 42 when I got my ppl added instrument rating in my 50's, started my RV9 at about 55 (380 hrs and counting)
And just started an RV8 @ age 62. It's never too late to get started!
 
50

I was 50 when I got mine. I don't recall exactly why I didn't go for it long before that. On puddlejumper commercial flights, I always liked to sit right behind the cockpit, so I could watch what was going on, and I always get window seats, so I can look out at everything.

I guess I saw the idea of being a pilot and having a plane on the same level as having a yacht; out of my league. Sure glad I finally did it!
 
38 years old

when I got mine. I does take time, money and commitment. Getting all 3 lined up was what drove the timing. One thing I would do differently is to commit to lessons at least twice a week, if not more. My schedule was/is wacky and frequently I would have a week or more go by with no flying and the next lesson I would have "back-slid". Flying more frequently would have made it go faster/cheaper.

Jeremy Constant
 
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