Pilot or Parachute

[maxwellman23 0]

Good evening Dropzone,
Im currently stationed in Anchorage,AK and in the next few months will be getting free money(Permanent Fund Dividend) thanks to good Ol' Gov Palin!
With this in mind and the on base Aero club(close location and supposedly much cheaper) becoming a pilot is a dream well within reach, however when summer rolls around I want nothing more than to being freefalling through the clear Alaskan air.
My question is, If you where in my situation would YOU go for a private Pilot's License or your A license?

sidenote: if I become a pilot in time for skydiving season I would have relatively no experience, am I able legally to fly for the Dropzone and earn money towards being a skydiver?

all your opinions are valued

I am ALIVE!

[wolfriverjoe 1,523]

I'm both a pilot and skydiver. I really do enjoy flying, but if I have a choice, I'd rather jump out of the plane than fly it.

Do a tandem and an intro flight lesson and decide for yourself.

And to answer your sidenote, no. You need a Commercial license to fly jumpers. You can't earn anything (or even fly without pay if the people are paying to get on the plane) with a Private license.

"There are NO situations which do not call for a French Maid outfit." Lucky McSwervy

"~ya don't GET old by being weak & stupid!" - Airtwardo

[JerseyShawn 0]

I first came to the sky as a private pilot. I just got into jumping. Both are just as great. Piloting and skydiving will always be there to do anytime in your life. I could afford to do both I would. If you decide to jump first and stick with it a while, maybe go up with a pilot instructor once in a while to get the best of both worlds. He/she wont let you take off or land the plane but they'll let you take the controls to fly it. I would do that. Alaska would be so pretty to explore from the sky. But you could pilot then jump once in a while also, with instructors.

Skydiving is a bit cheaper to learn.

[velvetjo 0]

Military aero clubs generally have great rates for renting aircraft. That's a pretty rare thing, so take advantage of it while you can. You'll see a lot more of Alaska with a pilot's license, and be a better pilot for starting out in an area where aviation is still pretty raw. One of the coolest things about aviation up there is that it's actually valued by society, not taken for granted and kicked around.

That said, you should do at least a jump or two while you're there, just for the view if nothing else. Have a blast either way!

Lance

[airtwardo 7]

As mentioned above, you will need your commercial ticket to fly jumpers at a DZ as well as a minimum of usually 500 hours...not to mention it's not like it was years ago when jump pilots were somewhat hard to come by, anymore there seems to be quite a few good skydiver drivers and not a lotta employment.

If you have the opportunity to get your pilots license relatively cheap, I would go that way separate from the skydiving.

You may be able to pick up some 'other' kind of work at the DZ to help defray those costs.

~ If you choke a Smurf, what color does it turn? ~

[sinjin 0]

Having just gone thru the private pilot license course a year ago, it is a fun experience but expensive. The ability to get paid flying time will take a long time and a lot of money. Look at 500 hours at 100 an hour. (50,000) I am pretty sure that dz pilots make barely enough to pay for car gas back and forth to the dz. Thinking that the pilots license will lead to a dz job in the short term, that is not really a viable option. I would choose either route, both are amazing. Both are luxury items. The skydiving is a bit cheaper once you get license and gear, it gets real cheap. The flying not so much and actually gets more expensive as you get into bigger and faster planes.

After 4 years I have 1200 skydives, 175 base jumps, and 135 hours of flying and a limited bank account !!!! Fun account filled to the rim however !! f#$% it

dont let life pass you by