skywagon8a
MEMBER
SE Mass MA6
I've been holding my tongue waiting for someone to mention this. A student pilot with dreams is eager to learn. A newly minted Private pilot has a license to learn. When a pilot accrues around 200 hours he begins to think he knows all the answers. By the time he has 600 hours, he knows he has all the answers. When he approaches 1000 hours he is beginning to think he doesn't know it all. After 1000 or so hours he realizes there is still a lot to learn. He then starts to become a safe pilot.When I was a couple hundred hour pilot I probably would have been less hesitant - not knowing what I didn't know.
It strikes me that Cardiff is approaching that 200 hour mark. Be careful Cardiff. In the past there have been a lot of "doctor" stories. People who have the funds to buy any airplane they want. They get a new Private license, rush right out and buy a new Bonanza or Malibu or some other high performance airplane to take their family places. The next thing you know, they are mentioned on the evening news, not in a very happy report.
Getting an instrument rating has been mentioned. Yes, this is a very useful learning experience and does give you the authority to fly in the clouds. However, procuring and maintaining proficiency to safely fly in the clouds with the distraction of a wife and kids is another story altogether. It takes a lot of time after getting the ticket to become at ease in the IFR environment. IFR flying particularly solo, is a highly concentrating affair. Outside distractions can spell disaster. Maintaining proficiency to the FAA's standards is only for paperwork requirements. In order to become and to maintain proficiency one must fly within the IFR system a lot. If not, when the chips are down and the weather drops to minimums, well........................ Getting the ticket to be able to keep you out of trouble is more likely to get you into trouble, if you do not "live" within the IFR environment.
If you still wish to get a second airplane for those special trips with family, get one of the many mentioned fixed gear airplanes, with a nose wheel. There are several good ones. With the fixed gear -18 as your primary airplane and a retractable airplane for the secondary airplane ......... well far more experienced pilots than you have neglected to extend the gear. This is particularly more of an issue when jumping from one type to the other.