How do you casually mention that you own an airplane without coming off like a ****?

Pinecone said:
I had a AMEX compromised while traveling. They shut off all transaction where the card was not physically swiped, so I could finish the trip.
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Nope, they shutdown my entire card and sent me a replacement by slow boat to home. No attempt to mitigate the situation.
 
I have the model: C-177B and year: 1976 or newer picked out as our forever plane when my wife is able to fly again (fingers crossed). The planes are so modern and sexy looking that people forget to ask about the price when they see a picture. I'm still earning my PPL, so I'm still renting.

I like the Cardinal because it sits close to the ground, has big doors, and the cantilevered wing sits back from the front seat so it doesn't block your view in turns. It also has a cockpit that's wide enough for me.

Or I'll just tell them I play honky-tonk piano in a whorehouse. ;)
 
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Racerx said:
If I tell someone, it's "I have a small plane." After the weird look, I qualify it by saying they probably paid more for their car than I did for my plane.
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This is the way. My plane costs less than several of my friends cars. My daily driver is a 24 year old Cherokee that I bought five years ago for $2000.
 
Fun thread. When I was a new pilot, I talked about flying all the time. My mother told me that a cousin of ours was like that when he became a pilot during WW2, so I felt more normal after that. As for the envy factor, I don't have reason to bring it up that often anymore, and when I do, I usually mention that I rent.
 
MauleSkinner said:
You know, that’s a really good point…controller’s prevent one airplane from running into another, rodeo clowns prevent bulls from running into rodeo riders.

And both provide a modicum of humor in the process.
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Yep. Deconflicting traffic is deconflicting traffic. And there’s a lot of bovine excrement in both jobs.
 
Racerx said:
If I tell someone, it's "I have a small plane." After the weird look, I qualify it by saying they probably paid more for their car than I did for my plane.
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That's fine and dandy if you bought your plane before the recent run up. It's harder to say that if one bought a plane in the past 3-5 years or so.
 
This was the most annoying thing about owning a plane (not annoying enough to stop me from searching for my next plane).

I had a coworker who used to comment on this, implying that I make too much money. He did this while he drove a "Practical" Chevy Trailboss that cost more than my plane, truck and home combined.
 
asicer said:
Hey Mister Moneybags, the "How do you casually mention that you live on an island..." thread is over there that way.
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I assumed it was Hawaii, Puerto Rico or England.
Not Green Island. I don't know of anyone that would brag about being from Green Island.
 
benyflyguy said:
I usually make a joke when asked.
“ as a physician assistant I can’t afford to own my own plane, I am in a club so I own pieces of a plane, two cylinders, one of the smaller wings, a seat, two instruments and a tire. “
Which is a true joke lol. it usually deflates that awkwardness imo
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I explain the club the same way, but we have 300 members. I say I own the nut that holds the left tire on.
 
Calling our plane a “small experimental” usually tempers expectations. Which is good since after the last few years of appreciation we can no longer use the “less than your car” reference.
 
Timbeck2 said:
So now, I just tell everyone I'm a professional rodeo clown.
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Had a friend the was a supporting actor on a pretty well-known TV show years ago.. When we would go out, and yes, there would be someone that wouldn't respect his space hounding for a photo or an autograph. He would always say, "I know, I look like so and so, I get it all the time, I am not him, but I wish I was.." Even with the young damsels, he maintained the rouse.

I always tell people I am one of the rocket surgeon fellerars y'all be hearing about...
 
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Pinecone said:
I had a AMEX compromised while traveling. They shut off all transactions where the card was not physically swiped, so I could finish the trip.
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I am finding that more and more, I need to enter my PIN to complete the transaction - especially when they are tableside transactions. I am OK with this.

Additionally, with AX, they pretty much have my spending habits down - which is both good and bad. I called them a while back to let them know I was going to be in Denmark and Norway. They said, "yes we know, we see you made airline and hotel reservations with your card at these locations. No need to inform us in the future.."

This is one case where I don't mind that Big Brother is watching...
 
bflynn said:
I explain the club the same way, but we have 300 members. I say I own the nut that holds the left tire on.
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Sounds about like my club, except most of the members don't own any part of any aircraft. (The only thing that distinguishes it from an FBO is that we get to vote for members of the board.)
 
flyingron said:
Years ago I flew from Oshkosh to Broken Bow, NE, had lunch and then continued on to Ft. Collins. We were picking up the alcohol for my daughter's wedding at a mega liquor store out there. The manager came over and said "American Express would like to speak to you."

ME: Hello?
AX: Are you in possession of your card?
ME: Yes.
AX: Were you at the Hilton Garden Inn in Oshkosh Wisconsin this morning?
ME: That was me.
AX: And were you in Broken Bow, Nebraska at 1 PM today?
ME: That was me, too.
AX: And now you are in Ft. Collins, Colorado?
ME: This is me.
AX: And you're in possession of your card.
ME: Yes, that was me in all those places. Would it help if I let you know I own my own airplane?
AX: Ah, that makes sense. Sorry to have bothered you.

It seems they couldn't figure out how I got between three towns so quickly that don't have air service anywhere near them.
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I had similar experiences when I was racing. Vendors from all over would be at the track, and when they ran my credit card the transaction would show up as originating from their home business locations. My card would go dead, I'd talk to Visa, and they'd tell me "We show that within the last 30 minutes you bought gas in Georgia, tires in Tennessee, oil in Ohio, and lunch in Louisiana."

Yeah, well.....
 
Most people I know are aware I'm a pilot. When asked what do I fly, I tell them a small plane that is almost as old as I am. The two most responses are, after looking at my somewhat shopworn face, "No S***!" and "Is that safe?"

Those that don't know me, usually drift away after I tell them I'm a retired engineer.

Cheers
 
X3 Skier said:
Most people I know are aware I'm a pilot.
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And if they're not, they soon will be.


X3 Skier said:
The two most responses are, after looking at my somewhat shopworn face, "No S***!" and "Is that safe?"
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I tell them, "Heck no! The drive to and from the airport is often a near-death experience!"


X3 Skier said:
hose that don't know me, usually drift away after I tell them I'm a retired engineer.
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Yeah, same here. Can't imagine why....

:D
 
X3 Skier said:
When asked what do I fly…
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When I used to answer “Cessna”, the response was always “Ah. Heh.” When I changed to “Mooney” or “Diamond Star”, the responses became “Oh. Hmm.”
 
flyingron said:
Nope, they shutdown my entire card and sent me a replacement by slow boat to home. No attempt to mitigate the situation.
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I was not saying that this was offered to you, I was pointing out that this MAY be a possibility.
 
Q: "What do you fly?"

A: An RV-10. It is an experimental airplane. I built it in my garage/basement.

Q: Is it an ultralight or something?

A: Not really. It is a kitplane that comes in multiple subkits.

Q: What'd it take you, 6 months or a year to build?

A: LOL. It was a pretty big project.
 
Some I see have added FAA Certification on their linked profiles.
 
Pinecone said:
Only to other pilots. To the average person, there are Piper Cubs and airliners. :D
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Flying out of DCA in something not a full on airliner - 30 - 50ish seats? - lady next to me is all nervous because the plane was so small...
 
Capt. Geoffrey Thorpe said:
Flying out of DCA in something not a full on airliner - 30 - 50ish seats? - lady next to me is all nervous because the plane was so small...
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That's how my mom always felt about CRJs/ERJs.

"Mom those are the engines I support at my day job. They're fine." (when I supported those engines at my day job, not anymore)
 
kyleb said:
Q: "What do you fly?"

A: An RV-10. It is an experimental airplane. I built it in my garage/basement.

Q: Is it an ultralight or something?

A: Not really. It is a kitplane that comes in multiple subkits.

Q: What'd it take you, 6 months or a year to build?

A: LOL. It was a pretty big project.
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^^ This.

And then when they see it for the first time:

Them: "Oh! It's like a REAL airplane!"... gears turning in head. wait for it.. wait for it... "Wait. You mean you built this in your garage!?"
 
Scrabo said:
Some I see have added FAA Certification on their linked profiles.
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I've had a few people come in for interviews with notations they were pilot on their resumes. It's been little more than an off-topic talking point.

One guy who had been a former ATC put down that he had an FAA clearance? FAA clearance? What? Clearance to land? But they do run a background check on these guys apparently (probably the same one they did on me when I got my FRZ authorization).
 
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flyingron said:
I've had a few people come in for interviews with notations they were pilot on their resumes. It's been little more than an off-topic talking point.

One guy who had been a former ATC put down that he had an FAA clearance? FAA clearance? What? Clearance to land? But they do run a background check on these guys apparently (probably the same one they did on me when I got my FRZ authorization).
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So you're saying I should put my AOA badge on my resume?
 
Jim K said:
So you're saying I should put my AOA badge on my resume?
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Amusingly, in my collection of odd ID's and certifications (to include my radiotelegraph operators license in case I ever need to go work a radio on an ocean-going ship) is a TWIC card: Transportation Worker Identification Credential. Essentially, it's a SIDA badge for seaports and is issued by the TSA. Amusingly, a lot of times the TSA doc checker at the airport won't accept it. Oddly, the further away from the coast I get, the MORE likely they'll take it. One even told me that he doesn't see many of those. At CLT they didn't like it because they were testing this new driver's license scanning thing and they were trying to encourage that. At DCA the guy was a prick about not taking it so I filed a complaint with the TSA. I got a message from the national office saying that he should have taken it but they always have the right to demand a second ID. A few days later I actually got a phone call from the DCA TSA station chief saying that he was sorry, that shouldn't have happened, and the screener had been reeducated. Better response than I thought.

Of course the little piece of 3x5 card that has my FRZ pin that I got in 2002 is pretty worthless (don't even know where it is, I committed the PIN to memory).
 
I just tell them my plane costs half as much as my boat.
Somehow doesn't make it any less awkward :(
 
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