What's the cheapest airplane you ever rented?

MSPAviator

MSPAviator

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MSPAviator
Ok, this one should be good for the old timers around here.

What's the cheapest price you have ever paid, wet, for airplane rental?

What kind of plane was it, and how long ago?


I'll start. 2009, Cessna 152, $65/hr. working on my Private, and that was a really good deal at the time. :)


I wish I was flying in the late 1990s when gas was much cheaper than it is today. :sad:
 
About 1998 we were renting out Aeronca Champs for $35/hr wet. We had 3 or 4 of them on the line and were doing 100/hr inspections once a month. No electrical systems, No avionics, Low Maintenance. Could burn Auto fuel if we wanted, but we only did autofuel for a short time.

I belonged to a club about 1995 that was renting a J-4 for $10/hr wet. I think the Monthly dues were something like $30/mo.

1988 I think I was pay $35/hr for a C-150. Joined the local Flying Club and was paying $22/hr for a C-152. With a $30/mo fee.

Brian
CFIIG/ASEL
 
Cheapest I've seen in the past 6 years would be the Champ at Brown Field (SDM) for $65/hr wet.
 
In 1995 I rented a Cessna 150 for $35/hour wet. I had to buy a block of 20 hours to get that rate. I was lucky that I got all my time in before he folded.
 
I have never rented, I have always owned when I was flying in part 91.

in 1953 My Dad bought a J-3, for $485.00, new in the crate. he taught my to fly it, on $.08Cent per gallon farm gas.

No insurance, no ATC, No control of a 13 year old kid in a J-3. I learned cross wind control by chasing ice boaters. I learned short field by trying not to hit bales of hay.

Oh for the good old days.
 
MSPAviator said:
Ok, this one should be good for the old timers around here.

What's the cheapest price you have ever paid, wet, for airplane rental?
Click to expand...

Cessna 150's were going for $16 per hour wet when I was learning to fly. 1976.
 
In 1993 when I was a student pilot, the local FBO rented C152's @ $43/hr wet.

Later, they decided they only wanted to teach people with more money, so they sold the 152's and replaced them with 172's at over twice the cost. Now they wonder where all the primary flight students went...
 
MSPAviator said:
What's the cheapest price you have ever paid, wet, for airplane rental?

What kind of plane was it, and how long ago?
Click to expand...

I wish you would have added a qualifier like "within the last 12 months" so that the answers would have some actual utility.
 
I was paying $9 per hour, dry, tach-time for a C150 and the year was 1981. The airport was HWD, Ca.
 
1966, Coeur d'Alene Idaho, $10/hour wet:

Flying-60s-091213-003.jpg


When I was instructing at Long Beach CA in 1971-72, our Cherokee 140Bs were renting for $16.50/hour wet.
 
$17/hr wet, C-150 at Gunnell Aviation at Santa Monica Airport in 1971 where I learned to fly.
 
$18/hour, wet including the instructor for a Cherokee 140. 1972. At Reading Aviation Service, KABE (Allentown PA).

Gary
 
$34 an hour for a C-152 in 1984 when I was working on my Private.

The best deal I ever got was $30 an hour for a T-34 last year, but that was when the Navy flying club I was in was in it's last year of existence and they were burning up the club bank account.
 
1996 - KLNK (Lincoln, NE) - Cessna 152 for $35/hr wet
 
$18/hr wet, brand new 1974 C-152 Commuter II, in 1974.
New England Aeronautical Institute, now Daniel Webster College, Nashua NH
 
Wow, i'm impressed with how cheap things seemed. I learned to fly in a Piper Warrior for $95/hr wet
 
In 1959 the hourly cost for a rental airplane was equivalent to a day's wages working in a mens's store in a small town in Oklahoma. About $6.
 
2002-2003 At Northeast Philadelphia Airport a Grumman AA1-C ( Grumman trainer) went for $50.00 per hour wet. Today that same plane rents for $75 wet.
 
Cheapest? The $128/hr deathtrap CE172 that tried to kill me in 2001.

Lowest cost per hour rental rate? $10/hr CE150 in the early 80's.
Lowest hourly cost to me? Family cherokee that I flew for the cost of fuel in the 80's. Though I had to work many many hours on the farm, including cutting grass on the runway to use it.

My dad use to rent cubs for $1/hr in the late 50's/early 60's. He said it was prohibitively expensive when the bigger planes were $3/hr. I remember the 70's in a brand new tripacer that was $8/hr with all the modern avionics and barely double digit hours on the hobbs meter.
 
Back in 1966 I rented a Piper Colt (PA 22) for $9.00/hr. wet. CFIs were charging $5.00/hr. It was a well equipped airplane that powered the gyros with a venturi and featured a Narco Superhomer (with whistle stop). I think it was registered N5452Z.
 
$7.50 per hour wet for a 5-year old 150 at the Ft Lewis (WA) Army Flying Club in 1968. IIRC you could also get a nearly new one for $8.25/hr.

Dave
 
$10/hour for a Citabria, wet. 1969, in CAP.

A couple of years later, I rented an L-19 Bird Dog for $13/hour (wet).

Ron Wanttaja
 
1978 NAS Millington TN flying club - $12/hr wet for a Cessna 150. Instructor was $6.
 
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MSPAviator said:
Ok, this one should be good for the old timers around here.

What's the cheapest price you have ever paid, wet, for airplane rental?

What kind of plane was it, and how long ago?
Click to expand...

1992-1994, C-150, $32.50/hr.

C-182 dry from Civil Air Patrol back then was $49 and I thought they were god-awful expensive. LOL!
 
$65/hr at my flight school for the c150/152s. they also are currently adding $4/hr surcharge to supplement the price of fuel, so the net price is $69/hr.
 
Those "fuel surcharges" are stupid. Gas ain't comin' down. The price is what it is... just put it on the bulletin board, and be done with it. :(
 
$80 per hour wet plus a 15 percent fuel surcharge for an old 1978 Cessna 152 - so about $92 per hour (currently training).
 
1968........... C150 $15/hr. instructor $7. Phoenix Field CA
1971........... Aeronca Champ $5/hr. don't remember having to pay the instructor. Sacramento City College flying club
 

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wabower said:
In 1959 the hourly cost for a rental airplane was equivalent to a day's wages working in a mens's store in a small town in Oklahoma. About $6.
Click to expand...
I was doing better than you because I was making $3-4/hour (don't quite remember) and a C-150 was $15/hr. So that's not quite a day's work. :)

That was in 1977.
 
2011 - $57.70 Archer II :D

Edit:
That's not the cheepest... it was about $40 when I joined the flying club 5 years ago.
 
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1966, 22B & HFD (CT) brand-spankin new C-150 $13 wet (add $5 for instructor)
 
Amelia Reid Aviation, San Jose California 1988-89: Taylorcraft L2, Luscombe 8A or Piper J3 cub $18/hr, Taylorcraft F19(BC12D with an O-200) $24 and I think the instructor was $15/hr. I never flew the luscombe but I did fly the other 3. The L2 was primary training and the F19 for cross countries and checkride. The J3 I flew for fun. She had a bunch of citabrias and some Cessnas(150's and aerobats, 172's,182) too with prices from $35-50/hr. Gas was relatively cheap at $1.10-1.30 gal for 80 oct.
Now its costing $50-60/hr to fly my C175 just for fuel......

Frank

Gwen-are you still in Rio Rancho??? I used to live in North hills. I chased a lot of coyotes in the taylorcraft out there. Nice place to fly. To bad 7 Bar and Coronado are gone.
 
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