CUTTING THE COST OF AIRCRAFT OWNERSHIP AOPA Summit 2011, Hartford Connecticut

The Elephant in the Airspace It’s not your imagination. Flying is more expensive than it used to be.

1961 New Airplane Costs Piper Super Cub- $5,000 Cessna Skyhawk- $9,280 Beech Bonanza- $24,300 Inflation adjusted: $35,000 Inflation adjusted: $64,500 Inflation adjusted: $170,100

Today’s New Airplane Costs Super Cub: $150,000 + Skyhawk: $283,000 Bonanza: $650, % 362% 382%

Avgas: Then and Now Then: 25 cents per gallon (about $1.75 today) Now: $5.70 per gallon (up more than 300%)

Other Fixed Costs Insurance, hangar, maintenance all cost significantly more.

High Prices Drive Students Away

And Reduce Pilot Population

Get Frugal or Get Grounded Partnerships and flying clubs can dramatically lower ownership costs

Partnerships 8,760 hours in a year Average pilot flies 100 hours a year Aircrafts are underutilized, so why not split the costs with others without giving up flight time?

AOPA Aircraft Partnership Program Launched July 2011 “eHarmony” for aircraft partnerships 14,000+ participants nationwide Free for aircraft share buyers Sellers’ market: more than 90% of those registered are buyers

Future Features: Pre-packaged partnership agreements Online scheduling for flights and maintenance Group discounts for a broad range of services

Introducing the Experts David Kruger of the AOPA Aircraft Partnership Program Harv Greenberg of the Penn Yan Flying Club Janet Bressler of AOPA Aircraft Insurance