Hour Building Frequently Asked Questions
Q:
What kinds of airplanes are available for rental/hour building?
A:
We have a large fleet of late model Cessna 172s all identically
equipped with the latest avionics including IFR certified color GPS
and 2-axis autopilot with altitude pre-select. We also have a
limited number of Glass-Cockpit Cessna 172s and 182s available by
request. Additional time on the rental check-out may be required for
the glass-cockpit aircraft for pilots with little of no previous
experience with the Garmin G1000 avionics suite.
Q:
I have a non-US ICAO pilot license. Can I fly in the US?
A:
If you DO NOT have an FAA (US) Pilot License but do have a valid and current foreign pilot certificate and medical, then you must obtain an FAA validation/conversion. This is a relatively easy process but it does require some lead time (45 to 60 days). Here is a link to follow for complete step by step instructions on how to obtain this validation:
http://www.sunstateaviation.com/forpilot.html.
Q: How many hours do you plan for an hour builder to fly in one day?
A: I think the optimal pace should be about 4 or 5 hours a day. Trying to do more than 5 hours a day would just be too exhausting for most people, any less than 4 hours a day is probably not maximizing your hour building opportunity.
Q: Do you allow over night trips?
A: Yes, multiple day rentals for hour building are a great way to tour around and see the country.
Q: Do you offer
accommodation?
A: Yes, we have hotels here adjacent to Kissimmee Gateway Airport with which we have arranged year 'round fixed discounted rates for our accelerated students and hour builders. For more details please navigate to:
http://www.sunstateaviation.com/hotels.html .
Q: Do you allow hire based on a dry rate or will it be a wet rate?
A: Our rates are "wet", in other words we include the fuel in the rates. When you fly and re-fuel away from our Kissimmee location, keep the receipt and you will be reimbursed at our current reimbursement rate or the rate you paid, whichever is less.
Q: Does the hour builder have sole use of a plane for the duration of the course?
A: Due to scheduled maintenance demands, etc. it would be very difficult to reserve 1 airplane for 1 person for the duration of your flying adventure. What we do is we have a fleet of Cessna 172s, all identically equipped. Same engine, same airframe, same radios,
GPS, autopilot, etc. So, if for instance you were scheduled in N123XY on Monday and N456AB on Tuesday, the only way you could know you were in a different airplane is by looking at the registration number placard on the instrument panel.
Q: What is the distance away from your airfield your aircraft are allowed?
A: Pretty much anywhere in the eastern half of the US is acceptable. Western US trips are also acceptable if the pilot can demonstrate proficiency in mountainous terrain flying by either a completion certificate for a mountain flying course or with a minimum of 100 hours of previous mountain flying experience. Flights to the Bahamas are permitted as long as the Pilot-in-Command has a valid and current instrument rating.
Q: What are your payment terms?
A:
A small deposit is required with your application (you can see the application here:
http://www.sunstateaviation.com/apply.pdf ) to reserve your hour building slot (we have a limited number of slots we can fill based on the number of airplanes we have available with a margin for maintenance needs). Upon arrival at SunState Aviation, you will be asked to establish a pre-paid account with a minimum of $2500 USD (could be required to deposit more in the case of multi-day rentals which would be looked at on a case by case basis). The establishment of a pre-paid account will earn you a discounted rental rate as well as eliminating the need for swiping your credit card after each flight. You can see our current pre-paid rates here:
http://www.sunstateaviation.com/acrental.html .
