Where are you located?
We are located at the Cincinnati Blue Ash Airport in Cincinnati, Ohio.
See the Contact Info page for a map and other
details on contacting the club.
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How do I join FNI?
Joining our club is a simple process. You just need to contact a member of our membership committee,
which recruits and screens all applicants. You can do this one of three ways:
- Send an email to FlyingNeutrons@fuse.net:
Let us know your name, phone, and pilot status (interested in learning to fly, already a pilot, your
hours/ratings, etc.) so we can get the right people to respond back to you. (This is probably the best
way to contact us.)
OR
- Call and leave a message at (513) 791-9198. The process is the same as above, but we will
need to ask some of the baseline information to understand how the club can help you.
OR
- Download, fill out, and mail an application.
This will trigger a call from the membership committee to meet and have a two way information
sharing session.
After we have gathered your intial information, we will talk with you and the references you provide to
see if there is a good fit with our club. If all is in order, then you just need to attend one of our club
meetings where you are voted into the club. At that point you can begin to enjoy all that the club has
to offer and contribute to its on-going success.
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Why should I join FNI?
Safety
FNI is proud to have flown for over 50 years with an exceptional level of safety. This is a direct
result of excellent maintenance procedures, strong pilot standardization programs and careful selection
of the membership.
Our club-approved instructors will help you get your ratings and help you keep your
flying skills sharp
We have about 12 club-approved FAA certified flight instructors in our membership who actively instruct. They have many
years of experience and instruct for the love of flying, not just to build time for the airlines.
As a result, our students are thoroughly prepared for a lifetime of safe and enjoyable flying, not
just the minimum needed to pass the flight and knowledge exams. Click
here for more information on flight training at
FNI.
We have the low cost way to learn and to fly
Our rates are better than you'll find elsewhere in the area for comparable aircraft. Our Operations
rules support realistic use of the fleet. There are no trip minimums--you pay only the hours you fly.
We measure tach time, not Hobbs time. This can provide an additional 5-15% savings, as tach times tend
to run under Hobbs time. See more details on how you will save money by clicking
here.
Be a part of a strong community of fellow pilots
We have Monthly club meetings for governance and operations. Semi-annual plane washes build
camaraderie and keeps our planes looking great. We have an annual banquet with informative and
interesting aviation speakers. And you can almost always find someone just hanging around the
clubhouse on a nice afternoon.
Insurance coverage is provided for members
FNI is proud to provide safe and economical access to planes. We carry insurance from certified
companies and provide coverage that is often much better than what a pilot would be able to obtain
privately. Contact our insurance chairman for more details.
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How do I save money flying with FNI?
Besides all the other benefits of being part of a member-owned club, you can also save money on your
flight expenses. You do this in several ways:
- Low hourly rates.
Members pay just what it costs the club to keep the aircraft flying. There is no
profit being made, so costs are kept to a minimum. Fixed costs are covered by the initial membership
fee and monthly dues, while variable costs are covered by the hourly flying rate.
- Time measured on the Tach, not the Hobbs meter.
Members are charged by tach time, not Hobbs time.
Practically all commercial FBOs and flight schools charge Hobbs time, which runs at a real-time rate
while the engine is running. Tach time, however, runs faster when the engine is running faster
(approximately real-time at a cruise power setting) and slower when the engine is running slower.
The net effect is that you will see a lower tach time than Hobbs time for the same flight. For flights
where you spend a lot of time at low power settings, such as practicing in the pattern, you could see
savings of 10-15% over Hobbs time. We charge by tach time, because we are interested in only covering
our costs, not making a profit. All hourly aircraft maintenance is based on tach time, so that is what
we use.
- Insurance included as a club member.
As a club member, you are provided insurance coverage while flying club airplanes. There is no need to
obtain renter's insurance, which can save you hundreds of dollars a year. Contact our insurance chairman for
more details.
For example, if you fly, on average, 60 hours/year in a Cessna 172, you would realize the following annual savings
over a typical FBO:
|
FBO |
Flying Neutrons |
| Cessna 172 rental |
($115/hr + 6.5% tax = $122.48/hr) x 60 hrs |
$7349 |
($104/hr - 10% tach time savings = $93.60/hr) x 60 hrs |
$5616 |
| Insurance |
Renter's insurance from AOPA with
$1,000,000/100,000 liability
and $20,000 property damage |
$447 |
Insurance included with club membership |
$ 0 |
| Monthly dues |
Not applicable |
$ 0 |
12 months dues |
$600 |
| TOTAL |
|
$7796 |
|
$6216 |
| Cost per hour |
|
$130 |
|
$104 |
(NOTE: There is also a capital contribution required when joining the club - see Club Info.)
How do I learn to fly?
You will find the instructors, aircraft, and support at FNI that will make learning to fly a quick
and enjoyable process! Below is a summary of the different certificates and ratings you can earn.
Private Pilot
The Private Pilot certificate is your license to fly. This is the certificate that allows you to fly most
anywhere you want, most anytime you want, by yourself or with passengers. At the Flying Neutrons, you
will find the expertise and support that will make getting your certificate an enjoyable experience.
Your Private Pilot training will consist of two major components: Ground School and Flight Training.
In Ground school you will learn everything you need to know to pass your written exam. Topics include
navigation, meteorology, aerodynamics, regulations, and aircraft systems. You can either study the
Ground School material on your own pace at home, or take a class.
Your Flight Training will consist of time spent with your instructor, called dual, and time spent
practicing by yourself, called solo. During your dual time, your instructor will teach you how to
control the airplane and how to perform the various maneuvers required to pass the FAA practical test
and become a safe pilot.
Your first solo flight is something that you will remember forever! This normally occurs in your first
10 or 15 hours of training, but is different for each pilot. This is the first time you fly without an
instructor on board the aircraft. You will then go on to practice the maneuvers that your instructor
taught you during dual, and complete the solo requirements for the Private Pilot certificate.
The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) establishes minimum requirements for obtaining a Private
Pilot Certificate:
- That you be at least 17 years old, although there is nothing to stop you starting training much
younger.
- That you are able to read, speak and understand English.
- That you obtain a third-class medical certificate, although you can start training prior to
taking the medical.
- That you pass the FAA written test.
- That you pass an oral and flight test.
Before you can take the flight test you must log at least 40 hours of flight time of which at least
20 hours must be flight instruction from a certificated flight instructor including three hours of
instrument training, three hours at night (including 10 takeoffs and landings at night) and three
hours of preparation within 60 days of the flight test. You must also have 10 hours of solo flight
time (including 5 cross-country), including a 150nm Solo cross-country flight.
These are simply minimums and most people will fly 50-70 hours or more in order to achieve the required
level of proficiency. The following table shows typical costs for obtaining a Private Pilot Certificate
as a member of the Flying Neutrons (assuming 9 months to complete the requirements flying
once or twice a week):
| Description |
Cost |
| 9 months of club membership ($50/mo) |
$ 450 |
| 60 hours of C172 aircraft time ($104/hr) |
$6240 |
| 40 hours of flight instruction ($25/hr) |
$1000 |
| 15 hours of ground instruction ($25/hr) |
$ 375 |
| Headset |
$ 150 |
| Books, maps, supplies, etc. |
$ 300 |
| Examiner fee for flight test |
$ 250 |
| TOTAL |
$8765 |
(NOTE: There is also a capital contribution required when joining the club - see Club Info.)
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Instrument Pilot
After achieving your goal of that coveted Private Pilot's license you will be ready for what many
consider to be the most challenging rating in aviation: the Instrument Rating. You will then be able to
fly in instrument metrological conditions using state of the art avionics, including modern GPS's.
Our IFR simulator, club-approved flight instructors, and well-equipped aircraft are ready to help you
achieve your goal.
Commercial Pilot
Ever wanted to fly for a living? Are you longing to fly for the airlines, be a fire bomber, crop duster,
flight instructor or skywriter? Well, these and hundreds of other flying careers have one thing in common:
they all require a commercial pilot's certificate.
Even if you don't want to use your wings to earn your paycheck, commercial training gives you the skills
to fly complex aircraft with the precision and safety margins that airline passengers have come to take
for granted.
When you train for your commercial certificate at FNI, you will fly a Piper Arrow P28R-201, a
retractable gear, complex, single engine aircraft. In addition to the maneuvers you
mastered while earning your private pilot certificate and instrument rating, you will learn additional,
maximum performance maneuvers such as the chandelle, lazy-8 and eights-on-pylons. This training will
build your precision, coordination, planning, orientation and overall smoothness on the controls. After
your training, short field and crosswind landings will be a breeze!
Flight Instructor
Are you a natural leader? Are you the patient, mentoring type of person that always seems to be answering
somebody's questions? Do you aspire to a career as an airline pilot? Can you handle the responsibility of
creating a new generation of aviators?
If so, you may have what it takes to become a flight instructor. The Certified Flight Instructor (CFI)
Certificate allows you to act as an extension of the FAA. As a CFI, you become responsible for training
and certifying pilots who will then go forward and operate within the nation's airspace. One of the many
bonuses of being a CFI is that each hour of flight instruction you give may be logged as pilot-in-command
(PIC) time.
Your ground lessons will focus on learning the fundamentals of instruction, creating lesson plans and
practicing how to teach. You will also review all of the responsibilities and privileges of the CFI and
perfect your knowledge of all the material needed to work with primary and advanced students. Your flight
training will encompass learning to fly from the right seat, and perfecting your performance of the
required maneuvers for the CFI practical test.
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How much does it cost to take a trip in a small plane?
Small planes can be very economical compared to commercial aviation for short trips of less than 800 miles
or so, especially when booking on short notice and carrying multiple passengers. From Cincinnati, this
would cover an area of St. Louis to the west, Milwaukee and the northern part of the southern Michigan
peninsula to the North, Boston to the east and the Carolina coast or Atlanta to the south.
Longer trips are also practical but require fuel stops.
For example, we have calculated a typical trip from Cincinnati Blue Ash airport (KISZ to Manassas, Virginia (KHEF),
which has the closest airport to Washington D.C. that will accept small aircraft. Manassas field has a
Washington Metro terminal adjacent to the field, in addition to easy access to rental cars and taxis. The
one-way driving time is about 8 1/2 hours (517 miles) or 17 hours round trip. The straight-line flight
distance is 370 miles (322nm) or 644nm round trip. The following table shows the round-trip times and costs for
our various aircraft:
| Aircraft |
Seats |
Speed
(knots) |
Rate |
Hours |
Flight
cost |
Seat
cost |
| C172 |
4 |
110 |
$104 |
6:00 |
$624 |
$156 |
| P28R |
4 |
135 |
$125 |
4:48 |
$600 |
$150 |
| C182 |
4 |
145 |
$148 |
4:36 |
$681 |
$170 |
| PA32 |
6 |
135 |
$157 |
4:48 |
$754 |
$126 |
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What is your Flight Simulator and how does it help me?
We have an ATC-610 IFR Flight Simulator in our clubhouse. Club members use the simulator while working on
their instrument rating, as well as for recurring training and practice. The ATC-610 simulator is based
on a PA28R-201 Piper Arrow aircraft. It has the following features:
- Predefined flight sequences
- ATC tapes with pilot readback included or blank times for you to do the readback
- A physical chart with an inked course line to review actual versus planned flight path
- The ability to introduce variable weather and equipment failures
Using the flight simulator provides the following benefits over an actual flight:
- It is a safe low-stress way to introduce flight in IFR conditions.
- It provides for a more efficient use of time, because approach sequences and instrument maneuvers can be
easily paused, repeated, or entered at any intermediate point as often as needed.
- It allows for a quiet, controlled teaching environemnt where the student can concentrate on just the
task being learned.
- It is very inexpensive at only $6/hour
- You can log IFR time as long as you have a flight instructor with you, so it helps to build the time required
to get your instrument rating
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