Pilot executives save time

Executives save time and energy by flying themselves on business trips.

By DON SHILLING

VINDICATOR BUSINESS EDITOR

Car dealer Armando Spano loves being behind the wheel of his Porsche, but for long trips he much prefers being at the controls of his Cessna.

He is among the growing number of pilots who are using their own planes for business trips.

"I was getting beat up driving," said Spano, who owns Armando's in Canfield Township, which sells new Porches and Saabs and a variety of used luxury vehicles.

Spano used to drive to car auctions six or seven times a month, including trips to Connecticut and New Jersey. Even his shorter trips, to Columbus or Lancaster, Pa., required overnight stays because of the early start of the auctions.

Now, he flies his own plane from Youngstown Elser Metro Airport on Sharrott Road in Beaver Township, which is halfway between his Poland home and his office.

A trip to Columbus, for example, takes 50 minutes. He leaves in the morning for an auction that lasts from 8:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. He can be back at his desk by 3 p.m.

"I'm still able to do a day's work," he said.

Or, he has time for something else.

"I can go golfing if I feel like it. I'm still fresh," he said.

The number of pilots flying for business appears to be increasing, said Chris Dancy, a spokesman for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association in Maryland.

The Federal Aviation Administration doesn't collect data on why people learn to fly, but reports from association members indicate interest in business use has increased, he said. Interest picked up significantly after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks because of tighter security at airports, he said.

The use of private planes over airlines makes sense for trips of less than 500 miles, he said.

How they save time

Even though private planes fly slower than commercial jets, executives save time by not waiting in security lines, by leaving when they want and by flying into airports closer to their destination, he said. Commercial airlines fly to only about 10 percent of the 5,400 airports in the U.S.

One local private pilot, Mack Parrott of Neshannock Township, Pa., did something unusual for him recently — he flew on a commercial airline for a business trip to Boston instead of his own plane.

The waits in the airports were so long and the security measures so tight that he realized he wouldn't last in his current job if he had to rely on commercial flights.

"I don't think I could do it. I'd have to find another occupation. I'm spoiled and I know it," said Parrott, who travels about half the time for his job.

Parrott, 50, works from home in his job as a consultant for Projetech, a Cincinnati-based company that provides software for preventative maintenance.

One of the customers he visits, for example, is in Bardstown, Ky. By car, he would need eight or nine hours. With the airlines, he would have to drive to and from the airports and waste time waiting in lines.

With his own plane, he can leave in the morning, work from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. and be home for supper at 7:30 p.m.

Unlike Spano, Parrott became a pilot for recreational purposes before he found it would help him in business. He became a pilot in 1989 because it sounded like fun. He accepted his current job 10 years ago, knowing that he could use his plane for most of the flying.

Dancy said it's not unusual for someone to learn to fly just for fun and then realize the plane can help in business.

Many people start out by renting a plane, which costs between $100 an hour and $200 an hour, depending on the type of plane. Rental fees include fuel and are charged only for the time the plane is in the air.

Cost to buy

Most new pilots who want their own plane start out with a used model, Dancy said. A used Cessna 172, which has four seats, costs about $50,000 to $75,000 used, he said. New models start at about $180,000 for a base model and go up from there.

Spano spent $200,000 on his 1981 Piper Turbo Saratoga, a six-seater. It's his second plane since he became a pilot in 2000. Obtaining his two licenses — the basic pilot's license and one for flying by instruments — cost about $7,000 each.

Money isn't the only cost to becoming a pilot, however. Spano said he had to put in a lot of hours of studying.

"This is a serious, serious commitment," he said.

In fact, Spano, 58, thought about flying for years but found it hard to justify the expense. He admits that he made his decision a "little late."

"I'm not as bold as I was when I was 19 or 20. I would have been doing circles up there back then," he said.

He has no regrets about becoming a pilot in his 50s, however. It required money and effort, but the extra time he has is invaluable.

"It's a big savings in the long run," he said.

For information on obtaining a pilot's license, visit www.projectpilot.org.