I just gave some advice without doing the research. I was wondering, how long with average flying before your first crash. I figure most people with have some type of crash in their first year, probably more like 6 months. They start feeling good about their flying, and then start doing things they think they can, but really can't.

Just wondering

Jon

I guess it depends on what you consider a crash. I busted up my trainer a few times within the first month - mainly things like hard landings ripping off the firewall, hitting the leading edge of the wing on some cornstalks after a dead stick, etc....

Then, a couple months after soloing I managed to rip the gear off my Four Star on a botched landing.

None of my mishaps so far have resulted in more than an hour's worth of repairs. I did fly my combat SPAD full speed into the cornfield once, but all it needed was a new firewall and some duct tape on the wing.

It seems like most guys do some damage to their trainers, but I have only seen a few that totally destroyed them.

This really depends upon the person. Since ther is no formal study on the subject any results would be conjecture at best. Lets say we take two beginner pilots with no experience and equal coordination. They both get the same trainer... a traditional high wing 40 size nitro model. Begginer A joins a club and utilizes the services of an instructor. Beginner B takes it upon himself to teach himself to fly. I think most of us can guess which of these two subjects will crash first and about how long it will take

Mine came in about a month. Some have it sooner, some much later. I don't think there's a way to really come to an average without taking a wild guess.

I should have clarified myself, I am assuming that the pilot has soloed, and a crash is something that would take at least 1 hour to fix, or more simply would make a new plane not look new anymore without some work. Hope that helps

It won't help you create an average. There's just no way to do it, save for actually collecting data and doing analysis.

Then I would say that it is typical within the first 1-2 months to do more than 1 hours worth of damage to your plane, and with a lot of ARF flyers, they would just pull the gear and get another airframe.

I know enough about stats to know that stats can be tough, but what I am getting at, most flyers will bang up their first couple of planes in the first few months of flying alone. It probably would take about a couple of years before a pilot is not as likely to carsh their plane. I know that every plane can/ may crash and every pilot is different, but most beginner pilots will crash a couple of planes a few times in the first couple of years.

its right after the plane slams into the ground isn't it?

when you least expect it !!!!!

lol, first flight, second flight, third flight, and almost every flight since, especially since my current plane, a Sky Fly dosen`t handle well on the ground and likes to bounce down the runway into the safety net

about 5 seconds after my first flight
i learnt to fly by myself w/ a gws foamy
i didnt really break anything besides the prop and the landing gear but i did not mean to do what i did making it a crash

Well, lets see. During training, I started with a Lanair Explorer 40. I stalled on take off and took out the firewall. I hit hard a number of times landing and finally took out the main landing gear mount. I got into trouble one day and my instructor took over and dove to miss the power lines I was headed for and hit the rail fence. BY BY Explorer. I salvaged the wing and tail and build a stick fuselage. We flew that for a couple months and I loved it, I could actually fly this one. The one day, it went down. I suspect from a guy showing off his two chanel, first generation computer radio and how easy it was to change channels. One of his channels was my channel. Anyway, I lost the plane, not to be seen for over four months. I had a spare wing from the Explorer 40, so I built a clone of the one I lost. Before getting certified, I built a 4*60. On my first solo filght, I came in low on the landing and hit the road that crosses the end of the runway. Took out the landing gear mount, and broke the fuselage in half right behind the wing. It also punched both wheels through the wing. Three days later, I soloed and got my cretificton with that plane. Within a couple months, I had destroyed the 4*60 and my Clone. I built a secon 4*60 which I lost a few month back. I've crashed a couple others that have been repaired, one is on the bench now for it's second repair trip and may be finished by this weekend.

Now, I've been active in the hobby since the spring of 2006. I built planes as a kid and even built a complete radio system, a Royal Clasic 1969 vintage. I never flew until 2006. At 65, my reflexes are not what you need to start this hobby. Doesn't keep my from enjoying it though. I've got two planes ready to fly, one on the bench that may be ready by this weekend, and one that needs the final alignment and setup work to be ready. One awaiting a wing repair. Five kits waiting to be built. Plans for two scratch builds in the works. OH yes, if you count the gliders, one ready to fly, one needing the radio installed and one needing covering and the radio.


Any of them that gets off the runway and lands again without needing repairs is a great flight. As long as it's been since I've flown, I'm thinking my trainer is the best choice for my next flight. A couple months away sure dulls your ability.

Don

One month after solo.

Don't ask me why. I've trained a few dozen folks over the years. It seems they get a little rusty, (maybe the wife makes them skip a few weekends to make up for the time they have spent flying), or maybe they just naturally hit a plateau and stop progressing, but attempt new things they aren't really ready for.

usually a month or so after the first solo. thats when u know just enough to get youself in trouble. (try aerobatics at lower altitude, inverted low pass, or just not being as cautious )

depends on if you have an instructor...if you do...within a month of your solo...when desire out weighs abillity...if you don't have an instructor as long as it takes for the airplane to roll down the runway lift off and roll over....when there is no abillity

I figured around a few months, I lost my first plane on my second flight with the instructor on buddy box, I had good luck until I got a little less carefull trying to land my tiger, tip stall basically. I have been flying for a couple of years now, but not that many flight hours.

Thanks

Jon

Maybe a better question would be "how long was it until your first crash?" Then describe what constitutes a crash, ie. "Plane destroyed" or "Fuse or wing totaled, unrepairable" etc. Then you could figure out the average the number yourself.

I did not vote simply because the time referance does not apply very well (some solo in a few flights and some may take a few years).

What pattern that has become noticable though over time is the the period after solo tends to be a particularly risky period in terms of crashes. Sometimes agrivated by the move to more advanced airplanes to soon or skiping logical skill progressions. Sometimes its simply soloing too soon.

John

Mine came the first day I went to fly.... brand new Nexstar (first mistake I made was buying that plane). I was on a buddy box and my instructor was to busy talking to a friend and didn't take over in time. $ 400.00 bucks down the toilet. Exspensive lesson but kept at it
(with a different instructor I might add).

I'm like most it depends on the person and their personality, my brother and I self taught ourselves and did fine. After we got comfortable and flying advanced airplanes is when we finally crashed a few planes by one uping each other we are extremely competitive, most of the planes that we have crashed in the past 15 years have been construction/equipment failures, battery going dead, battery coming unplugged, these were the things that we really needed advice on is how to prevent these type of failures, also we had a couple of radio interferences. but that attributes to pilot error by not assuring everything is ready for flight, I still think it all depends on the person and situation

Within a couple of months of soloing I typically see "graduates" crashing their first plane.

Usually this occurs as they start pushing their comfort zone, or when they switch to a new plane.

Their trainers get a good going over by instructors, so they do quite well with them initially... however a bit of neglect or failing to go over the plane before flight, insures a crash.

If they are disciplined enough to get past this stage, then there is often a bit of overconfidence when that second plane is flown.

Since you qualified it slightly I voted "1 month"
I think the first month(s) after a pilot is soloed are some of the most dangerous for the plane. Many newly soloed pilots are brimming with confidence and wanting to wring out the trainer. The only way to learn new things is to try them. Trying them with an instructor nearby is best but I think a lot of people hesitate to "bother" the instructors after they solo. I think most instructors would actually be very happy to continue helping a pilot who wants to improve. One of our club members is a Masters level pattern flyer and also is a really good instructor. He loves to help pilots learn aerobatics. He will help through a trainer box or just by talking through the maneuvers.