Cessna 172 is one of the cheapest, simplest planes you can buy... a 10 year old used 172S is $150,000++ however.
With fewer and fewer planes being made, the remaining planes continue to get more and more expensive. The world of general aviation shrinks each year, and as such the prices continue to climb.
Fortunately, there are a number of clubs where people pool their money into collective ownership of airplanes. Its roughly $150/flight hour (more or less, depending on the club's equipment of course). If I were to ever go into GA, I'd probably start with a club to get my earlier licenses.
$15,000 and a few months would be all you need to get your pilot's license and start flying (including the price of flight instructors / ground schools). Overall, cheaper than I expected. You wouldn't want to go into this hobby thinking you'd save money... at best you save time inside of a certain range (Cessna only cruise at 160mph, while commercial airlines cruise at 500mph. As such, GA flights need to be within 2 or 3 hours (or ~1 hour commercial flight) to even save time).
I don’t think GA is shrinking so much as it’s segmented so hobbyists do ultralight aviation such as powered paragliding, used aircraft cover most of the classic GA side of things, and new aircraft are for people or companies with money to burn. On top of this, drones and satellite’s are filling in for some stuff at the margins.
PS: A new set of paragliding equipment runs 10-15k, but it’s more like a jet pack than a traditional aircraft.
I know of several groups like this in the Southeast US, where a couple of execs live in smaller cities (e.g. Columbus, Augusta), pool on an aircraft (and sometimes a condo) and commute to Atlanta (Peachtree/Dekalb Airport is pretty convenient to downtown) for work.
There also used to be a regular small plane service between Peachtree/Dekalb and Birmingham, AL for BellSouth personnel operated by the company. BellSouth split it's HQ between both places.
I wouldn’t especially call Luscombes nice planes. I’m not a fan of their stall characteristics or ground handling. A J-3 is the most expensive airplane in the group for its capabilities. You’re paying a lot for that “Piper Cub” name.
I think Taylorcrafts are a good bang-for-your-buck. I’m also partial to Citabrias.
I’ve flown about 20 types of small taildraggers, for whatever that’s worth.
My grandfather had a Luscombe story. He was flying in one sometime in the 50s or 60s in California, and a stiff breeze came in from the mountains. The Luscombe (8A or 8B) had only a 65 hp motor, and flying into that breeze it actually travelled backward over land.
If you get a Luscombe, make sure to fly it in favorable weather conditions only :)
With fewer and fewer planes being made, the remaining planes continue to get more and more expensive. The world of general aviation shrinks each year, and as such the prices continue to climb.
Fortunately, there are a number of clubs where people pool their money into collective ownership of airplanes. Its roughly $150/flight hour (more or less, depending on the club's equipment of course). If I were to ever go into GA, I'd probably start with a club to get my earlier licenses.
$15,000 and a few months would be all you need to get your pilot's license and start flying (including the price of flight instructors / ground schools). Overall, cheaper than I expected. You wouldn't want to go into this hobby thinking you'd save money... at best you save time inside of a certain range (Cessna only cruise at 160mph, while commercial airlines cruise at 500mph. As such, GA flights need to be within 2 or 3 hours (or ~1 hour commercial flight) to even save time).