I've been nerding out over airplanes recently, and I want to get my private pilot's license.
One thing that has surprised me is that airplanes are actually pretty simple machines. They're not hard to fly, either.
The part that is expensive (besides fuel) and time consuming is all the emphasis on safety. You want to be REALLY sure your plane is working and REALLY sure you know how to fly it.
If you just want to hop in a plane and don't care much about survival... you could probably figure it out. Just like a 14 year old could probably figure out how to drive a car or crash it immediately.
One thing that has surprised me is that airplanes are actually pretty simple machines. They're not hard to fly, either.
The part that is expensive (besides fuel) and time consuming is all the emphasis on safety. You want to be REALLY sure your plane is working and REALLY sure you know how to fly it.
If you just want to hop in a plane and don't care much about survival... you could probably figure it out. Just like a 14 year old could probably figure out how to drive a car or crash it immediately.