Private Pilots Getting Back Into Action!

There are plenty of people who took up flying as a hobby. What a great thing to be able to fly up to Wyoming and visit my mom or just fly around this beautiful country and, even better, the beautiful state of Colorado I live in.

But for a lot of us that took a big hit with the economy and the price of fuel. A lot of pilots had to set aside flying during the economic downturn, but now private pilots are getting back into the action. I’ve got private pilots calling several times a week who are ready to start back up and need to make sure their life insurance matches their desire. These are experienced pilots with 200-1000 total hours, but haven’t logged boo in the last 3-5 years. From a life insurance standpoint that really puts them into the same category as a student pilot. They have a lot of flying experience, but proficiency in an airplane isn’t quite like getting back on a bike.

There’s several ways to attack the job. Being in the same boat as student pilots isn’t all bad. Depending on the amount of coverage a pilot wants, you could get approved as good as standard plus rates with no exclusions or flat extras. That would be true for those needing $750,000- $10,000,000 of term insurance or $100,000 or more of permanent insurance. Just to put that in perspective, for a 40 year old in good health that $750,000 would be $682 a year for a 10 year term. Why 10 years? Well, if you really are getting back into it and plan on staying current and proficient, within a year we could get you insurance at preferred or even preferred plus rates, so why not wait for the better rate class and then extend the term out to 20 or 30 years and have aviation locked in for the long haul. Not comfortable with 10 years? You can lock in a 20 year term for just over $1200 a year, and still look at replacing it with a better deal if you happen to get the PIC current hours you need. Most companies want to see you flying and intending to fly 26-50 hours annually.

Another way to face the challenge, especially if you are looking for smaller amounts of insurance is to buy a life insurance policy that excludes aviation, maximizing your good health, and then adding a comparable amount of accidental death insurance until you’ve built up current hours. That way, just like the student pilot route above, you’re covered for any cause of death until you qualify to get into a plan that covers it all in one package.

The other thing, before either of the two ideas above, is to check your current life insurance and see if aviation was covered before you took a break. If it was, it still is. If you’ve kept your policy in force there are no rules about staying current or re-certifying and racking up hours before aviation is covered.

Bottom line. It really does seem to be the season of starting over with those things we enjoy. The economy humbled us all but also made us appreciate even more those things that we enjoy. If you’re getting ready to fly again and have questions or need quotes, call or email me directly. Let’s talk.