Downwind Flying Club
More About Our Flying Club
"I have often said that the lure of flying is the lure of beauty. That the reasons flyers fly, whether they know it or not, is the aesthetic appeal of flying"
--Amelia Earhart
Our Story
Downwind Flying Club was established in 2017. The vision of the club was to grow into a vibrant community of like-minded aviators. We began with a Piper Archer (N384HS). The group of four original members quickly grew to 10 within less than 12 months which prompted discussions for a second aircraft. A Turbo-Arrow (N3543M) was brought into the club in 2018. Today, the club features three aircraft in an Archer, Arrow, and C172. The commonality between the airframes has helped people transition to the more complex aircraft.
Why Choose A Club?
Flying clubs exist as a compromise between renting an aircraft and owning one. A flying club offers three unique benefits:
Reduced Cost
Flying clubs spread out the cost of owning an aircraft amongst a group which makes it significantly more cost effective than ownership. The non-flying aspects of owning an aircraft are also equally distributed. Compared to renting aircraft, clubs can be more cost effective to renting. At Downwind Flying Club, those who fly regularly (more than a couple hours per month) will see a cost reduction.
Advantages of a Fleet
People who own make compromises when choosing the aircraft to purchase. Invariably, there will be a day when the aircraft will be less capable than the mission for the day. What happens more often is the purchased aircraft is more capable than the typical mission. For example, if someone purchases a six-seater and rarely uses the back seats, they spend extra money and fuel for those flights with just one other person unnecessarily. In a club, there is access to a fleet based on your trip.
Camaradarie of Membership
One of the biggest surprises to new club members is how quickly they get assimilated into the group. It's something that neither renting nor owning provide. The group of members is always out the to support other members. From safety pilots to checkride pointers; you'll have a group of friends supporting your aviation goals.
Club Mission
Downwind Flying Club is a community of pilots banded together by their diverse fleet of aircraft. The Club has an unwavering commitment to fun, safe, and efficient flight. The club will advance airmanship, passion for aviation, and relationships amongst its membership. Downwind Flying Club is an oasis community of aviators of all experience levels who are constantly tasked with learning from each other and keeping our aircraft in top operational condition. Standards are consistently high, cost are kept low, and technology is embraced to create the best aircraft ownership experience possible.
Core Values
We value fun flying because: Safe flying is fun. The more we fly, the safer we become as pilots. Proficiency promotes fun flying, which reinforces safety in a cycle. We encourage this cycle by enhancing it with low hourly costs and a educational safety culture.
Why Choose Downwind as YOUR Club?
There are a few things that set Downwind Flying Club apart from other flying clubs:
Non-Equity
One of the foundational pieces of the club was our early decision to intentionally never own our aircraft. When a flying club organizes this way, it is called a non-equity flying club; As a member you never build up any equity in the club. There are some negatives to this non-equity approach, but Downwind Flying Club has chosen that the benefits seem to far outweigh the drawbacks.
Scheduling
Scheduling is the fulcrum of a flying club. Success of a club is managing the schedule. As the ratio of members per aircraft increase, the membership dues decrease, but comes with scheduling conflicts. There is a magic ratio that is unique to every club to determine the ideal balance. The variation is based on the new member’s unique flying habits (weekend warrior? long x-country trips with overnights?).
Downwind Flying Club is committed to keeping the balance tilted toward lower member/aircraft ratios.
Growth
Perhaps the most unique attribute of our flying club is that we are in growth mode. We strive to improve the range of aircraft in our fleet and invite more pilots into our cadre. We will bring on more aircraft in the near-term future and intend to grow steadily for the foreseeable future.
Hours Per Member
A nuanced difference of our club is that our finances are structured to encourage active flying members. We set our hourly rate as low as possible so that members are encouraged to fly. Our monthly dues are higher than most other clubs, but our hourly fees are kept, absolutely, as low as practical.
Training
DFC expressly prohibits any form of "time-building." DFC was established as a social club that promotes aviation and shares the pleasure of flying with other like-minded members in the general aviation community. "Time-building" does not support our mission. Keeping proficiency, safety, and currency not withstanding.