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by ArpanRau 689 days ago
Former pilot (now paragliders) and founder/engineer here-

I'm not sold that this approach - eliminating the need for coordinated flying- really removes the big barriers to flying. I'm surrounded by aviation lovers who don't fly PPL, and the big barriers are cost, time, and fear.

The Ercoupe tried this exact approach in the 30s in one of the big GA booms and it just wasn't borne out.

I'd love to see more GA pilots, but this won't get us there as quickly as say, comprehensive medical reform or a production aircraft that's cheaper than $50/hr to fly would.
1 comments
n_ermosh 689 days ago
> The Ercoupe tried this exact approach in the 30s in one of the big GA booms and it just wasn't borne out.

The Ercoupe was a great idea for it's time, but we can do so much more with the technology we have today that we didn't have back then

> a production aircraft that's cheaper than $50/hr to fly would.

yes! our long term goal is to get there, but we need more people flying airplanes today to generate enough scale to actually build such an airplane and also stay in business. That's our approach, get more people who can afford to fly doing it, then use that to drive down the cost for everyone.

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ArpanRau 689 days ago
How many people who don't fly, but can afford to, have you interviewed about their reasons for not flying? This is where I would start trying to solve that problem. I'd be shocked if any of them mention coordinated flying :)

My 2c - the best way to go to big scale with a GA product is to somehow find a way to make it dual use and secure the DoD as a customer. The problem with doing this is that the DoD becomes your main customer and GA becomes your hobby...

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n_ermosh 689 days ago
We've talked to many and the complexity of flying a plane is a big factor--because the knowledge that if they mess up stick and rudder means they have a high chance of losing control and crashing scares them from flying. Our system helps alleviate that fear.
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jki275 689 days ago
I think you're solving the wrong problem.

People who are afraid of learning to aviate shouldn't be flying. Fear of things one isn't capable of doing is healthy.

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