On Wednesday, January 27, 2021 at 2:17:53 PM UTC-7, Jeff Bures wrote:
Hi all,

First post here (at least in 20 years).

I'm a US citizen with private power and sailplane ratings. I'm contemplating retirement in a few years. One possible plan is to spend several years of it as an expat somewhere the cost of living is less than the USA. Parts of Europe, Asia, Central or South America are options.

These years should include lots of recreational (not competition) soaring.. I'm curious about different locations with good soaring. I don't want to be the strange American with the weird airplane, but rather live where soaring is known and I could make some friends. Would people make some suggestions please?

I'm also interested in knowing how difficult it is for a visiting pilot to buy, register, and fly a sailplane locally. Are the requirements different if I become a resident? I've read that my USA certificate is valid in many countries if I'm passing through, but as a resident I might need to take additional tests (possibly in the local language). Is this true?

Are there any Expat Pilots out there?

Thanks for any advice!
I started my glider flying career in the UK, then took it up seriously in South Africa. I emigrated to the USA in 1985 and have spent most of my flying career in the southwest USA. Arizona, Utah, Colorado, New Mexico and Nevada have some of the best cross-country soaring conditions in the world and quite long soaring seasons.

Much as I enjoyed living in South Africa with its really great soaring and however much I love the country, I couldn't recommend it right now. Social unrest is becoming more of a problem and you might find that challenging. Namibia is safer than South Africa and has world-class soaring for a few months in the southern summer. If you go there, I recommend learning a bit of German and develop a taste for drinking beer by the liter! New Zealand is a great country - very friendly and the flying can be really good - especially if you're into wave flying. It's just a long way from everywhere and not the cheapest place in the world to live or fly!

Europe I can speak about with more authority, as my wife and I recently bought a cottage in England and I joined a local gliding club there. The license was no problem, - the US license is accepted almost anywhere. More of a problem is a medical. New civil aviation requirements in the UK and Europe will require some sort of medical documentation. I also found that owning a glider and getting insurance in the UK required a residential address, which means you'd likely have to arrange a long-term rental or other fixed abode. In the UK, once you get a long-term rental, you'll get hit with local property taxes and have to buy a TV license - things Americans take for granted! In most of Europe, including the UK, food is cheap and gasoline expensive. We found it a lot cheaper to buy a car rather than rent.

Continental Europe is quite open to pilots from other countries and glider rentals and reciprocal licensing are usually quite easily arranged. From colleagues, I have heard good things about flying in the more eastern countries - both from flying conditions to the cost of living. The UK and Germany have the most glider pilots per capita, but others are not too far behind..

In all countries, a local telephone is also a must - we use an iPhone with dual SIMS and have both US and UK numbers.

So, it's not trivial to overcome the bureaucratic problems associated with setting up residence in another country. I think you should decide where you really would like to go and then research it in detail by making as many local contacts as possible. I wouldn't discount another part of the USA, though. (Except Florida - full of toxic plants and critters that bite!)

Good luck!

Mike