I've just returned from London, England. While there, I wanted to drop by a general aviation airport and check out a normal day of GA…British style. I hopped on the web and my search led me to the West London Aero Club. A 30-minute train ride from Paddington station (downtown London). This aero club was worlds different from any U.S. aero club I had ever seen. It had some similarities in that it had an ops room, flight planning area, and class room but, as you moved towards the other side of the building, it led to a huge bar (or pub as it would be). The bar had large windows over looking the field. This would be a spectacular place for pilots to meet and talk over the day’s flights or the latest football action. The filed was home to the normal array of training aircraft you would find at any GA field and seem to have a good bit of aerobatic aircraft as well. While I was there I met a couple local pilots, all great folks. You had your mix of old and young guys and girls running around. The one thing that stood out to me most was probably the difference in cost for aircraft. For instance, a C-172 rents for £135 (you can just about double the number to get the cost in US $). I was told that a lot of students that plan to make aviation a career go to the U.S. to train due to the cost difference. The idea of a young eager teenager washing planes for flight time doesn’t seem to be an option there. All in all, it was an interesting experience and I met some really nice aviators.