aranpura
Pre-Flight
Dear POA,
I've been going around and around about buying an airplane for years, and all I have to show for it is years gone by without a plane. It's time to get some input from those more experienced than me. I have a feeling that many of you who own airplanes may have been in my position with your first purchase, so maybe my situation sounds familiar to you.
I have about 350 hours TT (and an IFR rating), mostly in Piper Warriors and a fair chunk in 172s. I've flown and enjoyed both an older Debonair and a Cherokee Six, just a few hours in each. My typical flights are in the 1.5-2 hour range, but I have made a few longer trips -- these have been pottering along at 100 knots without an autopilot.
My wife is just now beginning to enjoy flying with me, and we have one 5 year-old son. We live in New Haven, Connecticut and will be here for at least another 2-3 years. While we are here, I would like to get up to New Hampshire often to see my sister, and to southern Ohio to see my mother. I'd like to fly up to northern Vermont and Maine for skiing trips. We have friends in Baltimore and Nashville we'd like to visit.
So far, I have often been frustrated by the load limits of the Warrior. With half fuel I can take four small adults, and maybe even squeeze our son onto someone's lap. But we can never make a trip with friends which is limiting for us. I'd like to be able to frequently take another two adults, or an adult and a child, in addition to the three members of my own family.
In a few years, we are likely to move back to England. I've got a good friend there who has made transatlantic crossings before, and he is happy to help ferry a small plane back with me. The problem is that our mission in England changes substantially -- England has a lot of small grass fields, and in particular my friend has a small field at his farm where I would like to visit often. When we're there we will also be taking little flights to Europe, those will be asphalt runways.
So here's my dilemma. I'd like a fast, fuel-efficient airplane that can defintely carry 4 adults, and maybe even 4 adults and two kids. It should be able to land on grass comfortably. I prefer round gauges to glass cockpits (only because I have never flown behind glass), and I am happy to get a substantial amount of transitional training for high performance and complex singles. AvGas is much more expensive in England, so if I could find a fast, cost effective airplane with a diesel engine I'd buy it -- but this may not exist yet.
So far I've looked very closely at the older Mooneys, which I like because they are fast and beautiful and fuel-efficient. It doesn't sound like they would be well-suited to small grass fields, though. And of course, I'm limited to the four seats.
I've considered the A36 which seems like a great airplane. Fuel burn is fairly steep (especially in England), but this could be a good option. I don't know how they perform on grass, and I've never flown in one.
The Cherokee Six is stalwart and maybe very well suited for this mission, but it's a bit slow. I have flown one and enjoyed it, even though I did think it flew like a truck. I'm not as excited about this plane, again just an emotional response -- I could change my mind easily.
So there you have it, I've been going around in circles and haven't gotten anywhere. I've spent far too many hours looking at ads in an unfocused way, and meanwhile I wish I'd bought an airplane 5 years ago. I'd appreciate any thoughts that might help get me to a more focused approach.
Thanks!
Ash.
I've been going around and around about buying an airplane for years, and all I have to show for it is years gone by without a plane. It's time to get some input from those more experienced than me. I have a feeling that many of you who own airplanes may have been in my position with your first purchase, so maybe my situation sounds familiar to you.
I have about 350 hours TT (and an IFR rating), mostly in Piper Warriors and a fair chunk in 172s. I've flown and enjoyed both an older Debonair and a Cherokee Six, just a few hours in each. My typical flights are in the 1.5-2 hour range, but I have made a few longer trips -- these have been pottering along at 100 knots without an autopilot.
My wife is just now beginning to enjoy flying with me, and we have one 5 year-old son. We live in New Haven, Connecticut and will be here for at least another 2-3 years. While we are here, I would like to get up to New Hampshire often to see my sister, and to southern Ohio to see my mother. I'd like to fly up to northern Vermont and Maine for skiing trips. We have friends in Baltimore and Nashville we'd like to visit.
So far, I have often been frustrated by the load limits of the Warrior. With half fuel I can take four small adults, and maybe even squeeze our son onto someone's lap. But we can never make a trip with friends which is limiting for us. I'd like to be able to frequently take another two adults, or an adult and a child, in addition to the three members of my own family.
In a few years, we are likely to move back to England. I've got a good friend there who has made transatlantic crossings before, and he is happy to help ferry a small plane back with me. The problem is that our mission in England changes substantially -- England has a lot of small grass fields, and in particular my friend has a small field at his farm where I would like to visit often. When we're there we will also be taking little flights to Europe, those will be asphalt runways.
So here's my dilemma. I'd like a fast, fuel-efficient airplane that can defintely carry 4 adults, and maybe even 4 adults and two kids. It should be able to land on grass comfortably. I prefer round gauges to glass cockpits (only because I have never flown behind glass), and I am happy to get a substantial amount of transitional training for high performance and complex singles. AvGas is much more expensive in England, so if I could find a fast, cost effective airplane with a diesel engine I'd buy it -- but this may not exist yet.
So far I've looked very closely at the older Mooneys, which I like because they are fast and beautiful and fuel-efficient. It doesn't sound like they would be well-suited to small grass fields, though. And of course, I'm limited to the four seats.
I've considered the A36 which seems like a great airplane. Fuel burn is fairly steep (especially in England), but this could be a good option. I don't know how they perform on grass, and I've never flown in one.
The Cherokee Six is stalwart and maybe very well suited for this mission, but it's a bit slow. I have flown one and enjoyed it, even though I did think it flew like a truck. I'm not as excited about this plane, again just an emotional response -- I could change my mind easily.
So there you have it, I've been going around in circles and haven't gotten anywhere. I've spent far too many hours looking at ads in an unfocused way, and meanwhile I wish I'd bought an airplane 5 years ago. I'd appreciate any thoughts that might help get me to a more focused approach.
Thanks!
Ash.
