How would you get it home?

Ya know how they put the space shuttle on the back of that guy's 747?
I'd call that guy and see if he would haul it direct.
 
Im thinking Cartagena, Panama City, Managua, Conan then a quick stop in Los Cabos for a margarita and then direct home.
 
Im thinking Cartagena, Panama City, Managua, Conan then a quick stop in Los Cabos for a margarita and then direct home.
then you'd come across the bottom? rather than up to Florida?
 
Well I'm going to be down in Aguadilla this weekend probably if anyone wants me to look. Having just flown this route a bunch in the 414 (and flying it more soon), I'm pretty familiar.

To answer Tom's question:

TJBQ - MDPP - MBPV - MYEF - MYNN - KFXE

Longest leg is 227 nm. I'm not familiar with the airplane's performance but that strikes me as pretty easy to do for almost any airplane other than a 150, and you probably could even skip a stop or two. The route never has you too far from land. Still want to take a life raft, of course, as well as a PLB. An InReach would be worth it as well. It would actually be a really fun trip.

Main problem in my mind with that plane is it's probably a giant ball of corrosion from being down there in the hot, salt air.
 
Main problem in my mind with that plane is it's probably a giant ball of corrosion from being down there in the hot, salt air.
No kidding. And Tom’s buddy was just telling us that ANY airplane from Florida was junk. Obviously he’s never been to PR.
 
No kidding. And Tom’s buddy was just telling us that ANY airplane from Florida was junk. Obviously he’s never been to PR.

I'd be highly skeptical of any airplane from Florida after some of what I've seen. One of the attractions to the 414 was that it had been an Oklahoma plane its whole life.
 
I'd be highly skeptical of any airplane from Florida after some of what I've seen. One of the attractions to the 414 was that it had been an Oklahoma plane its whole life.
I agree. Skeptical is fine and highly recommended. But blanket statements like some throw around here are just silly.
 
A 195hp 172? What STC is that.
It was a factory variant, not an STC.

"From 1977 to 1981 Cessna produced the R172K Hawk XP, a model available from both Wichita and Reims. This configuration featured a fuel injected, Continental IO-360K (later IO-360KB) derated to 195 hp (145 kW) with a two-bladed, constant-speed propeller. The Hawk XP was capable of a 131-knot (243 km/h) cruise speed."

https://www.globalair.com/aircraft-for-sale/Specifications?specid=328
 
I agree. Skeptical is fine and highly recommended. But blanket statements like some throw around here are just silly.
well....lets just say, some of us have first hand info of traveling to Florida only to leave empty handed. There are just too many other choices to be burned again......and that's my story, and I'm stick'n to it. ;)
 
The guy across from me has a Skyhawk XP. 195hp. Burns more gas than my Mooney to go slower. Cosmetics are worse, and the panel really really sucks. Oh, and it cost more than my Mooney too.
 
well....lets just say, some of us have first hand info of traveling to Florida only to leave empty handed. There are just too many other choices to be burned again......and that's my story, and I'm stick'n to it. ;)
For a vanilla 172, you’re probably right. Not worth the time to look. But I wouldn’t automatically rule out a Florida airplane just because.

You would never know that my Beech 18 spent 25 years of its life in Florida. Even if you open the inspection panels you wouldn’t be able to tell. BUT, it wasn’t sitting out on a ramp all the time.
 
For a vanilla 172, you’re probably right. Not worth the time to look. But I wouldn’t automatically rule out a Florida airplane just because.

You would never know that my Beech 18 spent 25 years of its life in Florida. Even if you open the inspection panels you wouldn’t be able to tell. BUT, it wasn’t sitting out on a ramp all the time.
well....I respectfully disagree. I ain't gots time for dat. ;)
 
Easy to say when you haven’t seen my plane.....
You're right....and as long as it's in Florida (or any of the warm water Gulf areas)....I won't. :D

Full disclosure: I began my professional career as a maintenance analyst for the aviation unit of the US Coast Guard....and seen more corrosion than I care to see....from warm water airfields. I also was suckered into seeing a 172....in southern Florida. Never again.
 
The guy across from me has a Skyhawk XP. 195hp. Burns more gas than my Mooney to go slower. Cosmetics are worse, and the panel really really sucks. Oh, and it cost more than my Mooney too.

You forgot to say, "neener neener".
 
The guy across from me has a Skyhawk XP. 195hp. Burns more gas than my Mooney to go slower. Cosmetics are worse, and the panel really really sucks. Oh, and it cost more than my Mooney too.
Yabut the 195 hp 172 will be at pattern altitude while yer still trying to raise yer gear...
 
You're right....and as long as it's in Florida (or any of the warm water Gulf areas)....I won't. :D

Full disclosure: I began my professional career as a maintenance analyst for the aviation unit of the US Coast Guard....and seen more corrosion than I care to see....from warm water airfields. I also was suckered into seeing a 172....in southern Florida. Never again.
And I was a Chief Engineer in the Navy. I know corrosion.

My point is simply there is a huge difference between a 172 sitting out on a ramp or in a bare bones T-hangar and a vintage airplane that has been lovingly cared for in a climate controlled hangar.

My Twin Beech wasn’t the only airplane in that seller’s hangar. The other 3 were just as clean. Meanwhile, the airfield was littered with junk airplanes rotting on the line.

Like I was saying, I wouldn’t bother even looking at Travelocity for a 172 there. But I have absolutely no regrets over my airplane that came from Florida.
 
Well I'm going to be down in Aguadilla this weekend probably if anyone wants me to look. Having just flown this route a bunch in the 414 (and flying it more soon), I'm pretty familiar.

To answer Tom's question:

TJBQ - MDPP - MBPV - MYEF - MYNN - KFXE

Longest leg is 227 nm. I'm not familiar with the airplane's performance but that strikes me as pretty easy to do for almost any airplane other than a 150, and you probably could even skip a stop or two. The route never has you too far from land. Still want to take a life raft, of course, as well as a PLB. An InReach would be worth it as well. It would actually be a really fun trip.

Main problem in my mind with that plane is it's probably a giant ball of corrosion from being down there in the hot, salt air.

If you hit San Juan, beers on me.
 
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For a vanilla 172, you’re probably right. Not worth the time to look. But I wouldn’t automatically rule out a Florida airplane just because

Since it's a 195hp R172K, maybe there's a higher chance it has corrosion treatment from a factory floatplane option than if it were a 172L/M/N/P perhaps?
 
Well I'm going to be down in Aguadilla this weekend probably if anyone wants me to look. Having just flown this route a bunch in the 414 (and flying it more soon), I'm pretty familiar.

To answer Tom's question:

TJBQ - MDPP - MBPV - MYEF - MYNN - KFXE

Longest leg is 227 nm. I'm not familiar with the airplane's performance but that strikes me as pretty easy to do for almost any airplane other than a 150, and you probably could even skip a stop or two. The route never has you too far from land. Still want to take a life raft, of course, as well as a PLB. An InReach would be worth it as well. It would actually be a really fun trip.

Main problem in my mind with that plane is it's probably a giant ball of corrosion from being down there in the hot, salt air.
Thanks Ted,
 
Well I'm going to be down in Aguadilla this weekend probably if anyone wants me to look. Having just flown this route a bunch in the 414 (and flying it more soon), I'm pretty familiar.

To answer Tom's question:

TJBQ - MDPP - MBPV - MYEF - MYNN - KFXE

Longest leg is 227 nm. I'm not familiar with the airplane's performance but that strikes me as pretty easy to do for almost any airplane other than a 150, and you probably could even skip a stop or two. The route never has you too far from land. Still want to take a life raft, of course, as well as a PLB. An InReach would be worth it as well. It would actually be a really fun trip.

Main problem in my mind with that plane is it's probably a giant ball of corrosion from being down there in the hot, salt air.

This is what I was thinking last night as I looked, but I have no standing to post that for someone due to inexperience. That said, I don't know if I would want to attempt this in a new to me airplane with essentially an unknown engine history.
 
Since it's a 195hp R172K, maybe there's a higher chance it has corrosion treatment from a factory floatplane option than if it were a 172L/M/N/P perhaps?
One would simply have to go look, and do the proper pre-buy.
at the price listed it may just be worth it.
 
One would simply have to go look, and do the proper pre-buy.
at the price listed it may just be worth it.
so....how much in airfare and your time is that gonna cost?...and at the end of the day, it's still sitt'n across the water in Rico.
 
This is what I was thinking last night as I looked, but I have no standing to post that for someone due to inexperience. That said, I don't know if I would want to attempt this in a new to me airplane with essentially an unknown engine history.

As with anything, this is a judgement call and a personal decision that someone has to make for him or herself.

Personally, I'd view the risk to be not too terrible if the engine looked good on the prebuy. If you look at that route, you're never more than a maximum of about 100 nm from land (and in reality it's less than that). Bring along a raft and a PLB or an InReach (the latter being better since that allows 2-way communication with emergency services), fly during day VFR on good weather days and even if it does end up in the water you shouldn't be there all that long before help arrives.

If done correctly, it could be a fun adventure spending some time in each of the islands on the way home.
 
The yokes even look corroded in the pictures.
 
The yokes even look corroded in the pictures.
Pretty typical for the cast aluminum yokes, There are worse here. sweaty hands and bare aluminum do not work well together.
 
As with anything, this is a judgement call and a personal decision that someone has to make for him or herself.

Personally, I'd view the risk to be not too terrible if the engine looked good on the prebuy. If you look at that route, you're never more than a maximum of about 100 nm from land (and in reality it's less than that). Bring along a raft and a PLB or an InReach (the latter being better since that allows 2-way communication with emergency services), fly during day VFR on good weather days and even if it does end up in the water you shouldn't be there all that long before help arrives.

If done correctly, it could be a fun adventure spending some time in each of the islands on the way home.
Lots of folks here believe everyone would fly down, jump in it and head out.
 
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