Hello everyone, glad to find this site to learn about airplane ownership. I have been reading lots of postings about the decision process on buying a plane and I'm hoping to learn a lot more about which plane is best for our family. I have been thinking about buying my first flying contraption for a long time and always found an excuse why I should give up the search. I have entertained all types of flying and really thought I would end up building a quicksilver or aircam in my retirement. Last month my wife said she would love it if I stopped talking about it and buy us a plane the family could use for travel. I am a 50 year old airline pilot that hasn't flown GA in 20 years... yes, I want an autopilot. My wife has gone up with me in friend's planes and also a trike when I was considering buying a trike. She likes flying and even wants to take some lessons so she can be supportive on our trips. I have a lot of time to improve my GA flying knowledge and do my due diligence in finding the right plane. I'd prefer to take the extra time and get it right the first time. Ideally I'd like to be up and flying by summer 2021 so 9-10 months is the goal. We are a mostly short family with nobody over 5'9" (average 5'4"). Average weight of 130 pounds & a 65 pound dog puts the family at 850 pounds before any luggage or gear. Of course we could have some taller guests but just wanted to share the needs. The mission would have us using the plane instead of the SUV for our longer trips in the Southeast. Typical destinations we drive to are 300-500 miles with 3-5 people average. Dog on the longer trips. Hopefully we would also add in a nice 1400 mile trip up to Maine in the summer and who knows as the kids go off on their own lol. I'm leaning towards a singe engine, non-turbo, 6 seat, retractable airplane. I prefer the visibility in the singles and intend to use the plane as a mainly dav vmc traveller. My friend's love their cherokees so I thought a Saratoga was the plane for us but after reading here I think I need to think hard about the Bonanza. I am looking mainly at 1980s Bonanzas & Saratogas. Please let me know what you think of these 2 planes appropriateness for my family and any recommendations you have. Thanks!
Welcome aboard Lou ... I don't fly either aircraft, but there will be plenty of knowledgeable guys who do shortly (and some not so knowledgeable)
Can't go wrong with a PA32 or an A36. It really boils down to personal preference. Both are in roughly the same price range. The Bonanza handles better (IMHO) and I think is probably a little better built. But the PA32 is unquestionably roomier and, at least on the earlier models, has a better useful load (plus nose baggage). You ought to start by flying both. I'm fond of the PA32, but it does fly like a dump truck.
If the 1400 mile trip was excluded wouldn't a 6/300 be quite a bit cheaper, a bit more roomy and avoids retract. Not saying retracts are bad, just removes a variable in exchange for speed/fuel.
I did consider the Cherokee 6 but on the longer trips the speed difference seemed more than my wife would like with the limiting factor most likely being her bladder which has a max range of 3 hours... maybe 3 1/2 in a pinch. This summer we did a 9 hour drive with just 2 stops which was a record. If it is just us and the dog I could bring a potty but with others she would just have me stop which is totally fine. I don't mind going slow... she is the one with the lead foot lol. The 500 mile destination would likely be the one I would love to do in one leg if able... it is more closely 460 miles but you get the idea. I really do like the cost savings on the 6 though so ya never know.
I’ve got a short body Mooney That goes pretty quick and I still want more speed. I think it will be true no matter what you get. Calculate how much time you’d really save on Your trips. Might not be enough to be worth worrying about.
This is the easiest “what plane should I buy” thread of all time. The answer starts with Bo and ends with za. All other answers are incorrect. It is like the GUMPS check for selecting an aircraft - G et a Bonanza U ltimately you will get a Bonanza anyway M ight as well just get a Bo P ull the trigger on that A36 S ave your time and buy that Bo
So many good ideas. I have flown the 210 and it is a capable plane but not the one I want so it is off the list. If I end up with a single 6 seater I'm leaning hard on the Bonanza. I think I would love the Bonanza... who doesn't? Opening up the whole topic of which plane with friends brings up the question of "if you removed the 1 or 2 missions a year requiring a 6 seater..." makes me think I could have a lot of fun with a Mooney or a Bonanza 35. Then the wife hears "but why not have 2 engines" ugh but then I don't have a nice view. I thought this would be a simple decision.
For some reason, the 337 always reminds me of an OV-10. Which I think is one of the coolest looking aircraft.
If you were on the West coast, I'd offer to take you up in my Bonanza A36. I think you'll find that the perfect choice would be an early A36 with a modern panel, IO-550 and air conditioning. Plenty of useful load, a little bit narrower than a PA32, but significantly faster and definitely a nicer handling airplane. Certified in the utility category vs normal category for the other airplane choices. We can easily fly with 4-5 people and a Golden Retriever + luggage and full tanks. If you join Beechtalk (free membership), you can probably find an A36 owner in your area who is willing to show off their pride and joy. Edit/update - On the question of Bonanza 35 vs 36... The maintenance cost is going to be the same. given your weight requirements, family count and the dog, I don't think you want to lean towards a 35 - they are maybe a little more responsive handling and fun to fly, but they bring challenges with how your weight and balance envelope shifts rearward as fuel burns off and they don't have the big double doors in the back for loading that you get with a 36. The decision to choose 35 or 36 usually comes down to what you want to spend on acquisition. Once you're airborne, fuel burn and maintenance are the same.
I think you nailed the best options. I own a PA-32R-300 Lance. Big cabin, great useful load, around 150kts true with 15-16gph fuel burn rate. Comfortable and roomy. There are a few other Lance owners here who can talk about them. I don't know the A36 Bonanza as well but from what I know they're faster and are more sporty to fly, but with slightly less cabin space and useful load. The big thing for me is a Lance can be had for a LOT less $ than a comparable A36.
Thanks for the offer Jeb! I appreciate the 35 & 36 comparison too. That makes a lot of sense and the info I'm looking for. I'm going to keep soaking up the info I learn over the next couple months to find the best fit plane. I presume there are several good candidates.
Dang time flies. Since October I learned what I could about the Bonanza which I thought is where I would end up. I joined ABS, found a mentor, took the online courses and did my best to get myself ready to buy a plane. Then off to Sun N Fun with friends and they have me re-open my list of airplanes to buy and I will save you that list but I finally did it and I bought a Piper Seneca II. I'm officially 2 weeks into my first airplane ownership and doing what I can to keep up with the learning curve. I successfully updated the data cards... this was a first time for me so I elected to update the terrain cards too but one of those cards didn't survive so Garmin is sending me a new one. Next up is the annual so that'll be fun.
Congratulations on the Seneca. I would love to hear the rationale journey that began with an A36 or PA 32 and ended with a Seneca II.
Since you didn't mention money and if twins are an option. Diamond DA62. If not a DA62 the only right choice is a DC3. DC3 is always the right answer.
Congratulations! Did you look at the Baron at all? The Seneca is an excellent all-around choice and should be one of the cheaper twins to keep.
Congrats! What decisions ended up leading you to a twin? With you on the DA62. Just so much $$$. No love for the Beech 18 though?
I wonder if everyone has thoughts like these when they are buying an airplane?!?!? I really thought the V tail was going to be my plane with it's 5th and 6th seat option LOL. Ok fine I can make 4 seats work. Then my friend's take me to Sun N Fun in their Comanche and there is a lot of enthusiasm about Comanches. Great useful load and excellent speed and efficiency. Ok, so it's down to the Bo or a Comanche but first I need someone to adopt a few of my teenagers. Reality set in... that isn't going to happen and seating would be cramped so maybe I should go back to the Lance or Saratoga or just get a Bonanza 36 and solve all my problems. So I start to imagine my night flights and thinking about glide ratios and thinking I really want a second engine. Ok I'm going to reconsider twins. First thought was a Baron and the big door on the 58 would be great but a friend flying one explained the aft cg considerations. Ok fine maybe I should get an Aerostar, those seem to be priced right haha. I spent a few days looking at those, ignoring the costs of ownership as my wife looks over my shoulder saying they were ugly and why can't I just get a regular plane. Ok fine I told my wife I'd build an RV-12... by the time I was done building it the kids would be long gone and we'd be grandparents, 4 seats would be plenty and I won't care about having a second engine by then. My Vans build plan lasted 3 solid days until I learned deliveries were taking over 12 months. Honestly me building a plane is just a stupid idea but driving my wife nuts was kind of funny. I was just about to give up on buying a plane and go back to learning how to fly PPGs until I stumbled upon some guy youtubing his family's flights in their Aztec around the Southeast. The Aztec seemed like the right plane so I kept watching these until I ran out of Aztec videos and google started feeding me Seneca videos. Now I see this Seneca and I see a big back door, almost as good a useful load and seemingly efficient operating costs and counter rotating props. It seems to fill my buckets. I narrow it down to the Seneca II or III and here I am with a 1978 Seneca II. One of my goals was to buy a plane that wasn't as old as me so that goal was achieved. Here she is...
Beautiful plane and cool journey. The Aztec, Seneca, and Aerostar, in their own right, really excel in relative category. Speed (Aerostar), utility (Aztec), and overall compromise (Seneca). Enjoy!!
..the Google and YouTube algorithms are in full force, this showed up top center on my feed this morning. And of course, I fell in love.
