Piper Big Orders for Trainers

[Pilawt]

At my home airport, Lufthansa-owned Airline Training Center Arizona trains pilots for LH and for the German Air Force. The military trainees get to use the powerful, super-slick little Grob G-120A ...



... while up to now the LH trainees have been in their fleet of F33A Bonanzas.



Now, however, the Bonanzas are being phased out in favor of new Cirrus SR20s.

 

[N1120A]

To each their own. Businesses don’t sell capital assets out of fleets until they’ve wrung every bit of value out of them unless they leased them.

Plenty of better options out there than tired fleet dogs.

Hardly tired, in airplane years, and well equipped and maintained.

Well if you want some 172s we're selling a bunch as the most recent batch of Archers arrive in GFK over the next few months...

Not interested. I really dislike flying 172s.

 

[dell30rb]

I seriously doubt the C4 can hit the $250,000 price point. That was the number they started with in 2011, with deliveries starting in a wildly optimistic 2013. Like so many other developers they appear to have had no clue the time & $ it takes to get through the FAA certication process. Still waiting...

Biggest issue with those airplanes compared to a piper or a C172 is the unknown cost of maintenance, and how well they will hold up over time in a training environment. ERAU and others know they can get at least 6000 hours out of a PA-28 before the wings fall off.

 

[N1120A]

Biggest issue with those airplanes compared to a piper or a C172 is the unknown cost of maintenance, and how well they will hold up over time in a training environment. ERAU and others know they can get at least 6000 hours out of a PA-28 before the wings fall off.

Too soon!

 

[Rockymountain]

The new PA28's have the Garmin G1000 Nxi's. Saw some crossing the country on their way to California. Pretty nice looking birds. Still had that new plane smell. I think any student would feel pretty special to be flying in a new low wing technologically advanced aircraft.

 

[denverpilot]

The new PA28's have the Garmin G1000 Nxi's. Saw some crossing the country on their way to California. Pretty nice looking birds. Still had that new plane smell. I think any student would feel pretty special to be flying in a new low wing technologically advanced aircraft.

They better feel special for what they’re paying to do it at any of the big fleet schools. About $100 grand worth of special.