Seawind, anyone know???

I have always been intrigued by this aircraft. I am not in the know about it, but I think it prudent that you check out the company's viability to support this airframe.
 
I got to ride with Dick Silva in his demo plane at Sun 'n Fun several years ago. It's like a rocket with water wings, great visibility, roomy interior. He's still working on certification so I think he's committed to supporting it, but, unless he gets adequate funding, you'll be looking at bearing the responsibility of keeping it airworthy will little "factory support".

http://www.generalaviationnews.com/?p=18550#more-18550

Still, it's a great design, imho.

More info at http://www.seawind.net/

Leavitt said:
Performance, usefull, maint cost, looking for a good amphibious plane that I can still get decent cross country performance.

http://www.controller.com/list/list.aspx?ETID=1&catid=1&Manu=SEAWIND&setype=1
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I rode in a Seawind in Alaska. What a blast!!! I don't remember how fast we were going when we buzzed the tower, but they asked us to do it again :). I don't know anything about it other than it was more fun than you should be allowed to have.
 
My Dad built one. He says it's squirrelly, not the easiest to fly. I've flown it a few times with him. It's fast. Visibility is great. But it takes getting used to since the engine is on top. My father knows a few people who have killed themselves in it, or crashed it, I think those were in water.
 
There is a Seawind owner on the red board, IIRC.
 
Does anyone know what the empty weight of a Seawind might be? I've often wondered about that engine mounting arrangement and all the extra structural strength required in the tailcone and fin to carry it.

Dan
 
Hey I know a seawind owner......

The plane is one of the best planes you will ever fly with your pants on or off. I have had mine up to 210 knots with a quartering headwind confirmed by ATC. Empty weight varies between 2400 and 2700lbs depending on the builder. Usefull could bring gross up to 4000, usually around 3600. I hold 112 gallons which will get me from NY to Fla....non stop.

The plane is only as good as the pilot!!:yesnod: It is not easy to fly untill you get use to it. As in any plane, you have to keep in front of it as you keep in mind it is reversed from all other planes with respect to the engine location.

There are currently a few for sale on the website and the forum......

http://www.seawindpilots.com/

http://seawindpilots.com/forums/

Either way; get a test flight.......

PS - I DON'T yell, "Clear Prop"
 
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Sticky1 said:
Hey I know a seawind owner......

The plane is one of the best planes you will ever fly with your pants on or off. I have had mine up to 210 knots with a quartering headwind confirmed by ATC. Empty weight varies between 2400 and 2700lbs depending on the builder. Usefull could bring gross up to 4000, usually around 3600. I hold 112 gallons which will get me from NY to Fla....non stop.

The plane is only as good as the pilot!!:yesnod: It is not easy to fly untill you get use to it. As in any plane, you have to keep in front of it as you keep in mind it is reversed from all other planes with respect to the engine location.

There are currently a few for sale on the website and the forum......

http://www.seawindpilots.com/

http://seawindpilots.com/forums/


Either way; get a test flight.......

PS - I DON'T yell, "Clear Prop"
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Question: What are the trim differences in the Seawind power on vs power off? The reason I ask is that there has been at least one Seawind crash that some attributed to a pitch down caused by loss of elevator authority following an engine failure. With the short tail moment and the fact that the empennage gets a huge amount of prop-blast, I could see where there might be a big difference in control authority with power on vs power off.

Care to comment?

Thanks,

Kyle
 
kyleb said:
Question: What are the trim differences in the Seawind power on vs power off? The reason I ask is that there has been at least one Seawind crash that some attributed to a pitch down caused by loss of elevator authority following an engine failure. With the short tail moment and the fact that the empennage gets a huge amount of prop-blast, I could see where there might be a big difference in control authority with power on vs power off.

Care to comment?

Thanks,

Kyle
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To start off with, which accident do you speak of...? The reason I ask is because many rumors have been going around; most, if not all, not true!

If you think about what you said;...."attributed to a pitch down caused by loss of elevator authority following an engine failure" . If one has an engine failure on landing you have to push the nose down to keep up the airspeed. We need to know more about where the plane was and what it was doing prior to the accident.

Anyway.....

Since the prop pulls the plane, the plane will nose down with power and pull up with the loss of power. All power settings should be done slowly. Completly the opposite of "normal" planes.

Power on no problem! Plane trims and flys hands off....

As with all planes, at lower speeds (less than stall) the rudder and elevator are ineffective. This is where a problem might show up if one does not keep up with the landing configurations. Personally, I really do not see an issue. Stall speed on my plane is about 58Knots. I land at 65 knots in the water and 70-90knots on land depending on the crosswind. On short finals I pull power to idle depending on the flap configuration and haven't had any problems. I have 2 years and over 100 hours in the plane.

Once again, If you are going to fly the seawind you need to be an experienced pilot, receive instruction from a seawind instructor, and you have to keep in front of the curve.
 
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All I know is, they look wicked-cool. Thanks, Sticky1, for your first-hand report. I had no idea they had that kind of performance, had assumed (for no good reason, clearly) that they were dogs like the Lake.
 
SCCutler said:
All I know is, they look wicked-cool. Thanks, Sticky1, for your first-hand report. I had no idea they had that kind of performance, had assumed (for no good reason, clearly) that they were dogs like the Lake.
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If you want to get sick...:yikes:...one of these days I will post some pictures.

I sold my cherokee 6 to get this plane and I am glad I did....!!!!!
 
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