Starting back, again.. Cessna 162 Skycatcher this time

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Brad W

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NE Florida
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So yesterday was a nice scattered cloud kind of day, no wind, so I called to see if by off chance there was a plane and CFI available. Sadly no available instructors that would fit in their smaller planes which were available....bummer, woudl have been a great day for it.
next weekend is no good for me, so I went ahead and booked something 2 weekends out

Decided to book it in their C-162 Skycatcher. A little cheaper and it seems like it's more available than their fleet of tired C-172's and 150's. I figured it's would be another plane to add to my list + I have no experience flying behind a fully "glass" panel so that could be an added bonus of experience. I'm looking forward to it! It looks like the wing loading is a hair more than the 150 and 152...so I'm thinking the ride shouldn't be any worse at least....
then again, maybe there is a reason it seems to be more available....

I had to go look, the last time I flew anything smaller than a C-172 was Sept 1999. That was a joy ride in a 152 on a windy day, and it woke me up for sure....

I guess I'll find out about the little LSA, and can always switch to a different type for my second flight.. no doubt it'll take a few flights to get current again...it's been a while. My last flight behind the controls was early 2020 in a C-172...and the last time I was current and proficient, it was 2002 and 2003, a bunch of flights renting a C-177RG
 
Brad W said:
So yesterday was a nice scattered cloud kind of day, no wind, so I called to see if by off chance there was a plane and CFI available. Sadly no available instructors that would fit in their smaller planes which were available....bummer, woudl have been a great day for it.
next weekend is no good for me, so I went ahead and booked something 2 weekends out

Decided to book it in their C-162 Skycatcher. A little cheaper and it seems like it's more available than their fleet of tired C-172's and 150's. I figured it's would be another plane to add to my list + I have no experience flying behind a fully "glass" panel so that could be an added bonus of experience. I'm looking forward to it! It looks like the wing loading is a hair more than the 150 and 152...so I'm thinking the ride shouldn't be any worse at least....
then again, maybe there is a reason it seems to be more available....

I had to go look, the last time I flew anything smaller than a C-172 was Sept 1999. That was a joy ride in a 152 on a windy day, and it woke me up for sure....

I guess I'll find out about the little LSA, and can always switch to a different type for my second flight.. no doubt it'll take a few flights to get current again...it's been a while. My last flight behind the controls was early 2020 in a C-172...and the last time I was current and proficient, it was 2002 and 2003, a bunch of flights renting a C-177RG
Click to expand...


@SkyChaser has been renting a C162 recently and can probably tell you a bit about it.
 
The Skycatcher is a fun little bird. It is definitely light and enjoys bouncing around in the air, but it's not bad for an hour or two. It might get tiring after that, but I haven't taken it cross-country, so not sure! I've never flown a 150 or 152, so can't help with the comparison in that way. I will say that it's pretty "kite-y", it can be a handful when the winds aren't calm or near calm, and they don't come down very fast in a slip. That may just be my own rustiness with high wings and how they fly and land in general, though, as I hadn't flown a high wing since my first couple of lessons in early 2020 and spent very little time landing one.

Some of its other quirks include having a rather large prop for its size and a rather low-hanging tail. The landing attitude is a bit more finicky than I was used to, and quite a bit flatter than I normally flew in the Archer, but I was beginning to get the hang of it. I still haven't gotten to the point where I'm super comfortable in it yet, between the glass and the high wing and the airport, but one of these days...

I hope you enjoy the glass. I prefer the steam gauges, but that's probably just bias because I learned with them. Steam is easier for me to read and I'm not worried about accidentally messing them up and not remembering how to pull up the right page again. :cool: That said, both panels were working on my last flight, and if I could spend more time with the interface, I'd probably enjoy it more.

If you have any other specific questions about the plane, feel free to tag me or send me a PM, and I'll do my best! Have fun! Maybe one day, @2-Bit Speed and I will run into you at the airport! :)

Half Fast said:
@SkyChaser has been renting a C162 recently and can probably tell you a bit about it.
Click to expand...

I think he's actually planning to rent the same exact 162 I have been renting!
 
Half Fast said:
I thought that might be the case so I tagged you. There probably aren’t very many 162s for rent in NE Florida.
Click to expand...
I've only been able to find the one place somewhat nearby, so that makes sense!
 
Yes! I remember messaging with SkyChaser a time or two about it. Back then I had little to no interest in it....
I had recently watched an interesting couple videos on Skywagon University youtube channel about the 162. Feel like I learned quite a bit, and had a good look at it. It looked ok...and with that in the back of my mind when i called had me more open to it as an option.​
and thinking it through, cheaper, maybe more available to rent, and probably at least good enough for me to run through the basics in getting the rust knocked off....might be a win all around.

The only down side I can see at this point is that when I get checked out to rent it, it won't be the best airframe to take my wife along, especially if it's kitey in the bumps.... and no back seat for my kids...so I'll have to get checked out to rent other things eventually...
​
and yes, it would be nice to meet ya'll!

I feel the same way about round dials. You want to know something you look THERE. Same place every time.
and switching to a different airplane, yeah, no problem. A given dial might be in a slightly different place, but it still looks and acts the same as it does in that other plane. Still, it seems like situational awareness can be greatly improved with this new stuff, and I figured a little experience behind this...even though it's very old glass tech at this point... will probably be good for me. I'm looking forward to playing with it.

side note: I find it interesting that this particular school requires airframe specific checkouts...it's not check out in one of their 172's let's you rent any 172 on the line. In fact what I remember back in the day with some other places, a check out in a 172 would let you rent their 172's or their 152's or their 150's. Maybe a little something to do with the glass panel things.... one has a garmin xyz, the other has something else, and the other has an old fashioned attitude gyro.... too dissimilar​
 
Brad W said:
side note: I find it interesting that this particular school requires airframe specific checkouts...it's not check out in one of their 172's let's you rent any 172 on the line. In fact what I remember back in the day with some other places, a check out in a 172 would let you rent their 172's or their 152's or their 150's. Maybe a little something to do with the glass panel things.... one has a garmin xyz, the other has something else, and the other has an old fashioned attitude gyro.... too dissimilar
Click to expand...


Another possibility is that some of the planes might be leasebacks, with separate insurance policies each requiring a checkout.
 
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