Transitioning Trainer Aircraft

Daniel B. Faria Filho

Daniel B. Faria Filho

Filing Flight Plan
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Mar 21, 2025
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Fitchburg, Massachusetts
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Daniel B. Faria Filho
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KFIT
Hello all! I am new this community.

I am a Student Pilot based off of KFIT (Fitchburg, Massachusetts) and had a quick question about transitioning aircraft:

How hard is it and how much time does it take to get used to new aircraft? I currently fly a C172N but was wondering how hard it would be to transition to a PA28 now or after I get my license just to try it out. Are the RPM settings different? are the v Speeds very different? Do you have to go up a few times with someone used to the aircraft? Do you have to study the POH to learn more about performance? etc.


I was just curious on how it works. Thanks a lot guys!!
 
Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
Hello all! I am new this community.
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Welcome!

Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
How hard is it and how much time does it take to get used to new aircraft? I currently fly a C172N but was wondering how hard it would be to transition to a PA28 now or after I get my license just to try it out.
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It's not particularly difficult. I got checked out in the PA28 in one flight the day after my Private checkride just to increase my access to airplanes for renting, and later joined a club with a couple of PA28s and a 182.

I won't say you'll be used to it in one flight, but those two aircraft are particularly easy to fly which is what makes them good trainers. I will say that I believe it's probably easier to start in the C172 and then get checked out in the PA28 than the other way around. The PA28's increased ground effect due to the low wing makes it feel like it lands itself after you're used to the Cessna.
Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
Are the RPM settings different? are the v Speeds very different?
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The settings will be very close most likely, but the V speeds are different. You'll need to learn them just like you would when transitioning to any other new aircraft.

Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
Do you have to go up a few times with someone used to the aircraft? Do you have to study the POH to learn more about performance? etc.
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If it's a rental, you'll almost certainly need to go up with one of their CFIs until you have convinced them you can fly it safely.

You need to study the POH, but it's not so much about performance, which will be fairly similar between those two airplanes. It's more about learning the new V-speeds, procedures, and limitations.

In any case, getting checked out in more airplanes after your checkride is an excellent thing to do. Have fun and fly safe!
 
your question reminds me of a time back when I asked a similar question and got a really good discussion going about the subject. I’m going to share that thread here.

I’ve flown a lot more types of planes since that thread, but my most recent I sought out formal transition training because it has very different systems to manage and in such cases it’s more important to get good training.

But, you'll see a lot of good coverage of how it will be different if you read my old thread.

But it also sounds like you’ve got the right idea. Know your v speeds, study the poh and sit in the plane and make sure you know what everything is and how it works before you’re in the air.

Have fun!

Salty

Thread 'Flying an unfamiliar aircraft type'

Let's say I have the opportunity to fly a PA-28-140 and I've never flown any model Cherokee before.

I have roughly 215 total hours, 130 in the last year, 110 in a complex (Mooney), experience in roughly 7 different aircraft total.
I tend to learn very quickly, have always gotten through any transition training I've done with limited hassle, also, I do my homework on vSpeeds and quirks of the model and such.

So basically I'm looking for opinions on whether it's just foolhardy and pointless not to at least fly with someone with experience once or use this as an opportunity to stretch my...
 
I guess the first question is which PA28 and which C172?

The PA28s are 140-180 hp 4 cylinder engines and the 172s can be 4 or 6 cylinder models of 145 -160 hp.
 
Clip4 said:
I guess the first question is which PA28 and which C172?

The PA28s are 140-180 hp 4 cylinder engines and the 172s can be 4 or 6 cylinder models of 145 -160 hp.
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Don’t forget the PA28-235. Although I don’t suppose there are too many of those around.
 
In my experience, the first couple “different types” of aircraft you transition to, it will be somewhat challenging, and get easier and easier the more types you have under your belt.

It’s great experience though. Do it!
 
My biggest takeaway from flying a PA28 after learning to fly in C-150s and then renting 172s was that the Piper felt uncomfortably heavy and sluggish. I didn't particularly care for it. But the 172 felt heavy and sluggish after the 150, too. Others find the Cherokees smooth and solid and think the Cessnas are light and skittish by comparison, it depends on your preferences.

Some have said that the Cessna is easier to fly, but more difficult to fly well, and I'd agree with that.
 
My transition was pretty easy. Like people said here, they fly pretty much the same, landings are easier especially cross-wind landings
Biggest thing is fuel management, switching tanks, full tanks vs “tabs”.
 
flyingcheesehead said:
I will say that I believe it's probably easier to start in the C172 and then get checked out in the PA28 than the other way around. The PA28's increased ground effect due to the low wing makes it feel like it lands itself after you're used to the Cessna.
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Dana said:
the Piper felt uncomfortably heavy and sluggish
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It's funny, as a guy who started out in Archers and Warriors, I'd say just the opposite. When i started flying the 172, it felt so sluggish to respond to control inputs, and it felt like it was so light that it would float forever. I think the pa-28 is more fun to fly, and maybe just a tiny bit more challenging.

To address the questions...an hour or two with an instructor will likely do it. Landing them is a bit different, which might take a few reps for a newer pilot to catch on to.

You'll ALWAYS need to study the POH when flying a new plane, even one very similar to one you've flown before. V-speeds, limitations, and systems, procedures. All can change.

Fuel management is important in the Piper; more than one has landed in a field with one tank empty and one full, usually by a pilot who started out in a cessna.
 
Learning a new plane has always been fun to me. The first couple after training in the same plane for 700hours until I got my ppl (that means I’m above average, right?) were nerve wracking but once you fly a pattern or two you realize oh, it’s just another airplane.
 
Clip4 said:

Transitioning Trainer Aircraft​

Where are you flying a 235 as a trainer aircraft?
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I have trained a private pilot in a 235. But it was his airplane (3 way partnership). He has since transitioned to an RV10.

Brian
CFII/Asel
 
Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
Hello all! I am new this community.

I am a Student Pilot based off of KFIT (Fitchburg, Massachusetts) and had a quick question about transitioning aircraft:

How hard is it and how much time does it take to get used to new aircraft? I currently fly a C172N but was wondering how hard it would be to transition to a PA28 now or after I get my license just to try it out. Are the RPM settings different? are the v Speeds very different? Do you have to go up a few times with someone used to the aircraft? Do you have to study the POH to learn more about performance? etc.


I was just curious on how it works. Thanks a lot guys!!
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It depends. The first transition is typically the most difficult, even it it's supposedly an easy one. Think back to the first time you drove a car other than the one you learned on after you first learned to drive. Now, the biggest deal if you rent a car is figuring out how the radio works! The transition itself will involve flight training and a ground component; you may well be asked to answer a questionnaire, like you did with your presolo knowledge test, but more focused on aircraft operation and finding things in the POH.

Most depends on you and how you adapt to the differences. Depending on the transition, it can take one lesson or several. It's not even about native ability. FWIW, I went on a tear after I got my private. I added 3 types to the one I learned in within 2 months after my checkride and was renting at two different airports.

172N to PA28? Most signification differences are low wing, different picture in the flare, boost pump, the need to switch tanks, and the absence of a car beat preventive SOP.
 
I have owned both ,it’s always fun to fly a different airplane. Study the POH. Renting to get current in a new model can get expensive find some pilot friends and fly with them.
 
Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
how hard it would be to transition to a PA28 now or after I get my license
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Greg Bockelman said:
Don’t forget the PA28-235. Although I don’t suppose there are too many of those around.
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Clip4 said:
Where are you flying a 235 as a trainer aircraft?
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I flew a Dakota (PA-28-236) to Florida before my plastic certificate even arrived. I had less than 100 hours. Transitioning to a 6 cylinder PA28 is not at all far fetched.
 
You will find it rather an easy transition. I went from a PA28 to a C-150 (a long time ago.) I now own and fly an Ercoupe, "hershey bar" wing on the bottom (where a wing belongs ;)) - similar to the Piper.
 
midlifeflyer said:
boost pump, the need to switch tanks
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Those there. After learning in a Cessna it's easy to forget to switch tanks in most low-wing airplanes. And on a hot day or high airport, vapor lock can be a real hazard, hence the boost pump.

Low-wing airplanes lack the advantages of gravity flow found in basic-high-wing airplanes.
 
As others have said, shouldn't be a big deal, and of course would recommend going up with an instructor first time because they're a little different. I just jumped in to say that you should keep in mind that within the PA28 family there are differences, as folks have mentioned. Not huge things, but there are 2 different types of wings, "Hershey" and tapered, and they land a little bit differently. Some PA28's are knots, some are MPH. The trim knob is in a different spot on the older ones. A few are fuel injected, and at least some of the higher powered ones have a variable speed prop. In all of them, there's the fuel selector knob. Left is often a good choice, right is often a good choice. The space in between those is never a good choice. Not a big deal if you're aware and don't make too many assumptions, just sort out what you're flying and have fun.
 
Greg Bockelman said:
Don’t forget the PA28-235. Although I don’t suppose there are too many of those around.
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There's also the PA28Rs (200hp with folding legs) and the C172SP (180hp) not counted in the previous poster's description. The 172SP is much more likely to be available for a new pilot to rent, though.
 
I was about 10 hours post PPL all in 172s when I bought an PA-28R-200 (just to add to the PA-28 varieties). Insurance required 15 hours transition training and I needed to get my complex endorsement, so knocked both of those out in a 3 day weekend. To me it was night and day difference between the two, but I was comfortable in the Arrow after the 15 hours with an instructor.
 
Clip4 said:
I guess the first question is which PA28 and which C172?

The PA28s are 140-180 hp 4 cylinder engines and the 172s can be 4 or 6 cylinder models of 145 -160 hp.
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6 cylinder 172?
 
You always need to study the POH for each aircraft. Even the same aircraft type with different avionics can be a learning curve. Now in good VFR weather, I think you can literally fly anything if you have the basic stick and rudder skills, can read the airspeed indicator, etc. You start to learn the quirks of each particular airplane with experience. Go up with another pilot or instructor to show you around.
 
I made that transition when I was a student pilot 172 to an Archer. I thought the Archer was a little easier to fly but overall they're pretty comparable aircraft. Just remember to switch your fuel tanks, I think that's the only real gotcha beyond learning slightly different speeds/sight pictures.
 
cowman said:
I made that transition when I was a student pilot 172 to an Archer. I thought the Archer was a little easier to fly but overall they're pretty comparable aircraft. Just remember to switch your fuel tanks, I think that's the only real gotcha beyond learning slightly different speeds/sight pictures.
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The speeds aren’t even that different. My first* transition was the opposite - low to high wing. I remember that first turn to downswind in the pattern - “where the heck did the runway go? :D

(* my first formal checkout. I trained in a Tomahawk but did a night dual cross country in a Cherokee 180. I formally checked out in it after the 172.)
 
flyingcheesehead said:
There's also the PA28Rs (200hp with folding legs) and the C172SP (180hp) not counted in the previous poster's description. The 172SP is much more likely to be available for a new pilot to rent, though.
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And don't forget the 172 HawkXP with 200 hp and a constant speed prop - The FBO I did my ratings at had one and no one flew it so they dropped the rate and I flew it a bunch. Nice flying plane once you put a sandbag in the baggage compartment to move the CG back a little.

As far as the original question, yes, fuel switching and boost pump but the panel layout will make more difference than how they fly. I flew the Archer a little during my training but didn't really get used to it until I did my instrument X/C in it. Now with a few hundred hours in it I like it a lot but my wife hates the one door.
 
Pugs said:
And don't forget the 172 HawkXP with 200 hp and a constant speed prop - The FBO I did my ratings at had one and no one flew it so they dropped the rate and I flew it a bunch. Nice flying plane once you put a sandbag in the baggage compartment to move the CG back a little.
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That’s an interesting rental issue. We had a 210 HP HawkXP at a flight school in Denver. Absolutely fantastic mountain performer. But few rented it because it was “different” even when the flight school included a mountain checkout at a reduced rate. So the owner removed it from leaseback.

The rental issue is broader than the XP. The unusual make and model rarely gets the rental play no matter how good it is,
 
Welcome to the mad house!
Daniel B. Faria Filho said:
it would be to transition to a PA28 now or after I get my license
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Wait until you get the license. That way you don't get things mixed-up on your checkride.

Get the POH and study it for a couple days, then you should be able to transition to the PA28 in a couple flight hours.

Biggest difference? If you forget to remove the chocks or the tie-downs, you'll have to ask your passenger to get out before you can get out to fix things. Makes you look extra stupid.
 
midlifeflyer said:
That’s an interesting rental issue. We had a 210 HP HawkXP at a flight school in Denver. Absolutely fantastic mountain performer. But few rented it because it was “different” even when the flight school included a mountain checkout at a reduced rate. So the owner removed it from leaseback.

The rental issue is broader than the XP. The unusual make and model rarely gets the rental play no matter how good it is,
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The required Hi-Perf endorsement wasn't a factor?
 
asicer said:
The required Hi-Perf endorsement wasn't a factor?
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Nope. The fleet (over a dozen airplanes) included several 182s which were flown fairly regularly.

The "unusual aircraft" in the fleet being underutilized was a common issue, regardless of make or model. With the XP, the weird part is its similarity to the other Cessnas in the fleet, but I saw the same thing when a flight school picked up a Cardinal, let alone something actually different like Mooney or Bonanza.
 
AV8R_87 said:
Biggest difference? If you forget to remove the chocks or the tie-downs, you'll have to ask your passenger to get out before you can get out to fix things. Makes you look extra stupid.
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When I rented in Colorado, we had cables running along the ground that we tied down onto. SOP was to pull the airplane across then before getting in and starting. The stated reason was to avoid powering over them, but I told people I checked out that the real reason was to not look stupid.
 
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