Talk Me Out of a Cirrus

Skymac said:
Seneca might fit the mission but gosh do I hate the way they fly, like a junk dump truck.
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The PA34 flies pretty much just like the PA32. It's not at all sporty, but it's not bad. It's got a big-plane feel to it, and is a solid traveling machine.
 
Roger Wilco said:
You’re batting two for five.
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Not at all sporty has to be one of them.

To me, having flown the 34 first, when I first got in a 32 it felt the same. Is that the second one?

"Not bad" is of course subjective. Like I said, not sporty at all. Not even what I would call "fun". But it's also not *bad*. Maybe I've just flown junkier airplanes than you. :rofl:

It feels bigger than it is, IMO. TBM is bigger but feels slightly more nimble than the PA32/34 IMO.

Solid traveling machine - I mean, it's not super fast, but it's comfortable.
 
The next hurdle is insurance. Finally heard back from the broker and I need an MEI with 50 hours of Seneca time. Not sure I can find that around here. Will have to pay @bbchien to come back down to Peoria. :cool:
 
NealRomeoGolf said:
The next hurdle is insurance. Finally heard back from the broker and I need an MEI with 50 hours of Seneca time. Not sure I can find that around here. Will have to pay @bbchien to come back down to Peoria. :cool:
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That's not too bad of a requirement for the MEI. We have a pair of weather modification Senecas parked on the ramp right now. Their season just ended and I bet at least one of their pilots is an MEI with 50+ hours of Seneca time and a McDonalds uniform that got too baggy over the summer to go back there this fall.
 
StraightnLevel said:
What are they wanting from you? How many hours in type? Recurrent training?
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Before acting as PIC, they want 25 hours with an MEI, including 5 hours instrument training. They want 25 landings to a full stop. Before carrying passengers I have to be "checked out" by an MEI with the plane at 90% or more gross weight. The MEI must have 1500 total time with 500 multi and 50 in type. My local MEI only has 5 in type. But he has 700 multi and 4850 total time.
 
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NealRomeoGolf said:
Before acting as PIC, they want 25 hours with an MEI, including 5 hours instrument training. They want 25 landings to a full stop. Before carrying passengers I have to be "checked out" by an MEI with the plane at 90% or more gross weight. The MEI must have 1500 total time with 500 multi and 50 in type. My local MEI only has 5. But he has 700 multi and 4850 total time.
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Everyone, all the time: It's impossible to get insured as a new multi pilot!
Actual insurance companies: It's a fairly common plane, it only has 6 seats, and it's not pressurized. Here's something totally reasonable and achievable. Why didn't you ask earlier?

I don't remember what my insurance needed for the 310, but my zero-to-hero AMEL rating was sufficient at 22 hours, 34 landings, 5 hours instrument, and 6 approaches prior to the check ride, more or less over the course of 5 consecutive days.

I like the 90%-max-gross checkout concept. In the sample Seneca loading sheet I saved from when I was shopping for a plane a few years ago (and have no memory if it's an X-Plane Seneca, one that I've seen on the ground, or just one that was listed for sale online), you need to land with 1,001 lbs of fuel, people, and stuff in the plane. The MZFW might be a factor in that plane but if you can land with 83 gallons left in the tanks (40 gallons burned during the lesson) then you only need 493 lbs of people and stuff on board. Maybe the plane comes with some old boxes of checks they never got delivered that you can use as ballast. :)
 
iamtheari said:
Everyone, all the time: It's impossible to get insured as a new multi pilot!
Actual insurance companies: It's a fairly common plane, it only has 6 seats, and it's not pressurized. Here's something totally reasonable and achievable. Why didn't you ask earlier?

I don't remember what my insurance needed for the 310, but my zero-to-hero AMEL rating was sufficient at 22 hours, 34 landings, 5 hours instrument, and 6 approaches prior to the check ride, more or less over the course of 5 consecutive days.

I like the 90%-max-gross checkout concept. In the sample Seneca loading sheet I saved from when I was shopping for a plane a few years ago (and have no memory if it's an X-Plane Seneca, one that I've seen on the ground, or just one that was listed for sale online), you need to land with 1,001 lbs of fuel, people, and stuff in the plane. The MZFW might be a factor in that plane but if you can land with 83 gallons left in the tanks (40 gallons burned during the lesson) then you only need 493 lbs of people and stuff on board. Maybe the plane comes with some old boxes of checks they never got delivered that you can use as ballast. :)
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So I haven't mentioned this here yet, but I don't even have my AMEL yet. I got 7 hours into it and didn't take the ride yet. So finishing it in this Seneca would ideally require a local MEI. There is one and he doesn't fit the bill.
 
You put an offer on a plane that you can’t fly and can’t get insurance for?
 
WDD said:
You put an offer on a plane that you can’t fly and can’t get insurance for?
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I didn't say I can't get insurance. I will have to find a non-local MEI. All it takes is money.

And yes I bought a plane I can't fly. I've done it before. I bought my Archer before I finished my PPL.
 
NealRomeoGolf said:
I didn't say I can't get insurance. I will have to find a non-local MEI. All it takes is money.

And yes I bought a plane I can't fly. I've done it before. I bought my Archer before I finished my PPL.
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Go big or go home! Hey - keep posting up about this journey.
 
NealRomeoGolf said:
I didn't say I can't get insurance. I will have to find a non-local MEI. All it takes is money.

And yes I bought a plane I can't fly. I've done it before. I bought my Archer before I finished my PPL.
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If the offer is accepted, take two weeks off, meet plane, CFI, DPE and knock it all out.
 
If you you take ownership of the plane, what insurance can you get to ferry it back to your hangar to wait while you get qualified to fly it?

While it sits in your hangar you could use the time for your mechanic to go over it thoroughly and take care of the squakws.
 
WDD said:
If you you take ownership of the plane, what insurance can you get to ferry it back to your hangar to wait while you get qualified to fly it?

While it sits in your hangar you could use the time for your mechanic to go over it thoroughly and take care of the squakws.
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I will have insurance day one. I can fly it all I want as long as a qualified MEI is along for the ride.
 
WDD said:
If you you take ownership of the plane, what insurance can you get to ferry it back to your hangar to wait while you get qualified to fly it?…...
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You don’t need insurance if you have hangar fairies to do that work for you.
 
If you need bodies to fill the seats for the 90% part, let me know.
 
So….. how is the negotiation coming along?
 
TCABM said:
When’s the single going on the market?
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It got posted on Monday I think? The Facebook group salivates over PA32s and I already have two guys fighting over it.

Ok, maybe not fighting, but very interested. No official offers just yet.
 
Nick Geber said:
Good advice. I have an Ovation3 with no factory O2. I often fly 13-18k and have a very useful portable Aerox M bottle. When I don't need it, I can save the weight of the factory O2. I live in Vegas and fly X-C alot. I haven't yet said "I wish I had a turbo". The O3 does great hot and high for TO and performs really well up to about 16k-17k. Above that it definitely feels the altitude. I have TKS inadvertent which I have had to use on occasion. As I mentioned in an earlier post, I have an old service injury on my left side that makes the Cirrus side stick very uncomfortable after a while. Cirrus are solid planes.
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It is always funny when you get into turbo or not discussions.

Those without a turbo say you don't need one. People with a turbo mostly say they would not own a non-turbo aircraft. :D

I am in the pro-turbo side. And yes, I have one now.
 
Pinecone said:
It is always funny when you get into turbo or not discussions.

Those without a turbo say you don't need one. People with a turbo mostly say they would not own a non-turbo aircraft. :D

I am in the pro-turbo side. And yes, I have one now.
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So... Why are you pro-turbo? What is your mission, especially in terms of leg length and number of pax?

IMO, it's all about the mission. I have wanted a turbo on occasion, but I fly enough short legs that I always come back to being glad I don't have one. And I hate how O2 dries me out, so I don't really want to go high unless I really have to - Getting over terrain, large bodies of water, etc - And that happens rarely enough that I'm OK with the performance I have. I've had my normally aspirated bird to FL190 once, 17,000 a few times, 15,000 a few more times, etc...
 
I’d be on board with a drop dead simple turbo normalize system that I didn’t have to worry about over boosting, but would give me sea level power up to 10- 12k.

Then again normal aspirated engines are costly enough. For this Southeastern / Midwestern flying flat lander it’s not something that is on top of the wish list.
 
ETA on closing ?
 
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