stratobee
Cleared for Takeoff
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stratobee
Took a little ride in my buddy Steve's Turbo Commander 980 yesterday. He was kind enough to fly me up to see my old antique heep. Camarillo to Stockton and back. FL280. Just before us was a brand new TBM 900/930 on a conforming flight (they do final deliveries at CMA). After takeoff, ATC was like:
ATC: "You have traffic climbing at 2-3 o'clock at 9700ft"
US: "No factor"....as we busted through 12000ft and overtook it...
It's hard to keep up with a light TC with the Dash 10 engines. They haul a** and can do 3000-4000ft/min in climb without burning much more fuel than a TBM. This particular model, the 980, was one of the later ones Gulfstream produced before they finally shut down the line in 1985 with the 1000 model. Many in-the-know Commander people will tell you the 980 model is probably the best one they ever made.
My friend Steve has spared no expense on his. It started out as a bankruptcy sale that had been sitting for awhile, repossessed, unloved, but now it's like factory new. New engines, new paint, new interior, new panel - you name it and he's got it. Not cheap, but he got it the way he wanted it. Very impressive plane. I'm extremely jealous.
Wheeling it out at CMA.
New G600 panel with dual GTN’s. Steve put a clever additional PTT under glare shield. Smart addition as your hand tends to rest there naturally.
Brand new TBM900/930 on a conforming flight from delivery center at CMA ahead of us.
Notice the fuel flow during taxi and compare it with the later one in cruise. Almost identical – flying at 295kts costs the same as taxiing…
Watch your back! The old-timer is about to eat this lil' upstarts lunch…
FL280. If you take some mind altering drugs, you can almost see the curvature of the earth…
Steve leveling out.
Fuel flow at FL280. 420lbs/hr doing eventually 290-295kts (hot day with +17 ISA). It’ll do 300-305kts when colder.
G600 with two GTN’s. I'm a luddite and prefer steam, but can't argue with this. Very nice setup.
FL280 and accelerating towards 290-295kts.
Torque, EGT’s and prop RPM at FL280. At high altitudes you tend to be temp limited. Lower down you’re more likely to be torque limited.
Steve put new Q-tip Hartzell’s on, replacing the Dowty’s. No real performance difference or maintenance improvement, just easier to service and better support in the US. Maybe a little quieter than the Dowty’s.
Steve shows the appropriate tongue action for a landing.
Landing KSCK.
Clearance for return flight taken down.
Beautiful California from FL270 on return.
The sexier pointy spinners. It's an upgrade that does nothing except make it look faster.
Hope you enjoyed the trip as much as I did!
ATC: "You have traffic climbing at 2-3 o'clock at 9700ft"
US: "No factor"....as we busted through 12000ft and overtook it...
It's hard to keep up with a light TC with the Dash 10 engines. They haul a** and can do 3000-4000ft/min in climb without burning much more fuel than a TBM. This particular model, the 980, was one of the later ones Gulfstream produced before they finally shut down the line in 1985 with the 1000 model. Many in-the-know Commander people will tell you the 980 model is probably the best one they ever made.
My friend Steve has spared no expense on his. It started out as a bankruptcy sale that had been sitting for awhile, repossessed, unloved, but now it's like factory new. New engines, new paint, new interior, new panel - you name it and he's got it. Not cheap, but he got it the way he wanted it. Very impressive plane. I'm extremely jealous.
Wheeling it out at CMA.
New G600 panel with dual GTN’s. Steve put a clever additional PTT under glare shield. Smart addition as your hand tends to rest there naturally.
Brand new TBM900/930 on a conforming flight from delivery center at CMA ahead of us.
Notice the fuel flow during taxi and compare it with the later one in cruise. Almost identical – flying at 295kts costs the same as taxiing…
Watch your back! The old-timer is about to eat this lil' upstarts lunch…
FL280. If you take some mind altering drugs, you can almost see the curvature of the earth…
Steve leveling out.
Fuel flow at FL280. 420lbs/hr doing eventually 290-295kts (hot day with +17 ISA). It’ll do 300-305kts when colder.
G600 with two GTN’s. I'm a luddite and prefer steam, but can't argue with this. Very nice setup.
FL280 and accelerating towards 290-295kts.
Torque, EGT’s and prop RPM at FL280. At high altitudes you tend to be temp limited. Lower down you’re more likely to be torque limited.
Steve put new Q-tip Hartzell’s on, replacing the Dowty’s. No real performance difference or maintenance improvement, just easier to service and better support in the US. Maybe a little quieter than the Dowty’s.
Steve shows the appropriate tongue action for a landing.
Landing KSCK.
Clearance for return flight taken down.
Beautiful California from FL270 on return.
The sexier pointy spinners. It's an upgrade that does nothing except make it look faster.
Hope you enjoyed the trip as much as I did!
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