I’ve done the twin thing already Adam. Owned a 310 for four years. Best plane I ever owned but there is no way I could afford to run one here in Europe. (I was living and working in N. America at the time).
I’ve done the twin thing already Adam. Owned a 310 for four years. Best plane I ever owned but there is no way I could afford to run one here in Europe. (I was living and working in N. America at the time).
Oh, I completely understand. Fuel prices are insane. The DA42 and the Tecnam P2006T are pretty much the only twins one could afford to run there, but we’re looking at $300K+ all of a sudden. Hopefully the future holds some innovation that can mitigate all of this.
Let’s see:
- grass strip
- range to the northern Med
- 140kts+
- good payload
What you really want is a C182RG with long-range tanks. 155kts @ 11g/h(ish), can load the family, the dog, the camping kit and, in a pinch, strap the bikes to the outside. She’ll still fly ;-)
Unfortunately, may not work within your budget.
You can not beat Mooneys for speed or range.
Maybe, but try to fit in 4 people for more than a few traffic patterns and you have to call ahead for a chiropractor to stand by after landing.
Jason,
Given your’re an american country boy, have a look at this classic Bellanca Turbo Viking available in England. It’s very cheap, but you are looking at an avionics job. I have never flown one, but they have style and – as Frank Holbert showed us – are great traveling machines.
Otherwise I’d say older Bonanza/Debonair, Comanche, C182. 182RG and TB20 will be a bit too tight on the budget.
Also, consider a Turbo Arrow. These sell for 45.000-70.000€ depending on avionics. I used to fly these and liked them as a touring aircraft. They’re very smooth and can handle 600-700 metre grass strips. Might be a tad tight on range, since they don’t go much faster than 155knots, even higher up. Mooney Js and Ks tend to start at 70.000, unless shagged.
However my observation is that on average, used aircraft in the UK tend to be more shagged than anywhere else in Europe. Also, their avionics tend to be quite laughable. In part, this has to do with how little expensive and modern avionics are legally required to fly IFR there (OCAS). An IFR equipped aircraft (by European standards), is called “airways” or “fully airways equipped” in the UK. And even then, they tend to have poor autopilots, etc.
Also, the pound is getting stronger and stronger these days and make aircraft from that market more expensive.
So the conclusion is C182 and if you need the speed, 182RG? 
BTW, when making that “4 adults means almost no fuel” argument, make sure to exclude the C182 because it can take 4 adults and 5-7h of fuel. The 182 airframe is draggy but with the RG you achieve good speeds (a bit less than the TB20) and when you take the TR182 (182RG with turbo normalization), you get more speed via altitude.
The 182 airframe is draggy but with the RG you achieve good speeds (a bit less than the TB20)
Nope, that’s the FG. The RG is slightly faster than a TB20.
