End of an era – and a great, low cost turbine for the right user:
https://www.controller.com/listing/for-sale/227345649/1966-commander-680v-turboprop-aircraft
@Adam nice looking and well presented airplane, good luck with sale. I do hope you managed to enjoy some trips after curating the airplane back to operational service.
The real question for all of us could be – what’s next ?
Good luck with sale !
(No, a few levels above my mission profile… ;-) )
I’m probably taking a little break from ownership. I’ve reached a part of my life where I’m starting to really grate at costs and restrictions on maintenance tied to certified aircraft. That Concorde battery that costs $3K when you could have had a much better LiPo battery for a third of the cost? Or the avionics costs, etc, etc. Then again, no experimentals exist that excite me either, so there’s that. Maybe the Gweduck.
But if I happen to stumble upon a really simple old Aerostar with a steam panel for a song and a dance, I might bite. 
AdamFrisch wrote:
Then again, no experimentals exist that excite me either, so there’s that.
If I was living in the US, there would be a few which i think are worth a look. Not necessarily pure experimentals but planes put into that cathegory for exactly the reasons you quote. Once all the red tape is out of the way, things can be quite exciting.
Yeah, I just can’t thing of any. RV’s leave me stone cold. Most of the other, like Kitfoxes, Rotax things with a stick leave me cold also. I know it’s irrational, but I’m a yoke guy. I like high wings. I like two engines. Just nothing to be had in that category. The Gweduck is really cool, and they’ve just decided to make it as a kit, but it’s like $1M before all is said and done. I can get a beat up P180 Avanti for that (my ultimate dream plane)!
There was a bush plane called the DoubleEnder that was really cool, but don’t think they ever offered it as a kit. I know the Lockwood AirCam is selling like crazy and has huge following, I just don’t feel like spending $350K+ for a rag and tube plane. The Velocity Twin is cool, but there’s a part of me that want a bit more bush capability.
But that said, if I could find a little Cr-Cri for sale, I’d def jump at that. That’s my jam.
Cri Cri come up for sale regularly here. Usually at about €15000 including trailer to transport it.
I love them to bits.
A pal here has 2 of them plus a single engined Velocity. Really nice looking machine but blooming noisy. All these pushers seem to be noisy.
It’s not a cri cri but it is French all right…. and looks pretty much up your street
Amazing that this thing can be operated within Europe…. I wonder what this is operated under and how they get away with it. It’s a tad too heavy for an ULM I reckon :)
IIUC Michel Colomban the designer of the CriCri was also involved in the design of the MS Paris amongst other nice machines.
There is one ULM Cri Cri in France at Mendes but I have never seen it.
gallois wrote:
Michel Colomban the designer of the CriCri was also involved in the design of the MS Paris amongst other nice machines.
Many French airplane designs are pure work of art. My time on the Caravelle was a very happy time, it was a wonderful airplane. And there is not much denial that much of the European airplane design has it’s roots in France. Airbus would not exist without it (the A320 series has it’s roots in the Mercure and if one looks behind the scenes the first “Airbus” was not really the A300 but Concorde, which started the cooperation between France and the UK…. lovely airplanes.
The Paris is really something quite special too.
In GA, the Robins are excellent airplanes, so is the Socata Series.
I wish the French would have been more positive in their certifying and documentation habits though and also stop pulling the rug under many French designs by revoking the CoA for whole ranges of planes like the Caravelle and also Concorde. Since then, I am always anxious that they may do the same for certain GA types.
