This was Sunday’s 100 Euro Ice Cream:
The history of this:
A week ago, I got checked out on the Piper Archer – as I had planned for this Spring. I’ll be doing my next few flying trips in the Piper.
Before I take passengers, I wanted to make sure to get some solo flying done on the type. It’s not very reassuring if you take PAX and your fingers are searching for the buttons and levers while running through the check list… Better to make sure you know what to look for. The checkout with the instructor doesn’t really allow for those simple things to “sink in”, as you’re paying the guy and you don’t want to waste time just sitting in the cockpit and “taking it in”.
We had good weather all week but I had no time to fly. Then on Saturday, when I wanted to fly, it was IMC most of the time. Finally, on Sunday I had a chance to fly for a bit. I would have done traffic patterns, but those are not allowed on weekends after 13:00 LT for noise abatement at EDLE – so I had to fly somewhere. I wanted to minimize the flying time (as this was mostly about just being in the cockpit on the ground and getting some more landings done) so I picked the closest grass field I could find – Kamp-Lintfort, a mere 10 minute flight. I had never been there before.
When I did that and spoke to some people, I realized that in a way, I’m rather the opposite from other PPL flyers. I hardly know any of the local fields and when I fly, I usually fly places. Most local pilots seem to be very familiar with those local “mini destinations” but rarely venture out further. This is no news, but it just became obvious to me again this weekend.
The aircraft is a very nice 2005 Piper Archer III PA28-181 with an Avidyne glass cockpit and very enjoyable to fly. The ice ream was a strawberry-flavored 2015 Cornetto and also very enjoyable.
That’s a nice airplane. I like the Archer III a lot. It was a sensible upgrade of the Archer II and it offers safe flying and a good cabin for not too much money. My ice creams are more expensive … unfortunately. And I have to buy 3 of them too :-)
It was a sensible upgrade of the Archer II
What did you find was an improvement in the Archer III over the II, I wonder?
I too think it’s a nice plane, but it got heavier (aircraft always do), the glareshield panel is somewhat inconvenient and restricts lookout, and the xx1 wing is more complicated to build and has slightly worse handling qualities IMO for a low single digit speed increase that never really materialized, compared to the xx0 wing…
Well, of course those are not very important facts, but I think the higher window line and new cowling plus the new paint schemes gave it a much more modern look, and I actually liked the overhead panel. Looks very professional too :-)
The tapered wing (introduced with the Cherokee Warrior in 1973) is (if that is what you are talking about!) a great wing. I’ve flown my 28-151 for twenty years and it’s really the nicest landing and safest airplane I know. There’s really almost nothing you can do to make a Warrior spin, or bite, and it doesn’t develop the high sink rates when you pull the power like the “Hershey bar” wing. For a beginner or low time pilot it’s definitely better, for a proficient pilot it really does not matter much.
There’s really almost nothing you can do to make a Warrior spin
I haven’t managed to spin the hershey bar either…
it doesn’t develop the high sink rates when you pull the power like the “Hershey bar” wing
That’s what I find the problematic bit of the xx1 wing. It can float forever. That doesn’t much matter for 3 mile runways, but for short runways, I like the hershey bar much better.
With the hershey bar, power to idle is almost autoland. It helps for IFR, where everyone now seems to expect low drag approaches, and for VFR, where you can’t see that damn runway until you’re almost over it. Or you can fly over a mountain ridge and then do a 20 degree approach to a mountain valley airfield without endless circling in the valley…
Well, flown with the right speeds my Warrior did not float once in 20 years :-) Any plane with long stretched wings will float if flown/landed incorrectly, of course.
and I actually liked the overhead panel. Looks very professional too :-)
With Alexis here – the coolness factor of the overhead panel coupled with the throttle lever (rather than the Cessna’s knob) is undeniable. 
