Twin performance

Does the DA42 have enough cabin space to wear a straw hat like Bob Hoover?

Does the DA42 have enough cabin space to wear a straw hat like Bob Hoover?

I'll be happy to slap an "Experimental" sticker on the airframe & try it out on behalf of the group.

The PA-46 issues were put down to pilot training. A fast slippery aircraft that routinely operates at FL250. The Vne is 198kts IAS but a lack of concentration in the descent can easily exceed it (just sticking it in V/S mode without paying attention will cause problems as you get lower). There is no adjustment for Vne at higher FLs in the POH.

Jetprop vs Meridian, it is worth noting that for the higher airspeeds/altitudes the Meridian is fitted with a larger tailplane amongst other changes from the Mirage. The Jetprop has the Mirage surfaces.

Worth of checking :)

This is some of the best flying you will ever see! Absolutely amazing....I think this was shot before the FAA revoked his medical....the Aussies came to the rescue with a 1st class medical and licence and airs how permit...it was several years before the FAA allowed him to regain his medical

This is some of the best flying you will ever see!

I agree :)

So I guess the conclusion is that training makes a difference :)

I’ll try to elaborate but the answer really is one of personal impressions.
The Baron is not that much bigger than a Seneca or Aztec or any of the other light twins. It feels like a light twin and climbing into it is like other light twins. Although the pressurised version is meant to be flown above FL100 it is equally comfortable at 3000 or even 1000 feet to do a bit of sightseeing.
My first impression of the King Air as I walked towards the steps was “This is blooming bigger than I thought”
Inside the cockpit area, it is more like an airliner, an old one, hedging towards a DC3 with less space. But that’s perhaps it was an older C90.
For me.the Baron was akin to driving a modernish Range Rover with full leather interior, whereas I felt the C90 was more akin to flying a small bus or 7 tonne lorry.
Of the C90 was designed for going up high and taking good photos from the cockpit was not part of the designers thinking.
As for the flying, both are equally stable in the cruise they just purr along at a reasonable if not sensational rate. The C90 being a bit quicker.
Both have good load carrying characteristics. In my terms they could carry everything I would have wanted to carry, with enough fuel to take me where I wanted to go.
My C90 experience however, was limited to the training environment, I learnt quickly it was not for me.
With the Baron my take off briefing was the same as any other light twin for EFAT.
The C90 you just kept going as if it had never happened but lowering the nose a little and pushing hard on the active engine pedal.
The surprising things about the C90 were full stalls, they were very aggressive, very much like a roller coaster whereas the Baron just nods, tight turns 45° and 60° bank, in the C90 felt very much like I felt filming from the back of a Red Arrows training flight, ie I just hoped I wasn’t going to puke and embarrass myself, it would have been horrendous for a non pilot passenger.
What was really impressive once I got over my initial nerves was touch and goes followed by full stop landings on a 600 metre runway, perched on top of a hill at about 1000ft (IIRC)
I didn’t try landing on grass in the C90 and probably never would if it could be avoided.
The Baron had no problem landing on a grass strip.
The C90 was a few hundred euros an hour more expensive to fly than the Baron but fuel costs per nm were about the same. Avgas in France being more expensive than Jet.
Eurocontrol charges apply to both if you fly IFR but IIRC they are based on tonnage and on route so each flight is different cost wise.
Also airfields which charge landing and parking fees also charge by the tonne. Southend for instance, around 2 years ago, was less than £100 for landing and overnight parking on a DA42 but my friend paid c£600 for his TBM700.
I can’t off hand remember the exact weights of the Baron or the C90, it’s a long time since I flew them.
The big downside for me in the Baron is Avgas, not only is it expensive in Europe and more likely to increase rather than decrease, but it is also becoming more difficult to get.
But given the choice I would rather own the Baron.
Hope this helps, but I will repeat that these are personal thoughts from anlong time ago.

gallois wrote:

What was really impressive once I got over my initial nerves was touch and goes followed by full stop landings on a 600 metre runway, perched on top of a hill at about 1000ft (IIRC)

Could you rotate after Vmca if taking off from such a short runway? I once saw a really awful NTSB animation reconstructing a King Air crash where the pilot rotated below Vmca and one engine failed immediately after the wheels left the ground. The aircraft crashed inverted before the pilot could have a chance of realising what had happened.

Yes on touch and goes you would always rotate above Vmca. V1 is normally kept above Vmca and in a t&g the aircraft will reach that speed within seconds of pushing the throttle forward. The impressive thing is the C90 appears to have so much safety margin for either t&gs or full stop on such a short runway.
I have flown to the same airfield in a Robin and in a PA44, no problem as long as you got speeds and aiming point exact.
It’s normal here to team up with another student or pilot to share flying, so you fly somewhere do some exercises, land and change pilot and go again. You get the advantage of learning by someone else’s flying.
My first flight was on the passenger bench, peering out through the door space as my flying buddy who was being revalidated by my instructor/examinert. As we approached for the first touch and go, I was convinced there was no way we were going to make it. Mainly because of what appeared the high speed of the final approach and I also thought we were never going to stop on a full stop landing.
Both of which we did comfortably.