- Joined
- Apr 15, 2020
- Messages
- 12
- Reaction score
- 2
Hey guys,
I have a feeling that the current crisis will unfortunately soften up the market for airplanes. So I figure I'll try to make lemonade from lemons and possibly buy my first plane! I'm not in a rush to buy, but I want to be ready if a good opportunity pops up.
I want my first aircraft to have low acquisition costs (budget of $35k or less), low operating costs (low fuel burn and overhaul costs), low insurance costs (cuts taildraggers out), low annual inspection costs (cuts retractable gear out), a cruise speed of at least 100mph, 4 seats (though 2 will almost always be empty), a good fun-factor to it, the range for some regional exploring, and the ability to operate from short-ish grass and gravel strips when loaded light. I want to go camping and also hit some beaches once I get the proper training to do some backcountry flying. I operate near MSL and my fiancee and I weight 280 lbs combined.
I'm a low-time pilot with about 150 hours, half of them in a PA28 140/160. I enjoyed the PA28 much more than the C172s I got my PPL in, so I initially gravitated toward the PA28. They cost about 30% less than comparable horsepower C172s (holding instrumentation and TSMO equal). I also believe their build quality is generally superior, and their nose landing gear is much stronger, which is relevant for off-airport use. Obviously wing clearance on poorly-maintained strips is an issue, and you can't camp under the wing. However, to get good short-field performance, I need to go up to the 180hp model, which burns more fuel, and is out of my budget range for acquisition costs anyway.
This has me thinking about the 150 or 160hp PA22. It seems like decent ones can be had for $20k +/- 5. They give up surprisingly little in cruise to the PA28, and get good short field performance from a 150 or 160hp o320 that doesn't guzzle gas and isn't terribly expensive to overhaul. I just got out of the Army, where I served as a Blackhawk mechanic and crew chief. I didn't get my A&P because I moved into a flight company, but I do think I could get an A&P or IA to let me help with annuals, engine work, etc. I'll be finishing my masters in mechanical engineering next month and have been itching to wrench on aircraft since I left the Army in December, so I think I'm equipped to shave some maintenance labor hours off of my cost of ownership.
My biggest issue is that I live in Eastern MA, and hangar rentals seem very expensive. Tie-downs are actually quite reasonable, and I was wondering if you guys could give me some input on how to keep a fabric-covered aircraft from deteriorating while tied down. I was thinking I could get a full-topside cover, or at least wing covers. I don't know what the best route is though.
First, I'd love to get some input, offers, etc. on what I've said.
Second, I'd love someone to audit these expected costs:
- Fuel burn ($5/gal @ 9gal/hr) - $45/hr
- Insurance for low-timer ($900/yr @ 100hr/yr) - $9/hr
- Tie-down costs ($1000/yr @ 100hr/yr) - $10/hr
- Overhaul reserve ($18000 / 2000hr) - $9/hr
- Annual - no idea.
- 100 hr - no idea.
- Other maintenance - no idea.
- Re-covering reserve - no idea.
I guess my biggest issue is that I don't have any experience with fabric-covered aircraft, so I don't really know what to expect. Would it be preferable to go with an all-metal PA22? If so, would I be giving up a lot of performance?
Thanks!
Steve
I have a feeling that the current crisis will unfortunately soften up the market for airplanes. So I figure I'll try to make lemonade from lemons and possibly buy my first plane! I'm not in a rush to buy, but I want to be ready if a good opportunity pops up.
I want my first aircraft to have low acquisition costs (budget of $35k or less), low operating costs (low fuel burn and overhaul costs), low insurance costs (cuts taildraggers out), low annual inspection costs (cuts retractable gear out), a cruise speed of at least 100mph, 4 seats (though 2 will almost always be empty), a good fun-factor to it, the range for some regional exploring, and the ability to operate from short-ish grass and gravel strips when loaded light. I want to go camping and also hit some beaches once I get the proper training to do some backcountry flying. I operate near MSL and my fiancee and I weight 280 lbs combined.
I'm a low-time pilot with about 150 hours, half of them in a PA28 140/160. I enjoyed the PA28 much more than the C172s I got my PPL in, so I initially gravitated toward the PA28. They cost about 30% less than comparable horsepower C172s (holding instrumentation and TSMO equal). I also believe their build quality is generally superior, and their nose landing gear is much stronger, which is relevant for off-airport use. Obviously wing clearance on poorly-maintained strips is an issue, and you can't camp under the wing. However, to get good short-field performance, I need to go up to the 180hp model, which burns more fuel, and is out of my budget range for acquisition costs anyway.
This has me thinking about the 150 or 160hp PA22. It seems like decent ones can be had for $20k +/- 5. They give up surprisingly little in cruise to the PA28, and get good short field performance from a 150 or 160hp o320 that doesn't guzzle gas and isn't terribly expensive to overhaul. I just got out of the Army, where I served as a Blackhawk mechanic and crew chief. I didn't get my A&P because I moved into a flight company, but I do think I could get an A&P or IA to let me help with annuals, engine work, etc. I'll be finishing my masters in mechanical engineering next month and have been itching to wrench on aircraft since I left the Army in December, so I think I'm equipped to shave some maintenance labor hours off of my cost of ownership.
My biggest issue is that I live in Eastern MA, and hangar rentals seem very expensive. Tie-downs are actually quite reasonable, and I was wondering if you guys could give me some input on how to keep a fabric-covered aircraft from deteriorating while tied down. I was thinking I could get a full-topside cover, or at least wing covers. I don't know what the best route is though.
First, I'd love to get some input, offers, etc. on what I've said.
Second, I'd love someone to audit these expected costs:
- Fuel burn ($5/gal @ 9gal/hr) - $45/hr
- Insurance for low-timer ($900/yr @ 100hr/yr) - $9/hr
- Tie-down costs ($1000/yr @ 100hr/yr) - $10/hr
- Overhaul reserve ($18000 / 2000hr) - $9/hr
- Annual - no idea.
- 100 hr - no idea.
- Other maintenance - no idea.
- Re-covering reserve - no idea.
I guess my biggest issue is that I don't have any experience with fabric-covered aircraft, so I don't really know what to expect. Would it be preferable to go with an all-metal PA22? If so, would I be giving up a lot of performance?
Thanks!
Steve
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