Originally Posted by
Rotorbee
Now back to the Cabri, which, we all can agree, is the better helicopter in probably every aspect, as is the Golf 7 compared to the Golf 1 (or the R22 A to the R22 Beta II).
Not necessarily. Perhaps if one only considers flight qualities, although IMHO I found it to be only different, not better. I posted my impressions much earlier in this topic. Somethings I like better, others not so much. Except auto's--those were unambiguously better! But if the issue is considered more holistically, economics is, as usual, a powerful force when considering what is "better". Until and unless the Cabri displaces a sufficient number of R22s in the training marketplace, it's not going to be better for business. If you are the prototypical budding professional helicopter pilot in the US, then you are going to be too poor, or too frugal, or both, to blow a lot more money on Cabri hours. And, since you are far more likely to get your first instructional gig instructing in R22s, prospective employers are going to be looking for familiarity with the Robinson type, especially given its more demanding characteristics in an instructional role. And in that marketplace, if you are a school that is dedicated solely to the Cabri platform, you may have trouble attracting students.
It's a classic chicken and egg problem. It remains to be seen if the marketplace considers the Cabri sufficiently better to displace a well established, well understood, and, one hopes, well run Robinson training ecosystem, at least in the US. However, it would not be unreasonable to expect that schools operating say three or four R22s might not replace one of them with a Cabri. That way the more well-heeled might have that choice, and it certainly seems reasonable that if they were keeping that many R22s sufficiently busy they might conceivably keep two R22s and a single Cabri equally busy. But that may be an overly simple supposition on my part when you consider that most such schools are already operating one or two R44s as well. Maybe the Cabri replaces one of the R44s, instead?
Great discussion. We'll know in another ten years or so how well the Cabri is doing in the US training market
