Finally ... new Enstrom 480B delivered!
After an 18 month wait, my new 480B was delivered on Wed. (The delay was due to issues with the Chelton software certification.) We immediately set out from the Enstrom factory in MI to our home base in NH. This 1000 nm flight was completed in 9.0 hours on the meter (11 hours on the clock including fuel stops in Chicago, Cleveland, and Elmira). The flight was as flawless as one could want – no acft squawks, and 30+ miles vis over the entire route.
The acft exceeds all expectations. Fit and finish are magnificent! Everything works. Enstrom went far beyond the call of duty to assure that I was pleased with the acft . Very easy to deal with, and even the CEO was personally involved.
IMHO, the 480B is the best kept secret in the light turbine category. The key numbers are very close to the Bell 206, for about 60% of the price – not inexpensive but quite a good value. The 480 is possibly the most pilot friendly of all the light turbines, and the safety record is superb, with only four accidents in the NTSB database since certification in 1994, with none of these involving fatalities.
Update 27.7.08: a few very minor squawks in the first 90 days, all quickly remedied. Support by my Enstrom dealer, Sharkey's Helicopters, Lebanon, NH, has been superb in evey respect. I am now completing the requirements for an add-on instrument-helicopter rating. The 480 is a delight to fly under the hood due largely to its relative stability and the effectiveness of the electric trim system. The biggest challenge in the IR training is learning the Chelton EFIS/FMS; this is an amazingly capable system which makes flying instrument approaches easier than most other systems I have used, as it provides both lateral and vertical guidance throughout the approach. However, it does take awhile to learn to put the capabilities of the Chelton to work. I have been unable to find a CFII-Helicopter who knows the Chelton system, so we (I and my instructor) are learning the Chelton together via the time honored methods of reading the manual and doing lots of experimenting.
EN48
Last edited by EN48; 27th Jul 2008 at 15:46.